5 More Songwriting Exercises

Here’s some more songwriting exercises to help develop your musical composition skills, and spark some new ideas. Even more exercises like this can be found here.

I encourage using a 10 minute timer while experimenting with these. Try one songwriting exercise for ten minutes, then switch to a different exercise for another ten minutes, and then to a different one again. Your goal is to be neither too precious nor too obsessive with your ideation here: you must change gears and try a different exercise after the ten minute timer goes off, even if you stumble across material you really like.

Write your ideas down on paper, or record them using a voice memo app (or other recording software). Keep the recording process as simple and easy as possible, we want ease of recording over quality of recording in this case.

The next day, listen back to your recordings with fresh ears, then pick a favorite idea to develop further.

Character Study

• Create a detailed fictional character, then write a song from their perspective about a pivotal moment in their life.

  Rhyme Scheme Grab Bag

• Write sets of lyrics using different rhyme schemes, for example:

  • AABB

  • ABBA

  • BABA

  • ABAB

  • BBAA

  One Chord

• Write a song using only one chord. Use melody, texture, rhythm, riffs, and instrumental arrangement to maintain interest, rather than harmonic progression.

  Magazine/Newspaper Headline Inspiration

• Pick a headline from a magazine or newspaper at random. Write a song using that headline as a starting point, expanding it into 2 complete stories.

  • Your first story should be based on the headline directly, and expand upon it in a realistic manner.

  • Your second story should expand upon that same headline again, but this time taking it in an absurd, abstract, or nonsensical direction.

  The Three Note Melody

• Write a melody that contains only three notes.

  • Make a variation of that melody, using the same three notes, but in a different order.