Authors: Tessa Hadley
ISBN-13: 9781615599752, ISBN-10: 1615599754
Format: Hardcover
Publisher: Holt, Henry & Company, Inc.
Date Published: July 2007
Edition: Bargain
Tessa Hadley teaches literature and creative writing at Bath Spa University. She is the author of two novels, Everything Will Be All Right and Accidents in the Home, both available from Picador. Accidents in the Home was long-listed for the Guardian First Book Award. Her short stories have appeared in The New Yorker. She lives in Cardiff, Wales.
Novel set in present-day England, in which a father and son fall in love with the same woman.
Tessa Hadley is a lovely, subtly teasing writer, studiedly evasive in her treatment of emotions and eerily precise in her sketches of everyday people in upper-middle-class British settings. Who her characters are, and what they want, is so deeply concealed (even from themselves) that they could be nude and lose none of their mystery…In The Master Bedroom, no relationship is as solid as it might seem, no course of action necessarily makes sense, and motivations are buried. Yet Hadley's favorite theme emerges clearly: the heart has no logic, the brain cannot always keep it in rein and nature controls human behaviornot the other way around. The novel is a chess game of slow-burn erotic maneuvers that produce tantalizingly unpredictable outcomes.
Introduction | xviii | |
Step 1 | Developing Successful Song Structures | 1 |
Chapter 1 | Identifying the Most Successful Song Structures--and Why They Work | 2 |
Identifying the Components of a Song | 4 | |
The Verse | 4 | |
The Pre-Chorus | 5 | |
The Chorus | 7 | |
The Bridge | 11 | |
Building a Successful Song | 13 | |
Verse-Chorus-Verse-Chorus | 13 | |
Verse-Chorus-Verse-Chorus-Bridge-Chorus | 14 | |
Verse-Chorus-Verse-Chorus-Verse-Chorus | 15 | |
Verse-Verse-Bridge-Verse | 17 | |
Variations | 19 | |
Exercise: Identifying Song Structures | 20 | |
Introductions, Instrumental Solos, and Turnarounds | 20 | |
Exercise: Using Successful Song Structures | 22 | |
Step 1 | Conclusion | 22 |
Song Structure Checklist | 23 | |
Step 2 | Writing Effective Lyrics | 25 |
Chapter 2 | Developing Great Song Ideas and Catchy Titles | 26 |
Understanding What Constitutes a Great Idea--and How to Find One | 26 | |
Keeping a Hook Book | 33 | |
Exercise: Finding Original Titles | 33 | |
Making the Singer Look Good | 34 | |
Using Songs to Help Define Artist Identity | 35 | |
Exercise: Defining Artist Identity | 36 | |
Point of View: Deciding Which "Voice" to Write From | 36 | |
Using the Three-Step Lyric-Focusing Technique | 37 | |
Step 1 | Start with a Title | 39 |
Step 2 | Outline the Story | 39 |
Step 3 | Write the Actual Lines of Lyric | 40 |
Exercise: Practicing the Three-Step Lyric-Focusing Technique | 41 | |
Writing Abstract Lyrics | 41 | |
Chapter 3 | Acquiring the Tools for Successful Lyric Writing | 42 |
Expressing One Idea and One Emotion | 42 | |
Maintaining One Consistent Tense and Tone | 43 | |
Developing Strong Opening Lines | 45 | |
Exercise: Writing Strong Opening Lines | 46 | |
Maintaining Continuity | 46 | |
Incorporating Detail, Action, and Imagery into Lyrics | 47 | |
Exercise: Learning to Tell the Story--Not the Feelings | 50 | |
Exercise: Incorporating Detail, Action, and Imagery into Lyrics | 51 | |
Keeping It Conversational | 52 | |
Keeping Your Imagery Fresh | 53 | |
Exercise: Finding a New Way to Say It | 54 | |
Exercise: Using Fresh Imagery | 55 | |
Creating a Lyric Palette | 56 | |
Exercise: Creating a Lyric Palette | 56 | |
Avoiding Redundancy | 56 | |
Avoiding Preaching (Unless You're in Church) | 57 | |
Writing the Dreaded Second Verse | 57 | |
Exercise: Adding New Information to the Second Verse | 58 | |
Using Rhymes: Where to, When to, How to, and Why to | 59 | |
Types of Rhymes | 60 | |
Rhyme Schemes | 62 | |
Using a Rhyming Dictionary and Thesaurus | 62 | |
Using the List Technique | 63 | |
Exercise: Practicing the List Technique | 64 | |
Looking for Opposites and Twists on Words | 65 | |
Exercise: Looking for Opposites and Twists on Words | 65 | |
Using Assonance and Alliteration | 66 | |
Exercise: Using Assonance and Alliteration | 66 | |
Saving Key Words | 67 | |
Writing the Big Payoff Lines | 67 | |
Writing Lyrics to an Existing Melody | 68 | |
Exercise: Writing a Lyric to an Existing Melody | 69 | |
Visualizing a Hit | 70 | |
Exercise: Visualizing a Hit | 70 | |
Rewriting Your Lyrics | 70 | |
Exercise: Rewriting a Verse Lyric | 75 | |
Making Each Line Its Strongest | 76 | |
Additional Lyric Tips | 77 | |
What If I Only Write Lyrics? | 78 | |
Chapter 4 | Writing for Specialty Markets | 79 |
Writing Successful Children's Songs | 79 | |
Writing Christian Music | 82 | |
Crafting Comedy Songs | 85 | |
Parodies | 85 | |
Original Comedy Songs | 86 | |
Writing Folk/Americana Songs | 87 | |
Crafting Successful Christmas Songs | 90 | |
Exercise: Writing Christmas Lyrics | 92 | |
Writing Cabaret Songs | 92 | |
Writing for the Latin Market | 94 | |
Step 2 | Conclusion | 96 |
Lyric Checklist | 97 | |
Step 3 | Composing Memorable Melodies | 99 |
Chapter 5 | Learning Effective Melody-Writing Skills | 100 |
Writing A Cappella | 100 | |
Exercise: Writing A Cappella | 102 | |
Exercise: Trying a New Approach | 103 | |
Keeping It Simple and Singable (K.I.S.S.) | 103 | |
Using Hymns and Children's Songs for Melodic Inspiration | 104 | |
Making It Obvious Where the Title Goes Without the Lyric | 105 | |
Altering the Range, Varying the Rhythms, and Inserting Pauses | 105 | |
Exercise: Making Your Title Jump Out | 105 | |
Marrying the Music to the Lyric: Prosody | 106 | |
Varying the Rhythms | 106 | |
Choosing the Appropriate Melodic Range | 107 | |
Chapter 6 | Using Repetition Effectively | 109 |
Keeping Your Phrases Short and Catchy | 109 | |
Writing Symmetrical Phrases | 111 | |
Exercise: Crafting Lyrics that Lend Themselves to Catchy Melodies | 112 | |
Chapter 7 | Acquiring Additional Melody-Writing Techniques | 114 |
Using Fresh Rhythms | 115 | |
Breaking the Lines | 115 | |
Trying Different Notes | 117 | |
Exercise: Practicing Breaking the Lines and Assigning Different Notes | 118 | |
Learning to Use Nonsense Syllables | 118 | |
Repeating Words or Phrases | 118 | |
Exercise: Incorporating Repeating Words or Phrases and Nonsense Syllables | 119 | |
Learning the Power of Sequential Intervals, Ascending Notes, and Descending Notes | 119 | |
Exercise: Incorporating Sequential Intervals, Ascending Notes, and Descending Notes | 120 | |
Varying the Tempo and Time Signature | 121 | |
Exercise: Applying Different Tempos and Time Signatures | 121 | |
Finding Those Magic Moments: The Unexpected Note or Chord | 121 | |
Exercise: Incorporating Magic Moments | 122 | |
Using Signature Licks | 123 | |
Exercise: Composing Signature Licks | 123 | |
Incorporating Modulations | 123 | |
Exercise: Incorporating Modulations | 125 | |
Avoiding Plagiarism | 125 | |
The Melody Test: Can You Write Effective Melodies? | 125 | |
Exercise: Analyzing Hit Melodies | 126 | |
What If I Write Only Music? | 127 | |
Step 3 | Conclusion | 127 |
Melody Checklist | 129 | |
Step 4 | Producing Successful Demos | 131 |
Chapter 8 | Learning How and When to Record a Demo | 132 |
How to Know When Your Song Is Ready | 132 | |
Identifying What's Right for Your Song | 134 | |
Avoiding "The Big Lie" | 135 | |
Distinguishing Between Song Demos and Artist Demos | 135 | |
Measuring Up to the Professional Standard | 137 | |
Knowing How Many Tracks Are Necessary | 138 | |
Determining Budgets | 138 | |
Deciding Between Self-Producing and Demo Services | 141 | |
Exercise: Planning to Record Your Demo | 143 | |
Chapter 9 | Preparing to Record Your Demo | 144 |
Preparing Lyric Sheets | 144 | |
Recording Work Tapes | 146 | |
Writing Chord Charts | 146 | |
The Nashville Number System | 147 | |
Deciding on an Arrangement | 150 | |
Determining the Proper Key | 151 | |
Hiring the Best Musicians | 152 | |
Selecting the Right Studio | 153 | |
Learning to Speak "Musician" | 154 | |
Choosing the Best Vocalist | 154 | |
Using Technology to Capture the Best Vocal Performance | 157 | |
Deciding Whether to Use a Male or Female Vocalist | 158 | |
Chapter 10 | Mixing | 160 |
Recording Formats | 161 | |
Hard Drive | 161 | |
CD | 162 | |
MP3 | 162 | |
Cassette | 163 | |
Reel-to-Reel | 163 | |
DAT | 164 | |
ADAT | 164 | |
Analog Versus Digital | 164 | |
Learning About Track Mixes | 165 | |
Mastering | 166 | |
Step 4 | Conclusion | 166 |
Demo Checklist | 167 | |
Step 5 | Taking Care of Business | 169 |
Chapter 11 | Learning Where the Money Comes From | 170 |
Mechanical Royalties | 171 | |
Domestic and Foreign Royalties | 173 | |
Performance Royalties and Performing Rights Organizations | 173 | |
Print Sales | 176 | |
Synchronization Licenses | 177 | |
Writing Jingles and Placing Songs in Commercials | 179 | |
Music Libraries | 180 | |
Church Copyright License Royalties | 180 | |
Works for Hire | 181 | |
Using Samples | 182 | |
Future Sources of Revenue | 182 | |
Chapter 12 | Understanding What Music Publishing Really Means | 183 |
How to Get a Publisher--and Why | 184 | |
Working with Your Publisher to Achieve Your Goals | 189 | |
Self-Publishing | 190 | |
Using Songpluggers | 192 | |
Chapter 13 | Understanding Publishing Agreements | 194 |
Single-Song Agreements | 195 | |
Reversion Clauses | 196 | |
Staff-Writing Deals | 196 | |
Copublishing Deals | 200 | |
Chapter 14 | Making Connections and Pitching Your Songs | 202 |
Networking | 202 | |
Collaborating | 204 | |
How to Find a Collaborator | 209 | |
How and When to Copyright Your Songs | 210 | |
Finding Out Who's Looking for Songs and What They're Looking For | 212 | |
Using Pitch Sheets Effectively | 213 | |
Pitching Your Songs to the Right People | 215 | |
Pitching to A&R Staff | 216 | |
Pitching to Producers/Production Coordinators | 217 | |
Pitching to Artists | 218 | |
Pitching to Artists' Managers | 218 | |
Pitching to New Artists and Independent Labels | 219 | |
Developing Your Pitch Presentation | 220 | |
Pitching to Publishers | 221 | |
Pitching to A&R, Producers, Artists, and Managers | 225 | |
Knowing How Many Songs to Include | 226 | |
Understanding Holds | 228 | |
Entering Contests | 230 | |
Avoiding the Scams | 231 | |
Step 5 | Conclusion | 234 |
Business Checklist | 235 | |
Step 6 | Developing Persistence and Realistic Expectations | 237 |
Chapter 15 | Hanging In There Until the Big Break | 238 |
Understanding What to Expect | 239 | |
Making the Time for Yourself and Your Creativity | 241 | |
Chapter 16 | Getting Past "No" | 243 |
Overcoming the Obstacles | 244 | |
Exercise: Overcoming the Obstacles to Success | 245 | |
Coping with Rejection | 246 | |
Finding Validation from Within | 248 | |
Dealing with the Big Critic Inside Your Head | 251 | |
Exercise: Ten Magic Minutes | 253 | |
Finding a Market for Your Talent | 253 | |
Step 6 | Conclusion | 254 |
Persistence and Realistic Expectations Checklist | 255 | |
Exercise: Final Assignment | 256 | |
Afterword | 257 | |
Author Information | 259 | |
Appendix | 260 | |
Song Permissions | 271 | |
Index | 274 |