Songwriting, Part 19, integrating elements

Guitarists often write chords first and then put the melody to those chords.

The most common section length is 8 bars

One non-diatonic chord spices things up alot but doesn’t destroy the overall sonority of the section

Melodies that match the chord tones sound stronger but if this done too much it might not have enough tension. One way to remedy this is by using anticipation and/or delay in the melody to any given chord tone.

The 3 most common ways to write a complementary section are using a) relative major or minor as tonic b) different tension & release direction c) different harmonic rhythm

You must have a system whereby you capture your ideas, be it recording yourself, writing it down in tab or standard notation or intervals, etc.

Writing with people who share similar musical tastes can be fun.

1. pick key
2. write 8 bars of chords
3. make at least 1 chord non-diatonic (different quality or different root)
4. make up melody where first note of each bar matches the underlying chord
5. anticipate or delay at least one melody note by an 8th note to the new chord
6. write a complimentary section using a) relative major or minor as tonic b) different tension & release direction c) different harmonic rhythm*
7. write a melody using steps 4 & 5 to new section
8. put it all together and play it

*for more on step 6 see:
https://www.ultimate-guitar.com/lessons/songwriting__lyrics/so_you_wrote_a_chord_progression_now_what.htmlui