| Introduction | p. 1 |
| The Craft | |
| Creativity and Inspiration | p. 7 |
| Creativity: What Is It and Do You Have It? | p. 7 |
| Developing Your Creativity | p. 8 |
| Motivation--Overcoming the Barriers | p. 11 |
| Craft and Inspiration Writers: Philosophies | p. 12 |
| Developing a "Songwriter's Consciousness" | p. 13 |
| Finding Your Own Creative Process | p. 15 |
| Breaking Writer's Block | p. 18 |
| Stream of Consciousness | p. 20 |
| Problem Solving | p. 22 |
| Developing Good Work Habits | p. 22 |
| Subject Matter | p. 24 |
| Finding Ideas | p. 24 |
| The Commerciality of Subject Matter--Mass Appeal | p. 25 |
| Relatable Themes | p. 26 |
| Being Believable | p. 26 |
| Cleverness | p. 27 |
| Crossover Records | p. 27 |
| Themes of Love | p. 28 |
| The Censorship Issue | p. 30 |
| Message Songs | p. 30 |
| Novelty Songs | p. 34 |
| Christmas Songs | p. 35 |
| The Media and the Listeners | p. 37 |
| The Media | p. 37 |
| A Poem Is Not a Lyric | p. 37 |
| A Song Is Not a Record | p. 39 |
| Writing for Radio | p. 40 |
| Singles, Albums, Live Performances, and Video | p. 41 |
| The Listener: Know Your Audience | p. 45 |
| The Imagination of the Listener | p. 46 |
| Writing Lyrics | p. 57 |
| Simplicity | p. 57 |
| Focus | p. 58 |
| Titles | p. 60 |
| First Lines | p. 61 |
| Rhyme | p. 62 |
| Poetic Devices | p. 70 |
| Problems With Pronouns | p. 71 |
| Prosody and Meter | p. 72 |
| Constructing a Song | p. 77 |
| Form | p. 77 |
| Hooks | p. 89 |
| Chorus Construction | p. 90 |
| Repetition | p. 92 |
| Song Dynamics | p. 93 |
| Rewriting | p. 97 |
| Writing on Assignment | p. 101 |
| Writing Music | p. 103 |
| Melody | p. 103 |
| Harmony | p. 111 |
| Groove | p. 118 |
| Collaboration | p. 123 |
| Why Two (or More) Heads Are Better Than One | p. 123 |
| Meeting Your Match | p. 125 |
| Can This Marriage Work? | p. 128 |
| Business Considerations | p. 132 |
| Preliminary Business Meeting | p. 134 |
| Writing As a Band--Working It Out | p. 137 |
| The Business | |
| Protecting Your Songs | p. 143 |
| The Importance of Taking Care of Business | p. 143 |
| Your Song Is Your Property | p. 144 |
| Copyright Registration | p. 147 |
| Copyright Infringement/Plagiarism | p. 151 |
| Online Resources | p. 155 |
| Avoiding the Songsharks | p. 155 |
| Where Your Money Comes From | p. 160 |
| Methods of Payment | p. 160 |
| Split Publishing or Copublishing | p. 162 |
| Mechanical Royalties | p. 162 |
| The Compulsory License | p. 164 |
| Controlled Composition Clauses | p. 164 |
| Sampling | p. 165 |
| Performance Royalties: BMI, ASCAP, and SESAC | p. 166 |
| Synchronization Royalties | p. 171 |
| Music in Print | p. 172 |
| Researching Print Music Deals | p. 174 |
| New Income From Digital Sources | p. 175 |
| Publishing | p. 177 |
| What Publishers Do | p. 178 |
| Exploring the Possibilities | p. 180 |
| Finding a Publisher | p. 181 |
| Checking Out the Publisher | p. 182 |
| Getting Feedback From Publishers | p. 184 |
| Uncontracted Songplugging | p. 185 |
| Single-Song Contracts | p. 186 |
| Your Chances for Advances | p. 197 |
| Exclusive Staff Writing Positions | p. 198 |
| How Staff Deals Happen | p. 203 |
| Self-Publishing | p. 205 |
| Why Publish Your Own Songs? | p. 205 |
| Start Your Own Publishing Company | p. 206 |
| Business Expenses and the IRS | p. 208 |
| Casting | p. 210 |
| Successful Pitching Strategies | p. 213 |
| Negotiating | p. 215 |
| "Holds" | p. 218 |
| Foreign Subpublishing | p. 220 |
| Administration Deals | p. 222 |
| Independent Songpluggers | p. 223 |
| Demos | p. 226 |
| Why You Need Them | p. 226 |
| Types of Demos | p. 227 |
| Who Gets What and How Elaborate Does It Need To Be? | p. 228 |
| What You Can Do at Home | p. 231 |
| Choosing a Studio | p. 233 |
| The Recording Process | p. 242 |
| Choosing the Songs | p. 245 |
| Arrangements | p. 247 |
| Demo Production Services | p. 252 |
| Tape/CD Copies | p. 254 |
| Presenting Your Demo | p. 255 |
| Using the Internet: Your Demo as Audio File | p. 258 |
| Marketing Yourself and Your Songs | p. 260 |
| Where Do You Start? | p. 260 |
| Writers, Writer/Artists, and Writer/Producers in the Marketplace | p. 264 |
| Researching the Music Industry | p. 265 |
| Getting Ready to Face the Industry | p. 274 |
| Query Letters or E-Mails | p. 279 |
| In-Person Interviews | p. 281 |
| Getting Heard in a "No Unsolicited Material" World | p. 282 |
| The Options of an Out-of-Towner | p. 291 |
| Marketing Your Lyrics | p. 292 |
| Organize Your Song Shopping | p. 293 |
| Showcasing | p. 296 |
| Contests | p. 299 |
| Web Sites | p. 304 |
| Additional Markets | p. 306 |
| Film and Television | p. 306 |
| Commercial Jingles | p. 311 |
| Start a Local Agency | p. 315 |
| Production Music Libraries | p. 318 |
| Children's Music | p. 321 |
| Musical Theater | p. 323 |
| Music for Games | p. 326 |
| Corporate Events | p. 327 |
| Local Events | p. 327 |
| Getting a Record Deal | p. 329 |
| The Artist vs. the Writer/Artist | p. 329 |
| The Demo | p. 331 |
| The Live Performance | p. 332 |
| Marketability | p. 334 |
| The Professional Team | p. 336 |
| The Campaign | p. 344 |
| Why a Major-Label Deal May Not Be Best for You | p. 345 |
| Should You Do It Yourself? | p. 346 |
| Internet Record Companies | p. 347 |
| Appendix | p. 349 |
| Bibliography | p. 360 |
| Permissions | p. 365 |
| Index | p. 367 |
| Table of Contents provided by Syndetics. All Rights Reserved. |