Songwriting Without Boundaries (53 page)

Read Songwriting Without Boundaries Online

Authors: Pat Pattison

PAUL PENTON,
Melbourne Australia

DEBORAH QUILTER,
Melbourne Australia

TASLEEM RAJWANI,
Vancouver British Columbia Canada

BEN ROMANS,
Los Angeles CA

LEORA SALO,
Houston TX

CATRINA SEIFFERT,
Melbourne Australia

MICHAEL SHORR,
Taos NM

AMY SPEACE,
Nashville TN

ANDREA STOLPE,
Los Angeles CA

MANUEL STüBINGER,
Kulmbach Germany

STAN SWINIARSKI,
Boston MA

SHIRLEY TO,
Chino Hills CA

NICHOLAS TOZIER,
Jefferson ME

TANJA WARD,
Washington DC

GILLIAN WELCH,
Nashville TN

SCOTT WILKINSON,
Birmingham MI

CHARLIE WORSHAM,
Nashville TN

THE CONTRIBUTORS TALK ABOUT THE CHALLENGES

Pat Pattison is the writing teacher I’ve been long praying for and his writing exercises are nothing short of revolutionary. I’m almost embarrassed to say that after over a decade of professional creative writing I don’t think I ever fully understood the function and craft of metaphor until diving in to the writing challenges of
Songwriting Without Boundaries
. With the elegant flair of a wonderfully mad scientist, Pat pulls the best out of artists and empowers us to make the work we’ve always wanted to make. The poetry I’ve produced since investing in Pat’s teaching has been some of the liveliest, most powerful, and most published work of my career so far. His smart, inventive, cut-to-the-chase instruction has been the necessary overhaul for my whole creative life; the very core of my writing practice has been revamped and infused with new, lustrous life-blood. His books sit open on my desk, dog-eared and well worn.

—CAROLINE HARVEY, PROFESSIONAL POET,
FEATURED ON HBO’S
DEF POETRY JAM

The last time I made four new songs in a month that I liked was a long time ago. Having to work the challenges opens a gate into a garden where I can get pleasure out of using language again. Noticing connections between things is like a beautiful tree in that garden, with abundant fruit.

One more thing; I have always found as a teacher that getting certain students to “get” metaphor was difficult; it sort of seemed like one either has the knack or not. But I feel like Pat’s approach may be one of the best methods of teaching writers to use figurative language I’ve encountered; and in fact, it may be the only one. I can’t wait to use this book in my classes as well as in my own work.

— BONNIE HAYES, SONGWRITER (“HAVE A HEART,” BONNIE RAITT), TEACHER, SAN FRANCISCO, CA

I never realized how restricted and confined my lyrics were until I started doing Pat’s exercises. The exercises opened the door to a vast expanse of lyrical options that I had rarely tapped into. The depth and interest of my lyrics improved greatly even after the first few days of doing the exercises. My brain was forced out of its routine and strengthened new muscles of imagination that will become the new default setting for all my writing to come. It’s too easy to become complacent in our writing and important for us all to constantly challenge ourselves in the way that Pat has shown us here. The methods he teaches in this book are effective and lasting.

—GREG BECKER, SONGWRITER (CARRIE UNDERWOOD, RASCAL FLATTS), NASHVILLE, TN

In the middle of working on these challenges I left for a writing/recording trip to Mexico to work on my new record... so I sort of had an immediate test of the effect of these exercise. It was pretty amazing. My writing didn’t “change” per se—it was still me, working in my normal style, but, everything came faster, and more fluidly. Some of the ideas almost seemed to fall out fully formed. Above all—I think that’s the magic of this book—it preps your brain to be a better you.

—BLEU, RECORDING ARTIST, SONGWRITER, PRODUCER, LOS ANGELES, CA

Pat’s lessons gave me a voice so many years ago, and many of those tools I still use almost daily. But when I was given a new assignment, I was so intimidated, I almost couldn’t bring myself to try them. Would I be able to meet his expectations? Or mine? Once I dove in I quickly realized that, once again, I was going to be led across the dance floor to where the lights don’t shine, that I would improve in places that I didn’t know I had places. Pat and his challenges have a way of saying “Psst, come here, back behind these familiar words... I wanna show you something...” And from there, an unknown vista comes into focus and changes your perspective forever.

—ROB GILES, SONGWRITER, RECORDING ARTIST (THE RESCUES), LOS ANGELES, CA

Before the challenges, I feared metaphor. If one crept into my song I probably wouldn’t have known about it. Pat’s exercises exposed metaphor for what it is—one of the most important and exciting tools a writer can possess. It flicked a switch in my brain, and suddenly I could see metaphors everywhere! Overnight my songs became more original and memorable because I could express my ideas in a unique way. I now have the ability to paint pictures with my lyrics, and show rather than tell by using sense bound language.

Writing every day felt great. Even if just for 15-20min, I was doing my job and becoming a better songwriter. Each challenge built nicely into the next, and before I knew it I was using metaphor, sense bound language, line length AND throwing in rhymes! This is where the magic happens. It has definitely taken my writing to the next level—and I had fun doing it.

—CHANELLE DAVIS, SONGWRITER, RECORDING ARTIST, MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA

Ever since day one of object writing, Pat’s never-ending coaching, wisdom, exercises, and crafting have always provided one of the most important responsibilities as a songwriter: awareness. Awareness of all possibilities, and what can carve deeper into the listener’s mind.

—BEN ROMANS, SONGWRITER, RECORDING ARTIST (THE CLICK FIVE) LOS ANGELES, CA

The object writing challenge for me started out as written fragments of sentiment and awkwardness, which had a habit of splattering untidily as the timer ticked away. As the days passed, my writing settled into strangely cozy corners of storytelling. By the end of the challenge my writing was sitting in the sunshine in a leafy valley, dusted with a frankness uncovered during this wonderful writing practice. I recommend object writing wholeheartedly, to all writers.

—DEBORAH QUILTER, SONGWRITER, MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA

Oh, I loved these challenges! They wake you up creatively so that you’re viewing the world in terms of metaphor, looking for just the right verb or noun that paints the picture you’ve got in your head. I found that they were the perfect exercises to do before actually writing a song—kind of like a great mental warm up before the marathon.

I also found that working in meter really started me focusing on strong vs. weak words and playing with duple and triple feel in lyrics. When you add in the power of making sonic connections through rhyme, you really get a great sense of how meter and rhyme can hold a section together. In my opinion, these exercises are a must for every songwriter.

—SUSAN CATTANEO, ARTIST, SONGWRITING FACULTY, BERKLEE COLLEGE OF MUSIC

The object writing challenge is a guaranteed solution to writer’s block! It is a multi-purpose tool that invited me to silence my inner critic and jump into the limitless potential of original sensory images that only exist within me.

The progressive nature of the challenge (moving from who, to where, etc.) encouraged me to focus on the juicy details in each category in order to paint a picturesque scene that truly invites someone to sit down and listen.

The different time lengths in the challenge taught me that those jewels patiently waiting to be found can just as quickly rise to the top if I was writing for 10 minutes or 90 seconds. It is a dependable skill that can be fired up at any time in the songwriting process.

Doing the challenge also resulted in a wellspring of fresh song titles, verses, and choruses that I never would have realized without the technique.

I would absolutely recommend the process to any songwriter. It is especially motivating completing the challenge within a community of other writers.

—JOY GORA, SONGWRITER, LONGMEADOW, MA

INDEX

Adams, Shane, 14-15, 19-20, 181, 218

adjective-noun collisions exercise

See also
adjective-noun collisions exercise prompts

adjective-noun collisions exercise prompts

blackened autumn, 56-57

blackened funeral, 53-54

fallen carburetor, 54

fallen funeral, 57

fevered carburetor, 58

fevered handkerchief, 55

lonely handkerchief, 56

lonely moonlight, 52-53

smooth autumn, 54-55

smooth moonlight, 58

See also
adjective-noun collisions exercise prompts

adjectives, 50, 51, 52, 59, 65, 67, 89, 91, 92, 93, 94, 95, 97, 106, 171

See also
adjective-noun collisions exercise; finding adjectives from nouns exercise; finding nouns from adjectives exercise

adverbs, 51, 59, 171

Alessi, Sam, 13-14, 218

American Hunger,
105

Anders, Susan, 30, 218

Aristotle, 51

Arnold, Matthew, 5

articles, 172, 173

Barnhill, Greg, 100

Becker, Greg, 54, 55, 56, 78-79, 85, 86, 120, 122, 124, 218, 221

Beige, Davey, 218

“Between Fathers and Sons,” 213

Bleu, 58, 183, 184-186, 188-189, 218, 221

Blink,
24

Bogart, Nelson, 22, 41, 218

Brettell, Cathy, 7-8, 10-11, 12, 218

Brettell, Holly, 31, 218

Brindell, Sarah, 152-154, 178, 195, 196, 215, 216, 218

Burtt, Megan, 121-122, 218

Butler, Samuel, 98

Card, Orson Scott, 49

Cattaneo, Susan, 11, 14, 15, 17, 21, 22, 52, 53, 54, 58, 60, 61, 62, 63, 65, 66, 69, 70, 71-72, 73, 74, 75, 76, 78, 80, 81, 83, 84, 86-87, 92, 93, 94, 97, 102, 103, 114, 117, 126, 130-131, 134-135, 137-138, 158-159, 177-178, 180-181, 189, 196, 198-199, 200, 203-204, 205, 209, 210-211, 212, 214, 215-216, 218, 223

Ceseri, Anthony, 22, 37-38, 218

challenges, writing.
See
specific writing challenges, exercises, and prompts

Chekhov, Anton, 4

Cifelli, Kristin, 63, 78, 79, 83, 87, 90, 93, 95, 103, 218

Coleridge, Samuel Taylor, 98

common meter, 169, 192, 212

See also
common meter exercise; common meter couplets; common meter couplets and pentameter lines exercise

common meter exercise, 190-201

See also
common meter exercise prompts

common meter exercise prompts

ballerina, 195

deep-sea diver, 201

18-wheeler, 196

falling in love, 193-194

magnifying glass, 198-199

ocean waves, 197-198

slot machine, 199-200

whistling, 192-193

common meter couplets, 205

See also
common meter couplets and pentameter lines exercise

common meter couplets and pentameter lines exercise, 205-212

See also
common meter couplets and pentameter lines exercise prompts

common meter couplets and pentameter lines exercise prompts

morning walk, 208

mowing the lawn, 211-212

traffic cop, 209

trash collector, 210

compound words, 172

conjunctions, 172, 173

couplets.
See
common meter couplets; common meter couplets and pentameter lines exercise; tetrameter couplets; tetrameter couplets and pentameter lines exercise; tetrameter couplets exercise

Coutts, Keppie, 60, 127-128, 182-183, 185, 186, 218

Cowan, Chris, 47, 218

Davis, Chanelle, 29-30, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40-44, 53, 54-55, 57, 62, 68-69, 72, 73, 74, 76, 77, 82, 86, 87, 90, 91, 92-93, 94, 96, 97, 102, 103, 117, 118, 147-148, 151-152, 162, 175-176, 179, 183, 184, 189-190, 195, 197-198, 201, 205, 209, 211-212, 214, 215, 218, 222

diatonic relationship, 49, 88

direct address, 139, 140, 198

“Dover Beach,” 5

Duarte, Adriana, 201, 218

duplo meter, 169

“East Coker,” 1

Eliot, T.S., 1

“Essay on Criticism, An,” 168

Essential Guide to Lyric Form and Structure,
190, 213

Essential Guide to Rhyming,
179, 204

exercises, writing.
See specific writing challenges, exercises, and prompts

expressed identity, 50-51, 77, 98, 112, 129, 157, 186