Story-First Songwriting

✅ Stop guessing if your lyrics work. Learn story-first songwriting and turn every idea into music-ready lyrics with a proven, repeatable system. Join our community: Story-First Songwriting on Skool.👉 ⁠skool.com/songwriting/about⁠

#006 - Get inspired by the six most anticipated moments of every love story and use them to write powerful love songs.

It might bore you to write another love song because everything has been said already. But has it?

I want you to know you don’t need to feel intimidated by the big evergreens like I’d Do Anything for Love, I don’t wanna miss a thing, or I want to know what love is.

It might surprise you that when we tell someone a love story, there’s much more to that story than two people confessing their love to each other and living happily ever after, or, as we all know it: when they go through a breakup.

So I invite you to join me in this episode to get inspired about the six most important moments every great love story needs. I’ll provide you with lots of examples on the way.

And I promise you, those moments will provide you with lots of inspiration and ideas that you can start writing new and innovative love songs today.

Here's what we cover:

[00:00:00] - Introduction to the episode

[00:01:43] - What’s a love story?

[00:04:10] - Moments of a love story

[00:09:10] - Moment 1: The lovers meet

[00:14:04] - Moment 2: First Kiss or Intimate Connection

[00:18:12] - Moment 3 - The Confession of Love

[00:22:16] - Moment 4 - The Breakup & 8 Stages of going through a breakup

[00:29:33] - Moment 5 - The Proof of Love

[00:32:54] - Moment 6 - Lover’s reunite

[00:36:08] - What's coming next?

✅ Stop guessing if your lyrics work. Learn story-first songwriting and turn every idea into music-ready lyrics with a proven, repeatable system. Join our community: Story-First Songwriting on Skool.👉 ⁠skool.com/songwriting/about⁠

#005 - Today I want to talk with you about a problem many of us have to face at one point or another: How the heck can we finish the lyrics of a song we’re struggling with? 

After all, if that song would not be important to you, you wouldn’t worry that much about finding the right words. You would just get it out there and move on.

But you want to finish the job yourself because that is your song.

But how?

In this episode, I will give you a 3-Step Action Plan with an exercise at the end of each step so that you find your inspiration, motivation as well as a clear picture of what you want to express in your song. 

And I also have a surprise for you at the end of this podcast episode. It’s like a reward for you if you manage to finish writing this song you’re struggling with. And it will help you see how strong the lyrics of your songs are. So stick around to hear more about this amazing and FREE offer.

Here's what we cover:

[00:00:00] - Introduction to the episode

[00:02:16] - Step 1 - Identifying the Problem

[00:06:29] - Your purpose as an artist and creator

[00:08:30] - Step 2 - The problem the character in your song faces

[00:11:42] - The idea behind your song. And the need for conflict. (Example: Eminem: Sing for the Moment)

[00:22:44] - Step 3 - One Sentence to give you clarity about what you want to write about.

[00:32:09] - End of episode

✅ Stop guessing if your lyrics work. Learn story-first songwriting and turn every idea into music-ready lyrics with a proven, repeatable system. Join our community: Story-First Songwriting on Skool.👉 ⁠skool.com/songwriting/about⁠

#004 - Don't wanna compete in a staring contest with that blank sheet of paper and wonder how to begin writing a song? I'll show you a method as well as three different types of beginnings that will spark your imagination.

Today we attack that nagging, frustrating feeling of sitting in front of an empty paper and not being able to make the pen start writing. Today, we want to beat that blank white sheet of paper.

So if you want to start with a new song and wonder if you have what it takes to come up with the lines that truly matter to someone, this episode is for you. After all, you have something to say and you ought to be able to share your message with others in order to make a positive impact in their lives.

So here’s what we can do.

First, I’ll show you why it’s so important to trust the person you are and the power you have inside of you.

Secondly, I’ll help you find a way to focus on one single thing that could spark your imagination and inspire you to start writing. That will burn inside of you. We’ll ignite that fire. That passion. That sense of urgency and need to get it out of your system.

And thirdly, I’ll give you three different types of beginnings that you can use to start filling that blank sheet of paper with words. This won’t be a staring contest anymore. And you know how it ends. No matter how long you stare at that sheet of paper, you’ll always lose. Except for if your computer intervenes and the screensaver goes on. But with those three types of beginnings, you’d be able to just make that paper yours. It’s not your enemy. It’s your friend.

[00:00:00] - Introduction to the episode

[00:03:34] - The power inside of you

[00:07:58] - Write about what inspires/drives you

[00:18:43] - The beginning and setting up expectations

[00:22:20] - Three types of beginning the lyrics of a song

[00:23:45] - Action Beginning

[00:25:42] - Narrative Beginning

[00:27:27] - Setting Beginning

[00:30:24] - How to begin a Love song

✅ Stop guessing if your lyrics work. Learn story-first songwriting and turn every idea into music-ready lyrics with a proven, repeatable system. Join our community: Story-First Songwriting on Skool.👉 ⁠skool.com/songwriting/about⁠

#002 - Do you wonder if it’s necessary to express a kind of deeper meaning in a song? Does there need to be a takeaway for the listener? Let's find it out in this episode.

Do you want your songs to have a meaningful message for your listeners?

But you do not know if you’re on the right track, how you can achieve it or how to tell if there’s already a takeaway for your listener in the song you just wrote? 

Isn’t it enough to have a catchy melody and let everyone hit the dance floor?

Sometimes that’s cool, but if you want your song to resonate with your listeners and to be unforgettable, you need to incorporate something that your listener can learn from or relate to.

In this episode, I will show you a method of how to find out if your song is a cautionary tale meaning it’s expressing something your listeners should avoid or a prescriptive tale that offers guidance to achieve something they want. 

And in this episode, I’ll also tell you exactly which one, cautionary or prescriptive, is the one you should aim for and why. 

Here's what we cover:

[00:00:00] - Introduction to the episode

[00:03:05] - Defining what we mean by a 'message' or a central idea in a song. We look at the definition of Jack Perricone and Robert McKee.

[00:05:42] - Examples of Messages in songs and why not every song with a message resonates with us.

[00:09:04] - How can you include a message in a song?

[00:13:22] - Example #1 – ›Nothing else Matters‹ by Metallica

[00:16:18] - Example #2 – ›The Rose‹ by Bette Midler - You can even have two messages in a song.

[00:18:59] - Example #3 – ›I’d do anything for love‹ by Meatloaf

[00:21:01] - Songs can save lives

[00:23:24] - Why are prescriptive tales the ones we love the most?

✅ Stop guessing if your lyrics work. Learn story-first songwriting and turn every idea into music-ready lyrics with a proven, repeatable system. Join our community: Story-First Songwriting on Skool.👉 ⁠skool.com/songwriting/about⁠

#003 - Learn the basics components you need for telling a powerful story or a captivating incident in your song.

I give you three specific things that you can do in your songwriting right now to help you hook your listeners and to keep them engaged in the lyrics.

You might wonder: Why is storytelling so important for songwriting? Why do we need to tell a story or part of a story in a song at all?

The short answer: If you want to reach more people and increase the sales of your next album, then this is what you should do beyond the aspect of music, composition, and melody.

So there’s a lot of ground to cover today, but at the end of this episode, you’ll have a better understanding of what the main ingredients are that you need for telling a story.

Here's what we cover:

[00:00:00] - Introduction to the episode

[00:03:55] - Songwriting meets the Story Grid, + Who is Melanie?

[00:07:06] - What do we need in order to tell a story?

[00:07:50] - Problem

[00:11:23] - Character

[00:14:40] - The goal and what's at stake?

[00:17:34] - An unexpected surprise

[00:21:32] - The dilemma and the crisis situation

[00:25:06] - Is the problem resolved at the ending?

[00:28:30] - Wrap up & 3 Tools

[00:31:44] - Cautionary or prescriptive tale?

✅ Stop guessing if your lyrics work. Learn story-first songwriting and turn every idea into music-ready lyrics with a proven, repeatable system. Join our community: Story-First Songwriting on Skool.👉 ⁠skool.com/songwriting/about⁠

#001 - If you wonder if lyrics still play an important part in songwriting, this episode is for you. 

This is the very first episode of the Stories in Songs podcast. And you get the answer to the question of why we should not neglect the art of capturing your listeners' attention through telling a story in a song.

Especially I talk about how you can turn your listeners into fans and how you can make your songs resonate with them. 

I also walk you through the amazing storytelling in My Chemical Romance's song 'Welcome to the Black Parade' that turned so many people into fans of MCR.

Lyrics are super important if you want to build a fan base. And in this episode, you'll find out why.

Here's what we cover:

[00:00:00] - Introduction to the episode

[00:01:19] - Is it a secret of how you can turn your listeners into fans? Or is it a craft?

[00:01:54] - Who is this podcast for?

[00:02:29] - The craft of storytelling and why it matters in songwriting.

[00:03:36] - Songs set expectations. And why you should deliver.

[00:06:03] - How one song of a band I had never heard of before turned me straight into a fan. Let's analyze the song 'Welcome to the Black Parade' and why it was so powerful.

[00:23:28] - Being a fan is great. Here's why it's so important for people to have something to connect to.

[00:24:27] - The purpose of this podcast is to turn your audience into fans by learning how to tell captivating stories.