Try to be unique in your sound, so the song is distinctly your own. At this point, get some lyrics in there. Jon Huntress (2001) adds, “Most of the stuff you put down won’t work, but you never know.“ After the basics are there - some chords and music, rhythm, and lyrics with notes to sing them - the make-it-or-break-it part is upon you.Editing and perfecting is perhaps the most important part of writing a song. It is what can define your song from something that sounds like a dying cow to Beethoven’s 5th. Where can I improve? What could be better? Ask yourself these new questions and more. Fiddle around, perhaps singing that bar a third higher will provide more dimension, or changing from a C major to an E minor chord at one point will give the piece more ambiance. Pick everything apart. Nothing will be perfect the first time; it can always be improved.As long as there is a sufficient amount of ability to write and play a song, anyone can compose a piece and say, “I wrote that,” but everyone will be different in how they go about it. Some will write lyrics first and the rest later. Some will write complex and catchy guitar parts, and add some vocals afterwards. Some might whistle a homemade tune to themselves and one day try to put music and words to the sounds. However you go about doing it, getting a feel for what you are trying to accomplish is the key. I have given the following steps as a guide but, ultimately, you must do things your own way. Now go, write a masterpiece, and in the words of Steve Vai (1998), “Song writing is poetry that society is still willing to pay money to hear.”...
