The Word for Writers

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'TEACHABILITY'


· INTEGRITY


· TENACITY- PERSEVERANCE

· EXCELLENCE / PERFECTING YOUR SONG

· Ability to use LITERARY DEVICES


· SIMPLICITY

· READINESS-

· STEWARDSHIP –COPYRIGHT













'TEACHABILITY'
As in any profession, those who excel are those who are hungry to do better each day. They never see themselves as having arrived. They are open to correction. They have mentors – people they admire and respect from whom they learn. This could be by direct contact or through their works or books. I have learned from singer/songwriters such as Ian Whyte, Don Franscisco, Graham Kendrick and Noel Richards, to mention a few. Ian Whyte inspired me to start setting the Psalms to music.


INTEGRITY
Integrity is ‘firm adherence to a code of especially moral or artistic values’ or honesty. Every songwriter needs it. It means you must not arrogate to your self the work belonging to another. Of course this does not prevent you from using work that is not under copyright control and substantially improving it. This differentiates it from the previous work. That is why you can have hundreds of versions of Amazing Grace and each can have a copyright in its own right. Without honesty, you cannot be trusted and if you cannot be trusted, you have nothing to offer.
Integrity means you will not sell other peoples work to enrich yourself. I t also means you will use other peoples work with permission if they are still alive and their copyright has not expired.


TENACITY- PERSEVERANCE
The music industry is not an easy road. There are many rivers and hurdles to cross. You may be a talented pianist but you need a good singer who needs your services. You may be a good singer but you need good songs that you like to sing. There are many discouragements and giants that have to be confronted and defeated. It is not a profession for the faint hearted. You need to believe in yourself and the talent you have and be determined to make it. Better still if you know God in a personal way and know that your talent has come from Him. You must continually go to Him for guidance and inspiration and encouragement because without Him, you can do nothing.



EXCELLENCE
Excellence comes at a price- no price, no prize.’ You must be dedicated to your chosen field to excel.
This means hard work and prayer practicing to make perfect. As a songwriter, you must be prepared to write, rewrite, review, re-review etc. That is why I have joined a Critique Circle through which I can run my lyrics through to see if there are any amendments to make. And there have been many occasions where I have had to make amendments to some songs. Two heads are better than one. Like I said earlier on, learn from accomplished writers. Have a look at acclaimed songs and ask yourself why they are so acclaimed. Also remember that different arrangements can produce different results and the same goes for the interpretation by different singers. Look for singers that can interpret your song to its utmost.

Excellence means being innovative, having a desire to reach all those God has given to you. It includes versatility. Often you may be inspired to cross styles to reach a different audience whilst keeping your message pure and unadulterated.


PERFECTING YOUR SONG
To perfect your song you need to test it out to see what needs perfecting. You can also have the privilege of seeing peoples’ reaction to it. This can be done by playing it at home for members of your family and soliciting their opinion. You also have the opportunity being able to share it in a small cell group setting and taking a reading. I have been privileged to do just that for some of my songs. And its been very helpful.

USING LITERARY DEVICES
It is imperative that as a song writer you develop and improve the quality of your writing by employing alliterations for titles or groups of words in your song to make it stand out and easy to remember.
Again you can use metaphors and similes to paint pictures in the mind of your audience. The Bible is full of such devices. I would recommend that you learn these and then apply them in your song writing. You can even go further by creating your own based on your experience and every day occurrence.
You can also draw inspiration from the work of others.
An example of a song I wrote stemmed from a book my Pastor wrote called ‘Don’t Date Devils. ‘ Based on his teachings I was inspired to write a song with the same title as shown below:


Don’t Date Devils
Gen.3, Matt.4 1Pet 2:22, 1Pet.5:8
Stand, you'll survive on single street.
Wait for Boaz, shun Bozo.
Ditch Delilah, damn the devil.
Don't date devils.

He'll use you, abuse you and dishonour you.
Woo, wine dine you and then dump you.
Wound, whack, waylay and wind you up. (come on!)
Don't date devils.

He's violent, insolent, devil-sent. (a deviant)
Has no vision, brings division.
Childish, whimpish or a dictator (Idi Amin)
Don't date devils.

Has no regard for God or man.
Rebellious, licentious, flippant, arrogant.
With a sugar-coated tongue but a dog.
Don't date devils.

Like Delilah, she'll dance around you.
She likes your feature, not your future.
Don't let her kiss the life out of you.
Don't Date Devils.

She's cool, luscious but not virtuous.
Flirts and darts from man to man.
Watch! She'll snuff the light out of you.
Don't date devils.

She's slick, slippery, slithery, full of sin.
With a vile mission, shuns submission.
Wild, wayward, whorish, wordless woman.
Don't date devils.



This song is full of alliteration and assonance. In alliteration there is repetition of the consonant sound at the beginning of a group of words as in the title, whereas for assonance it is the vowel sound that is repeated. There is also the use of repetition for rhythmic effect and the use of contrast as between Boaz and the violent man.

This song is jumpy, catchy, full of rhythm, and lends itself to a good dance.




SIMPLICITY
Often some songwriters make things complicated to form a stumbling block. There are many great songs that are very simple. We need to learn a lesson from this. There is often virtue in simplicity.

You are the Lord (Ex.34:6)
You are the Lord,
The Lord God,
merciful and gracious,
longsuffering and abundant
in goodness and truth.

This is a simple song but because it is inspired by the holy Spirit and espouses the greatness, goodness, and integrity of God is short, sweet and catchy.


Sweet Rose of Sharon
Sweet Rose of Sharon, Lilly of the Valley,
The Bright Morning Star, the Prince of Peace,
Jesus, (that's what You are)X7

The Root of Jesse, the Seed of David, the Lion of Judah, the Mighty God,
Messiah, the Everlasting Father, My intercessor, Emmanuel,
Lord Jesus, (that's what You are) X7

Interlude Harmonica

The Good Shepherd, my Healer, my Saviour, You are my Lord, the King of Glory, the Lord of Glory, the King of kings and the Lord of Lords
Jesus, (that's what You are) X7
This is another song made up of the Names of Jesus, which is simple but powerful.

Another is Pre-eminent One, which focuses on Jesus, His personality, deity and centrality and pre-eminence. It is composed in a minor key and does not need many chords to lift it ‘beyond the veil.’
Pre -eminenent One
(Col.1:15-18;Rev.1:8,Heb.1:3)
Intro:
Speak/Sing:(Excellent One!
The most High!
Number One in my life.
The Head of the Church.
The first and the Last.
The Alpha and the Omega.)

Pre-eminent One.
First Born from the dead.
First Born of all creation.
Head of the Church.
You are in every thing.
And through You
all things hold together.

Ch:
Pre-eminent one.
You take first place,
You are all and in all.
(Holy, holy, Lord God Almighty).X2

through You all things were made-
In heaven and earth below;
Be they thrones dominions or rulers.
Before all things You were,
The Beginning and the End;
The Alpha and the Omega.

Ch:

You're number One.
Your're number One.
In my life
Pre-eminent One.
You take first place.
You are all and in all.


X2

Ch:
.

READINESS-
Inspiration often comes like a flash and you must be in a state of readiness for it. It can be during your prayer time, in Church during a sermon, on the road as you are walking home or any other setting. Just be prepared to capture it by any means. Write it down in an Ideas Book, or put it on a tape where you can pick it up later to develop. I have discovered that I capture more inspirations when I m ready and expectant. The earth in all its fullness belongs to my Father. He is the Only Wise God- the fountain of wisdom. He said he has made us partakers of His divine nature. He said we have the mind of Christ. He said it His desire that my mind be renewed to think His thoughts. He said I should ask Him for wisdom if I so desire and that He will give it to me generously, so I am expectant of His inspiration, insight, counsel, godly ideas to propel me in the direction of fulfilling my ministry. Those who put their trust in Him shall not be put to shame. He is my help and I will lift up my eye to Him, my Helper. My pen shall be like that of a ready writer.

STEWARDSHIP –COPYRIGHT
There is wisdom in protecting your work so as to maximise the resources derived from it to further its multiplication and leaving a legacy for generations. Besides your prosperity would enable you to reach out to others by your ability to sponsor worthy good causes. None of this is possible if you are careless about your talent and leave it to those who are just on the look out for ‘free lunch.’ You woe it to the next generation to and to God to be a good steward of the gift s and talent bestowed on you.
Provided you are the owner of a work you have copy right for 50 years from the date of the initial copyright., unless the copyright is lodged in a trust in which case it can be enforced so long as the trust exists for the purposes it was set up.
Copyright can be initiated by registering your work with the agency responsible for copyright in which you affirm that you are the original owner of the work. Any infringement will entitle you to damages if you successfully sue. You must append to such work your name the copyright sign and the date the copyright originated. You can also avoid undue costs and legal technicalities by putting the work in an envelope and post it to your self by recoded delivery to establish the date the copyright was initiated. The envelope must only be opened in a court where there is a dispute of ownership of work.

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