February Album Writing Month (FAWM) started officially today at midnight wherever you live. For the last 8 years, the site has provided a platform for songwriters to write 14 full songs during all 28 days of February. Members (or FAWMers as they like to call themselves) think of the event as a big, free, international songwriting workshop that allows people to participate remotely online instead of in person.

Everyone knows the best way to get your name and music out in the world is to perform live. But what if you can’t tour due to family and/or job responsibilities? One answer is to broadcast yourself live over the internet on USTREAM or a similar video streaming service. It’s something you can easily do from the comfort of your own home. In this post I’ll show you how to use this free software to start building a fan base from anywhere in the world.

So here we are, about six months into the existence of Serve The Song. I’d like to take this opportunity to thank all of you for reading, commenting, tweeting, and supporting this blog and the online songwriting community. I’d also like to take a moment to announce some future developments and ask for your opinions, ideas, and contributions.

Just a quick shout-out to a great cause that was recently brought to my attention by a supportive Serve The Song reader, @JohnRadcliff. The cause is Relay for Life from the American Cancer Society. Folks can donate to the general cause or a specific team in the Relay.