[embilly]

Welcome to the GTU Songwriting Forum!

This forum is for Songwriting Q&A and related discussion and also for GTU'ers to post their own Songwriting material for comments and/or advice. Personal attacks will not be tolerated. Anything unrelated will be shifted to the appropriate forum.

If you have any concerns or complaints about any of the material posted in the GTU songwriting forum please do not hesitate to send PM. We do our best to be thorough but miss stuff sometimes.

Remember this is your forum and your opinion and input is important.

The members have posted a guide to forum etiquette, please read if you plan on being a member of these forums, these are not "Rules", as such, but they will help you get along. click here

Thanks heaps, Have fun!

Embilly, GasHed & Graeme, Yes, Graeme.

GTU's Songwriting F.A.Q.'s
Below are links to some insightful and hopefully helpful posts from GTU's songwriting forum:

General:
Writing with a band
For the songwriters, by the songwriters
What do you think is harder, writing lyrics or music?
How Do You Write Yours?
How I write songs
how do you write songs
Songwriting...how do you do it??
Talented Folk On GTU
confused with the chords

Copyright:
(Please note that the following discussion on Copyright should not be substituted for legal advice)
Copyright infringement
Copywriting

Writers Block:
Writers Block and how to deal with it
Writers Block
Permanent Writer's Block, For Those Who Feel Concerned
Writers Block Need some help

The Music:
Songwriting Workshop 1. "What Chords?"
Songwriters Chord Construction Chart
need help making chords more interesting
Songwriting...anyone who does so please read
What are some cool chord progressions you guys use?
Good chord sequences
Music to Lyrics
A little help on songwriting on my guitar
Writing the Melody

Lyrics:
Brad's Songwriting Tips 1, Brad's Songwriting Tips 2
Songwriting
anus' 5 steps to writing a good song
Can't make any lyrics...

Poetry:
Poetry at GTU

Rhyme:
RHYMING AT GTU

Bass:
How to write music for the bass??????
another (slight) songwriting problem

Feel free to add to any of these posts - the more good information - the better.

[KaZu]

Thanks for the links, Otherwise I will be asking questions like a noob, because in my band I am going to have to write the lyrics, and guitar parts...
Even though there is a singer...
Lazy bum...

[obskure16]

haha same her ealtho im not that much of a newb im doing the sam ething bro writing lyricaas and guitar music since im the lead guitarist and back up vocalist...but our singer writes or well helps me write some of the song sna dour rytheme guitarist can write some good guitar tunes as well...so not all the pressure is on me...peace out!!!!!!!

[alternativeme]

Just a tip for people (as I've seen a few people do this a few different ways) - there is nothing wrong with reposting a song that has undergone major surgery in a new topic, as long as you make it clear that that is what it is.

If you just post it in your old one, you may get less people looking at it and nobody will know when you've redone it unless they chance to look on your old thread (not great if all the people you wanna crit it have already done so - some people only look once). I also saw someone just edit their original post - this is worse, as you have the same problem as above, but your post doesn't get bumped up to the top and then to find out whose crits are on the new and whose are on the old, it takes the effort of sitting and working it out.

...and I'm too damn lazy.

So, yeah. Just so you know.

[dorio]

So, yeah. Just so you know.

As i never repost (i may try to do that once tho) and as i don't edit while one of my
songs is on the table available for critiques, i shouldnt be too concerned, but i see
what you mean ...

I have something different to propose. And that something was the rule number 6
of the rabid fox forum etiquette:

6. Reciprocation. One of the biggest unwritten rules of this forum, and my reason for writing this. If someone takes the time and effort to critique your song, it's expected that when they post a song that you will give them a critique. This isn't just etiquette, it's common courtesy.

And it's common sense. If you want feedbacks you gotta feedback others, just as if
you really want to learn to write songs you have to critique those who critique you !

[chasyd69]

agreed if someone critiques your song its common courtesy to at least have a look at theirs

even if like me the most useful thing you can say is i like it

[Desi-Louise]

Hey,
Write about stuff you like, care about, hate, unsure, etc. The majority of the songs that I have written are about a guy that I really like, and he really likes me, but neither of us told each other. Just write whatever you're going through and your feelings. After I wrote a song about wanted him to tell me about his feelings and told him that the song was written for him, he kind of slyly implied as to how he felt. So it has gotten him to open up a little to me. Of course, each person's situation is different, but that's what happened to me. What you write in your songs, is showing people who YOU really are. Your personality shows. I probably didn't help much, but hoping it does. L8r
Desiree

[_brad_]

What you write in your songs, is showing people who YOU really are.  Your personality shows. 

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

well said

[chasyd69]

im getting really wound up lately and thought this would be the thread to voice my rage as apposed to starting a new one

iv been here for a few months and i try to comment on other peoples work as often as i can, even if im not all that helpful i try

its really starting to bug me that when people have no critiques they revive dead topics with posts such as "no more comments "
and now they've started putting "please comment" or "please critique" under the title of they're topics
its annoying please stop
you wouldn't go to a gig and ask the band to check out your stuff without at least listening to them

you (and you know who you are) should take a leaf from brads book, although hes not posted a song in i think two months or so he still finds time to read and comment on as many songs he can

do i have a point or am i just tired and cranky?

[sixgunsound]

Nah, I get ya. I come on and critique whenever I get a chance. If I want people to critique me I should at least show them the same courtesy.

[Graeme! Yes, Graeme!]

I try to at least comment on every song I can, and I try to at least give some critique where possible. I think I may have posted all of ten songs at most, yet I've commented on probably hundreds.

It's simple courtesy. Once the comments stop coming, don't beg for more. I'd like it if more people that actually post songs were kind enough to comment on other people's work and not jsut their own, I believe that was a suggestion put into the FAQ by rabid fox. More people should follow that.

[randomorwhat]

I critique when I can, but balancing a life with GTUs hard. After all, what takes preference? Having said that, I've written little over the last few years!!

[Jet_rose]

since im quite new i tend to rarely voice my opinion. i would probably just say something useless and incorrect. its not through lack of courtesy i just feel that my critique would be pointless and unhelpful because i dont really have much experience.

[_brad_]

since im quite new i tend to rarely voice my opinion. i would probably just say something useless and incorrect. its not through lack of courtesy i just feel that my critique would be pointless and unhelpful because i dont really have much experience.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

maybe thats where ur going wrong, since this is a learning forum and none of us a professionals, then it doesnt hurt for a complete beginner to critique, it is after all personal opinion so it cant be wrong, plus the more u read and critique the better you will become

[pinktar]

The whole purpose of this forum is enjoyment. Repect the rules and the etiquette and we'll all have fun.

Just a quick note:

No song on this forum has priority, it's up to you to choose which songs you do critique and which you don't, it's your decision. But, I would encourage people to move towards offering opinions on songs that have no or very few critiques, as it can be very frustrating not getting any feedback. We want everyone on this forum to improve in their writing and enjoy the experience so for this reason please allow those with less feedback the help they may require.

Thanks

Ed.X

[Theoretically Incapable]

Oh my, You are a life savor. I am saving this page to come back to.

Another thing with the writer's block:

it helps to listen to some inspiring music. In my learnings, I've found Bright Eyes and Nirvana to be good music to write to. It may be different music for you though. After all, everyone has different preferences and styles. I may be a noob, but I figured may be in some distant time (and a far off chance) that that little piece of information might come in handy or turn to be useful to someone other than myself. It may already be listed in one of the many links of this page; I just didn't pass over it. I thought I would add it just in case...

I hope I may've helped someone. If not, well, I gave my first attempt.

[maryatlanta]

So far i just have song samples on my web sites. - no lyrics. i guess i'm just concerned about plagiarism.
This is a big challenge for me, but i'll attempt to choose a song to post here for critiquing. how else will my music get more exposure?

Thanks for this thread, it's helping me to get over my hang-up.
maybe??

This post has been edited by maryatlanta: 05 October 2007 - 12:25 PM

[gravity]

Emma/Graeme,

the links are fecked. Now that .cc has properly been taken over and is its own (looks pants) site some of our older FAQ links don't work. I don't know if they are lost forever or if the were copied on to this server somewhere.

Just an observation.

[Graeme! Yes, Graeme!]

Ah, thanks for pointing that out. That will be a task for when I'm not about to go to bed.