This is a country ballad version of Robert Frost’s famous poem, Two Roads Diverged in a Yellow Wood. His ultimate advice: Take the road less traveled by, and that will make all the difference.

I have often followed this advice in writing books as well as in marketing books. It’s fun and often profitable to take chances via alternative options, to go in directions different from what every other author or marketer is doing. It helps you stand out.

Two Roads Diverged in a Yellow Wood lyrics

Two roads diverged in a yellow wood,And sorry I could not travel bothAnd be one traveler, long I stoodAnd looked down one as far as I couldTo where it bent in the undergrowth;

Then took the other, as just as fair,And having perhaps the better claim,Because it was grassy and wanted wear;Though as for that the passing thereHad worn them really about the same,

And both that morning equally layIn leaves no step had trodden black.Oh, I kept the first for another day!Yet knowing how way leads on to way,I doubted if I should ever come back.

I shall be telling this with a sighSomewhere ages and ages hence:Two roads diverged in a wood, and I—I took the one less traveled by,And that has made all the difference.

I shall be telling this with a sighSomewhere ages and ages hence:Two roads diverged in a wood, and I—I took the one less traveled by,And that has made all the difference.

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Stories and Truth is a country ballad adapted from various quotes written by novelist Orson Scott Card.

Use this song as inspiration to write your story and share the truth. Stop walking pass all the story ideas you run across every day.

Stories and Truth lyrics

Everybody walks pastWalks past a thousand story ideasEvery day, every dayGood writers are the onesWho see five or six story ideasEvery day, every dayMost people don’t see any

The most important trainingIs to experience life as a writerQuestioning everythingInventing multiple explanationsFor everything, all thingsIf you do thatThe other things will comeIf you don’tThere’s no hope for you

Most of us read these storiesThese stories we know are not trueBecause we’re hungryFor another kind of truthThe mythic truth about human natureThe most specific truth of allOur own self-storyOur own story

Sometimes lies are more dependableMore dependable than the truthMetaphors have a wayA way of holding the most truthThe most truth in the least space

Sometimes lies are more dependableMore dependable than the truthMetaphors have a wayA way of holding the most truthThe most truth in the least space

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The following song is based on a number of quotations from Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson, a wrestler and an actor. I arranged the quotes in a way to make them play better as a song. If you want success, work hard, be good, and run towards that main thing that inspires you every day.

The Secret to Success lyrics

What I have learned through experienceIs that I need to keep the main thingAnd the main thing for meThe thing that in the morningI swing my legs out of bedAnd I run towardsIt is creatingIt is artIt is storytelling

You gotta get up in the morningYou gotta get after itYou gotta put in the workYou gotta sweat, sweat hard

Success isn’t overnightIt’s when every dayYou get a little betterBetter than the day beforeIt adds up, it adds up

I’m always askedWhat’s the secret to success?But there are no secretsBe humbleBe hungryAnd always be the hardest workerThe hardest worker in the room

Check your ego at the doorThe ego can be a success inhibitorIt can kill opportunitiesIt can kill success

You gotta get up in the morningYou gotta get after itYou gotta put in the workYou gotta sweat, sweat hard

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You can learn a lot about writing and marketing by listening to this song. The key tip: Catch people being good and then let them know you’ve seen them doing good. This song is adapted from an article by Andrea Widburg in American Thinker (https://www.americanthinker.com/blog/2026/08/if-you-love-someone-tell-them-and-be-specific).

Catch People Being Good

Every day is a good daySome days are better than othersI win in all the ways that countFamily and friendsGood enough healthReasonable material comfortA fulfilling jobI never tire counting my blessings

This I know is trueIt’s incumbent on all of usTo catch those we love being goodAnd tell them that we love them

The happiest people in America:Men who are married andWomen with childrenParenting is toughBut the rewards are unparalleledChildren give life purpose

Here’s my life philosophyCatch people being goodIf they’re close to youTell them you love themTell that to them whenever you canDon’t be shyDo it often

You’re a good personYou are thoughtfulYou are kindYou make my life happierI see youI value what I see

Don’t reach the end of your lifeRegretting the things you did not sayCatch people being goodBecause that makes their world betterAnd that makes your world better

If you love someoneTell them you love themTell them oftenBe specificAnd tell them again

If you love someoneTell them you love themTell them oftenBe specificAnd tell them again

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In an email last week, Joe Pulizzi wrote in The Tilt newsletter how you could make any book, course, video, podcast, or other product better just by answering two questions. Those two questions (Does creating a thing bring something good into your live? and Does creating a thing make someone else’s life better?) If you can answer YES to those two questions, you will create a great product that will impact your life and help your customers—and, thus, be the right product to create.

In the song below, I’ve featured those two questions, plus subsidiary questions that you can ask yourself, so you create the best products that will sell.

The best products live within the answers to those two questions. Again, if you can answer YES to both, you’ll create something good. And that, ultimately, is what truly matters. Create something good today!

Create Something Good lyrics

Does creating a thingBring something good into your life?Does it give you energy?Does it make you curious?Does it help you understand something?Would you still want to make itIf nobody was keeping score?If yes, check that box

Does creating a thingMake someone else’s life better?Does it solve a real problem?Does it help someone see differently?Does it make them laugh?Does it give them hope?Does it help them make better decisions?Answer yes, and you are loving others

You are loving your audienceBy delivering something kind and trueThe best creative work livesWhere those two things overlapLove you and love your audienceKeep things simple and pureKeep things simple and true

The best creative work livesWhere those two things overlapLove you and love your audienceKeep things simple and pureKeep things simple and true

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Inspired by a statement made by WNBA player, Sophie Cunningham. I adapted the spirit of her statement to apply to songwriters, singers, writers, and authors. Write on no matter how many boos and how many cheers you receive.

Boos and Cheers lyrics

You’re going to get boosYou’re going to get cheersWherever you playNo matter your fears

You’re going to get boosYou’re going to get cheersNo matter what you doNo matter your years

You’re going to get boosYou’re going to get cheersSo play on, play onNo matter your gears

You’re going to get boosYou’re going to get cheersLoud and raucous either wayNo matter the tears

You’re going to get boosYou’re going to get cheersBut you play on either wayNo matter your peers

You’re going to get boosYou’re going to get cheersBoth have their valueNo matter the frontiers

You’re going to get boosYou’re going to get cheers

You’re going to get boosYou’re going to get cheers

You’re going to get boosYou’re going to get cheers

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This country ballad is adapted from quotes by Frank Daley, Abraham Maslow, William Shakespeare, Satchel Paige, and Mark Twain.

Do what you love. But first, know who you are. Or you’ll choose your love wrong. — Frank Daley

Musicians must make music, artists must paint, poets must write if they are to ultimately be at peace with themselves. What human beings can be, they must be. — Abraham Maslow

This above all: to thine own self be true, and it must follow, as the night of the day, thou canst not be false to any man. — William Shakespeare

Never let the odds keep you from pursuing what you know in your heart you were meant to do. — Satchel Paige, baseball pitcher

The two most important days in life are the day you are born and the day you discover the reason why. — Mark Twain, novelist

Do What You Love lyrics

Do what you loveBut first, know who you areOr you’ll choose your love wrongThat is the beginningThe beginning of self-knowledge

Ask yourself: Who are youAnd what are you doing here?In this jobIn this relationshipIn this countryOn this planet?

Musicians must make musicArtists must paintPoets must writeIf they are ultimatelyTo be at peace with themselvesWhat human beings can beThey must be, they must be

This above allTo thine own self be trueAnd it must followAs the night follows dayYou cannot be false to any man

Never let the oddsKeep you from pursuingWhat you know in your heartYou were meant to do

The two most important daysIn life are the day you are bornAnd the day you discoverThe reason why you were bornDiscover your reason now

The two most important daysIn life are the day you are bornAnd the day you discoverThe reason why you were bornDiscover your reason now

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This country ballad is adapted from The Lincoln Highway by Amor Towles. The book is a wonderful moving novel. And the advice in this song (excerpted from the book) is valuable.

Earn your trust as an author. Don’t try to cut corners or fake respectability. Be real. Be true. Be open. Be friendly.

Everything Is Earned lyrics

Everything of value in this worldMust be earned, must be earnedBecause those who givenSomething of valueWithout having to earn itAre bound to squander it

You should earn respectYou should earn trustYou should earn the love of a spouseYou should earn the rightTo call yourself an adultYou should earn the right to hope

There is just enough varietyVariety of American experienceFor every American in a cityTo feel for certain thatTheir experience is uniqueThis is something wonderful

Because to aspireTo fall in loveTo create great thingsTo survive and surpassEven as we stumbleWe must remain unique

You should earn respectYou should earn trustYou should earn the love of a spouseYou should earn the rightTo call yourself an adultYou should earn the right to hope

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If you want to be successful, be unique. This ballad is adapted from an email I got yesterday from John Castagnini of ThankGodI.com. His email was as least five times the length of this ballad. I pulled out his statements that most lend themselves to lyrics for a song. I hopes you enjoy the song, the lyrics, and intent.

Unique lyrics

Truth welcomes questionsOnly beliefs hide from themThe moment we stopStop examining our beliefsThe search for truth diesBefore we can hear anythingQuestions must come from within

We experience reality through a filterShaped by emotion, belief, and experienceFear narrows awarenessSocial pressure silencesCertainty closes the mindThe more invested we are in a worldviewThe more difficult it becomes to question it

What separates peopleWho recognize patterns early?Not IQ but curiosityThe courage to questionThe humility to be wrongEvery battle begins in the same placeThe way we perceive reality

When we are centeredOur inner world and outer world alignWe see beyond our biasesWe challenge our assumptionsAnd we gain humilityTo follow the evidence wherever it leadsEven when it challenges what we believe

Shape perceptionAnd you shape the world people live inThe greatest battlefieldIsn’t the world around usIt’s the world within usBecause whoever shapes perceptionRules the battlefield

It is about mastering yourselfFinding balance betweenFear and fearlessnessPride and humilityPeace and conflictWhen the brain becomes balancedIt becomes impossible to manipulate

The state of balance we carry insideEquilibrium is not something we createIt is something we return toIt exists throughout natureIn the laws of thermodynamicsAt the center of every circleAnd within the human mind

When emotional noise falls awayClarity emergesPurpose awakensThe path becomes visibleThe world does not need more peopleMore people trapped in reactionIt needs warriors grounded in equilibrium

Nature made each of us uniqueNo two snowflakes are the sameEven twins are not identicalYou have what no one else can bringA unique purposeA unique contributionA unique role

Be uniqueStay uniqueDo not bendDo not surrenderKeep your spiritNurture your spiritCelebrate your spirit

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Here is some writing advice from Thom Merrilin, a storytelling character from A Memory of Light, book 14 of The Wheel of Time series by Robert Jordan and Brandon Sanderson. I put it into a song. Source: https://bookmarketingbestsellers.com/writing-advice-from-the-wheel-of-time-series

Great Ballads lyrics

If you use the words people expectthey grow boredA great ballad needs to be unexpectedNever be expectedNever be expected

When people start to expect youwhen they start to anticipateYour flourishes and your bowsTo look for the ball you had hiddenThrough sleight of handOr to smile before you reachedThe twist line of your tale

When such are the expectationsit is time to pack up your cloakbow once for good measureand stroll awayAfter all, that was whatthey’d least expect you to dowhen all was going well

If you use the words people expectthey grow boredA great ballad needs to be unexpectedNever be expected

A great ballad needs to be unexpectedStroll awayStroll awayStroll awayA great ballad needs to be unexpectedGood-byeGood-bye

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