When you’re in the act of creating when you’re actually focused on that one song, and that focus is allowing you to disappear . . . there isn’t anyone else’s image of who you are to compete with. In fact, even the image you have of yourself can take a breather. - Jeff Tweedy
Welcome to the second episode of Write Me A Song: A Songwriting Podcast with Edward Randell and Olivia Rafferty! Thanks for joining us on this journey so far. Take a listen to this week’s songwriting challenge and don’t forget we’d love you to get involved too! Scroll down to read this week’s homework and the submission link.
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🎵 Episode 2: Write Me A Word Ladder
This week Edward challenges Olivia to use the ‘word ladder’ technique from Jeff Tweedy’s book ‘How To Write A Song.’
Listen to the episode to see how she gets on.
🎹 Songwriting Homework #2
This week, we want you to write us a song based off the word ladder technique.
Here’s your homework:
Grab a bit of paper and a pen
Think of a profession, and write down ten verbs that you might associate with that job. Write this in a column on one side of the page
Take a book off your shelf at random, choose a page at random and write the first ten nouns you see. Write this as a column next to your verb list.
Pair each noun with a verb, making an effort to choose unlikely and unfamiliar connections
Use those pairings to kickstart your lyrics. The verbs can be performed by your noun (for example: the garden destroys), or they can be performed upon your nouns (your garden was destroyed). Have fun with it! You don’t have to use every pairing, even if it’s just one phrase which sets you off, then that’s fine!
Record a demo and send it in!
Upload your song to be featured on the podcast or newsletter below.
📚 Episode References
Mentions from today’s episode:
📕 How To Write One Song by Jeff Tweedy
🎟️ Tickets for Olivia’s Album Release Show on 6th March
🎟️ Tickets for Edward’s String Quartet Show on 3rd April
✒️ Lyrics
You poisonous bloom
Your garden destroyed me softly
The laurels you built all around like a halo they
Burn, burn, burn
The whiskey cemented
A statue you thought I’d copy
An icon, a pedestal, a tall Michaelangelo
Burns, burns, burns
‘Cause I think
If they’d let me
I’d chisel away at your memory
If windows could measure the time that we spent
With blackboards and codewords and chalk on our hands
Then windows will break
And windows will bend
To horizons
But I put my name on that delicate page
Only to find I was written away
And I heard your laugh at the carcass you made
From horizons
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