Writing Better Lyrics
The Essential Guide to Powerful Songwriting
By Pat Pattison
Writer’s Digest Books, 2009
ISBN 978-1-58297-592-4
$18.99, paperback, 304 pages
Read an Excerpt
Writing Better Lyrics author Pat Pattison discusses the helpful exercise of object writing in this excerpt from the book.
Read a Q&A with the author
Songwriting and poetry instructor Pat Pattison (author of Writing Better Lyrics) discusses the differences between writing lyrics and writing poetry, writing advice, and his book in this fascinating Q&A.
About the Book
The Must-Have Guide for Songwriters
Writing Better Lyrics has been a staple for songwriters for nearly two decades. Now this revised and updated 2nd Edition provides effective tools for everything from generating ideas, to understanding the form and function of a song, to fine-tuning lyrics.
Perfect for new and experienced songwriters alike, this time tested classic covers the basics in addition to more advanced techniques. Songwriters will discover:
• How to use sense-bound imagery to enhance a song’s emotional impact on listeners
• Techniques for avoiding clichés and creating imaginative metaphors and similes
• Ways to use repetition as an asset
• How to successfully manipulate meter
• Instruction for matching lyrics with music
• Ways to build on ideas and generate effective titles
• Advice for working with a co-writer
• And much more
Featuring updated and expanded chapters, 50 fun songwriting exercises, and examples from more than 25 chart-topping songs, Writing Better Lyrics gives you all of the professional and creative insight you need to write powerful lyrics and put your songs in the spotlight where they belong.
About the Author
Pat Pattison is a professor at Berklee College of Music, where he teaches lyric writing and poetry. His books Writing Better Lyrics, The Essential Guide to Lyric Form and Structure, and The Essential Guide to Rhyming are considered definitive in their genre and have earned many ecstatic reviews. In addition, Pat has developed three online lyric writing courses for Berklee’s online school, available through patpattison.com, and has written more than 30 articles for a variety of industry publications. His internationally successful students include multiple Grammy winners John Mayer and Gillian Welch. He continues to present songwriting clinics across the globe.
Pat’s website is: http://patpattison.com.
