3 Tips On Writing Songs in Stories

- Germaine -

So you want to write songs in stories, but have no idea where to start? Unfortunately for you, I have no idea how to write songs, too. But before you begin to despair, here are a few tips I've learned from reading a few books.

1. Songs DO NOT need to rhyme

I see this a lot. It's a little annoying when it's overused in the same book, especially when the author seems to run out of rhymes.

I'm not saying, "don't rhyme your songs at all." Some songs that rhyme are actually quite good.

I'm saying, "think about it." If the song you're writing fits well with your story, go for it. But if it seems out of place, you might want to consider rewriting it. The worst case scenario would be to delete it entirely and erase all traces of it from your story.

2. Write songs like you're writing poetry

Songs are poems, after all. So wouldn't it be fun to just throw out some deep, meaningful figurative language? Of course, it would have to somewhat relate to the song, or else it won't make sense. You could try writing a poem, then putting it to music. Try new things. Take risks. You can always edit later.

3. Keep your songs short

Once I wrote a four-page song into a story with my brother. It wasn't pretty. We could spend minutes just going over the entire song. Sometimes we skipped over it to save time.

My point is, keep your songs short.

My recommendation would be one page, maximum.

Enjoy yourself,

- Germaine

James 1:17

Read any good books with great songs in them? Comment below!

Comments

Originality in Writing is Over-Rated

People are stupid. Really, really stupid. And this isn't me pretending to be Khepri or Mina, looking down in disdain on all the poor, ignorant peasants around me (you'll get that reference later) - I am 100% including myself in 'people' here. And this isn't to say that people aren't wonderful creations of God, beautiful, unique, brilliant and individually filled with huge potential. I believe every one of those things is true, but we are also stupid. For example, I once lit a match in church, during the service. Why? Because it was there, obviously. What else was I supposed to do with a match? Don't worry, I didn't burn down the building or anything, it was just an incredibly dumb move. And it wasn't all that long ago, either. (More than a year, but definitely while I was a teenager, not a young child.) But doing dumb things isn't the only way in which humans prove that we're idiots. We also forget important lessons, and this is the t...

On Writing Mentors

So. Mentors. How do you make them original? 1. Think Before You Kill Them Off Mentors always die. There's a reason for this. The hero needs to be able to solve his own problems. If the mentor is still there with the hero, the hero is going to end up saving the world in no time flat. The hero needs to be independent and go and save the world on their own. So that's why mentors are always killed off. So why don't we bend the cliche? If the hero needs to be without the mentor, do something with the mentor that doesn't involve killing him off! Maybe the mentor is on vacation and the hero is unable to send a message to him. Maybe the mentor is mentoring someone else and does not want to be disturbed. Or why not, maybe the mentor has just been cursed to fall asleep for a hundred years. 2. Make Them Look Different There's one other thing about mentors. They're almost always old, experienced men. Imagine if there was a wider range of mentors. Young m...

Can't You See the Shapes

I can see the shapes But my hands can't form them right They're trapped in my mind Why can’t I see the light? Dancing and soaring I forget what's around me Electric body Won’t you do what I do? Come sit in the shade Let the arid world fly by Luscious, dark gray shade Take my hand, come and fly Can’t you see the shapes Our fingers form them right Trapped in our minds Can’t you see the bright light? ~a poem by Gemaine~ ~based on a series of haikus by Hannah~

The Writing Mafia

Search This Blog