Songwriting For Dummies

Business Plans For Dummies

"Um, Fortune...

Why are you writing about, of all things...a business plan? I thought this blog was about being creative and writing songs."

Well, first of all, I have a business degree. And I'm not afraid to use it. Second, I've already run a business. And you know what?

I would've run it better if I'd known I should have a business plan. My business degree was great for teaching things like accounting (ugh, but  necessary), advertising, retailing, marketing, sales, taxes, insurance, economics, business communications, etc. 

But honestly, I've never seen a business curriculum that included a course on business planning. I was considering getting a B.S. in business or marketing, but none of the programs I looked into had a business planning course. 

They should have. 

"Ok, ok, but what does this have to do with songwriting?" 

If you're serious about making money from songwriting, you need a business plan. A business plan basically helps you figure out who, what, when, where, why, and how you'll do things.

 

When you tell people you're a songwriter, they pepper you with questions:

- "Who will buy your songs? Are you selling them to the public, or to the business community?"

- "What kind of music will you write? What genre?"

- "When will you record your songs, and start selling them?"

- "Where will you do it? Will you have to move to Nashville or LA?"

- "Why would you want to do that? You know you can't make any money at it."

- "How will you market your songs?"

The issue with these questions is that most of them are legit, and they have to be answered - both for yourself and people around you, like your family, friends, employer, and anybody else who could be affected by your decision to be a songwriter. A well-organized business plan can reassure people who really do need answers because of the possible impact on their lives.

If you know me for more than five minutes, you know I'm the world's biggest fan of the For Dummies books. They're extremely thorough, they're written by experts, they're easy to understand, and they're pretty funny, which makes them easy to digest. They're my first point of reference when I need information on something. 

Business Plans For Dummies, 3rd edition, by Paul Tiffany, Ph.D., and Steven D. Peterson, Ph.D., takes the reader through the steps of creating a practical, usable business plan that is easy to read, review and revise regularly. It won't be used as a doorstop.

I'm using it now for my business plan for songwriting, and I couldn't be more pleased. I picked the right book for this daunting task. 

The For Dummies motto says "You're no dummy." 

Using this book for your songwriting business plan will prove that!

"I Got A Name: The Jim Croce Story"

This marvelous book was written by Croce's widow, Ingrid, and tells the story of their life together and the stories behind some of Jim's greatest songs. 

It's hard for me to believe that one artist could have written so many incomparable songs, and in such a variety of styles. 

There are the blue collar, "working man" songs like You Don't Mess Around With Jim, Bad Bad Leroy Brown, Workin' At The Car Wash Blues, and Roller Derby Queen. 

Then there are what I call his "quest songs," ballads about a search for a better life, like I Got A Name and New York's Not My Home. 

I think, though, his "specialty" was love ballads, like Photographs and Memories, I'll Have To Say I Love You In A Song, Time In A Bottle, Lover's Cross, It Doesn't Have To Be That Way, and One Less Set Of Footsteps. Each takes the listener on a journey through love like no other songwriter can.

Jim had only been famous for about a year when he was tragically killed in a plane crash on September 20, 1973. I was devastated. Jim was a huge part of my family life growing up. His music was part of our celebrations like graduations and weddings, and just everyday life, like listening to his music together at home and in the car. It was like he was a member of our family. 

I'm sure I'm not the only person who feels that way.

Yesterday, January 10, was his 81st birthday. It's hard to think of all the music he could have written in the last fifty years. And I still marvel at his output of music in such a short time. 

His ability to tell a story is the real draw for me. Songwriters are storytellers. You're putting together a story that has very little space and time to do that in. 

Jim Croce was a master at getting you interested in characters and situations in under five minutes. That is a rare gift.

Coming Back

I intended to take a short break from this blog late last year. I ran out of ideas for it, honestly. 

Maybe that was a blessing in disguise. 

2024 has been a very painful year, with deaths in my inner circle, major disappointments, and frustrations. It was a year that led me to reevaluate what was important to me. I had to regroup on some goals, wait on some others, and drop some goals completely.

And I finally understood that songwriting was more crucial to me than I actually knew. It's been my therapy, my friend, a way to grow, and a source of self-esteem. 

I really had to take songwriting more seriously. 

So let's see what happens with songwriting next year. I think I'll love it more than ever.

Hello 2024!

Happy New Year!

Hope your holidays were amazing. My Christmas was kinda quiet, but I like Christmas to be simple. But I party like a rock star on New Year's Eve, and did I ever! 

I'm just now recovering...

But I've recovered enough to do a little thinking about making some changes on this blog. 

And one major change is in the scheduling. I've decided to make this a bi-weekly blog instead of a weekly one. I'm starting my bachelor's degree coursework next week, I'm working on my music, and I'm starting my graphic design business this month. So I had to rethink some things.

However, that also gives me more time to think of cool topics for you. So I won't completely leave you high and dry.

Well, "high" is up to you, if you partake in that lifestyle. No judgy-ness here😅

See you in two weeks!

Admit It, You Love It

You can tell me all day long how much you hate All I Want For Christmas Is You. 

I'm with you there if you do.

You can also tell me how much you hate Grandma Got Run Over By A Reindeer. 

I'm not with you there. Yep, I love that one. 

But there is one Christmas song I've never heard anybody say they hate.

It's the song that officially starts the Christmas season. You know this one...

The Christmas Song (Chestnuts Roasting On An Open Fire). Come on, don't try to be "cool" about it. You love it, and you know it. Just 'fess up and admit it. 

The story behind it is wonderful. It was written on a scorching day in Los Angeles in July 1945, by Mel Torme (tor-may, if you've never heard of him) and Bob Wells. 

Wells was trying to stay cool, so he started writing down Christmas images. Torme loved it, so they put their heads together and got the song done in about forty minutes. 

That may have been the most profitable forty minutes in musical history. Look how often that song's been recorded.

I'm going to have plenty of time to listen to it over the next few days. I'm taking the holidays off from this blog. See ya in '24! 

https://youtu.be/A8eWaR8ONvw?si=IktTaMJ9_PpygwKB

Feeling En-Titled

It's hardly a newsflash that your song title can save you...or sink you. There are so many "guidelines" for making it catchy. I'll just run through a few I've often seen.

Name it after a woman

Sherry has been used at least twice that I know of. 

Name it after an animal

Paul McCartney wrote Martha My Dear about his Old English sheepdog. Like we need another reason to love Paul. 

Name it after a month or a season

September by Earth, Wind & Fire was titled that because September was one of Maurice White's favorite months. One of my songs is named for summer, and another is named for October. Not surprising if you know me, because summer and fall are my favorite seasons. 

The most common word

Probably "love." But then again that's the most common song subject too. 'Nuf said on that! 

How long "should" it be - like how many words?

I typically have three words, maximum. But one of my titles clocks in at seven words, although they're short and simple. Mine usually come to me fairly short, and I don't "argue with the song" about it. 

Make it "intentionally misleading."

Colbie Caillat's latest album, Along The Way, is about her breakup with her fiance. She has a song on it called Meant For Me. Most songs with titles like this are done in the vein of "Oh, baby, you were meant for me and this is it."

Hold your horses with this one. As a friend put it, "Then she lowered the boom." Listen to it to find out how.

https://youtu.be/vxQCHmRHFJg?si=LjDv123RSXGA33sl

Yes, we all know my Colbie Caillat songwriting obsession is beyond ridiculous. But this whole album is a masterpiece. Trust me on this. My CD player is sick of it by now, but I don't care.

"What's the actual title?"

Earth, Wind & Fire didn't put the actual title in their hit Love's Holiday. So people have been goofing the title since...well...the song came out. 

This song is commonly called Would You Mind because that's what you hear consistently. To confuse things further...the acoustic demo is called Would You Mind. 

Not sure why they did that...but they're Earth, Wind & Fire...so I don't ask. 

https://youtu.be/KW8Or4BPDQo?si=nqolu-_Uk0cpUyYc

I'm always fascinated with how songwriters come up with titles. Be sure to leave a comment on your own ways of doing that.