What was that song on the Delta Faucet commercial, the cute one that goes “So many things your hands can do”? It sounds like a children’s song, something maybe you might write for kids. Well, it is a children’s song. It’s from a Sesame Street record featuring The Count, the vampire Muppet who simply adores numbers. Could you write a song like that? You probably could and possibly you already have.
Category: WHAT’S ON THE SITE
Elmore Leonard’s Advice to Songwriters
When I hear great fiction writers talk about their craft, I’m often struck by how easily these insights can be applied to songwriting. We can learn a lot about our own craft by stepping outside and looking at it from another angle. For example, the late, great novelist Elmore Leonard said this in an interview with WritersDigest:
A writer has to read. Read all the time. Decide who you like then study that author’s style. Take the author’s book or story and break it down to see how he put it together.
If you apply this to songwriting you get:
A songwriter has to listen. Listen all the time. Decide who you like then study that songwriter’s style. Take the songwriter’s songs break them down to see how they’re put together.
Put Yourself in a Music Supervisor’s Shoes
Want to sharpen your pitching skills to Film & TV opportunities and get more forwards? Here’s the best exercise I’ve ever found for strengthening your Film & TV songwriting and pitches: Do what a music supervisor does. Find songs that underscore the emotion, energy, or atmosphere in a scene and test them against the picture!
At the end of this post, I’ll give you some resources for contacting music supervisors and pitching your songs. But before you do that, make sure you have what they’re looking for. Don’t burn a contact because you didn’t do your research. If you’ll spend a couple of afternoons following these instructions, I promise your pitches will be closer to the mark and your film and TV songwriting will be stronger.
VIDEO: Secrets of Hit Songwriting – “I’m Yours” by Jason Mraz
“I’m Yours” by Jason Mraz was a #1 hit single and continues to be a favorite with listeners. It’s a great example of an upbeat, feel-good song that has plenty of creativity, fresh lyrics, and an an irresistible melody. Find out how he does it and then learn how you can use these same songwriting techniques in songs of your own! I’ll walk you through this hit song and show you step-by-step!
Q&A: Should I Copyright My Songs?
Here are three copyright questions I get asked all the time…
Q: Should all my songs be copyrighted?
Before you start pitching your song to publishers, film & TV music supervisors or music libraries, before you enter it in a contest, or otherwise spread it around the industry, I definitely recommend copyrighting your songs or lyrics. In the United States, you’ll do that through the Library of Congress. Their online e-filing system makes it easy.
If you live outside the U.S. be sure to research the copyright laws in your country. That said, there are many countries that share copyright agreements with the U.S. that allow you to protect your song through the U.S. copyright office. Find out more about registering foreign works in the U.S.
You’ll also find a printable form, FAQ, and helpful instructions at the Copyright Office website. There’s a fee for each form you file – whether it’s online or via mail – BUT you can register groups of lyrics or songs on a single form. Do that!