Today I want to discuss the use of 'artistic license' or 'artistic freedom' when it comes to writing your lyrics or altering the lyrics of others' creativity.
Sometimes when I find myself fishing for lyrical ideas from the inspiration pool, I come up empty or barely got a nibble. So to remedy this situation I would listen to one of my musical favorites readily available on my computer and choose a verse to rewrite into my own words. This way I am piggy-backing on the inspiration of others and soon find that my own creative juices begin to flow. Of course, if you publish the cover song using your infused lyrics, do NOT forget to acknowledge the original artist to be fair to them and to avoid legal action taken against you.
Whether you are borrowing from others for songwriting or any other genre, make sure to give credit where credit is due. You would expect the same respect afforded to you. If you listen above to one of my covers, you will hear one of my own verses either replacing one currently in the song or simply added to the mix. Take note that I also name the original artist in the title. Here is a link to an example (mine is the last verse) for those not ambitious enough to click elsewhere...
Ghost Riders on the Storm - Johnny Cash - Scott Douglas McDonald
With that said, let's get writing!!!
Monday, March 2, 2015
Wednesday, December 17, 2014
Christmas Songs!
I just published my Christmas Song for 2014 on YouTube, Reverbnation and my Facebook music page. I wrote one last year too and have decided to make it a tradition. One new Christmas song, once every year...shouldn't be that hard...right?!
A majority of the writing that I do is born from a moment's thought. A Christmas song or any other intentionally written song is a little more challenging because there is a theme that must be kept in mind. I suppose you could digress into other area somewhere in the lyric but if you are to stay true to the genre then you must stay disciplined and write with Santa, presents, reindeer, or sleigh-bells always on the tip of your pen.
Since I actually enjoy Christmas, I do not find it all that difficult to drum up some inspiration to crank out a tune. I think this year's song is better than last year's. I figure that if I keep my new tradition alive then I should build up enough of a Christmas repertoire to put out my own Christmas CD someday or decade in the future! Keep your eyes and ears posted to the Internet for that!!! Hahaha!!!
I currently live in Vietnam so my Christmas inspiration is a bit stretched. In the three plus years that I have been here, I've witnessed a steady growth in Christmas support from the local populous and thus the various colorful displays I see around town help to build the season into a true Wintery experience for us western ex-pats who have made the tropics our home. I am staring at a Christmas tree as I write this. It is a balmy 88F outside with a nice breeze and only a hint of humidity in the air.
Ho-ho-ho...Merry Christmas!!!
Scott Douglas McDonald
Become a FAN at www.reverbnation.com/scottdouglasmcdonald or www.facebook.com/scottdouglasmcdonald
I just published my Christmas Song for 2014 on YouTube, Reverbnation and my Facebook music page. I wrote one last year too and have decided to make it a tradition. One new Christmas song, once every year...shouldn't be that hard...right?!
A majority of the writing that I do is born from a moment's thought. A Christmas song or any other intentionally written song is a little more challenging because there is a theme that must be kept in mind. I suppose you could digress into other area somewhere in the lyric but if you are to stay true to the genre then you must stay disciplined and write with Santa, presents, reindeer, or sleigh-bells always on the tip of your pen.
Since I actually enjoy Christmas, I do not find it all that difficult to drum up some inspiration to crank out a tune. I think this year's song is better than last year's. I figure that if I keep my new tradition alive then I should build up enough of a Christmas repertoire to put out my own Christmas CD someday or decade in the future! Keep your eyes and ears posted to the Internet for that!!! Hahaha!!!
I currently live in Vietnam so my Christmas inspiration is a bit stretched. In the three plus years that I have been here, I've witnessed a steady growth in Christmas support from the local populous and thus the various colorful displays I see around town help to build the season into a true Wintery experience for us western ex-pats who have made the tropics our home. I am staring at a Christmas tree as I write this. It is a balmy 88F outside with a nice breeze and only a hint of humidity in the air.
Ho-ho-ho...Merry Christmas!!!
Scott Douglas McDonald
Become a FAN at www.reverbnation.com/scottdouglasmcdonald or www.facebook.com/scottdouglasmcdonald
Wednesday, December 10, 2014
How to find inspiration for writing...
Dear Reader,
Today I'd like to address one of the most common challenges in any writer's day...inspiration.
Where does it comes from?
How can I initiate that spark of creativity?
I discover most of my inspiration from a variety of sources (as do most writers I am sure) and that is from something someone says to me during a conversation or something I myself say, something I've heard or seen on TV, perhaps a song I am listening to or even a melody line. I am not telling you to outright 'steal' someone else's creative work but you CAN find inspiration from it to create something original and something you can call your own.
Whether it is poetry, lyrics, music, academic or business writing or even a blog, you should take advantage of this inspiration once you've found it. It doesn't have much of a lifespan so once you do begin writing, don't stop until you've at least got a rough draft completed. If you take a break and come back to it later, you may find that your spark is gone and you cannot finish what you've started or almost as bad, what you do add is substandard material. If I am forced to abandon something I am writing, I rarely go back to it the next day because I find that the 'feeling' is not there and I cannot connect to the original theme or emotion, so I toss it out.
It is best to get as much out of yourself as possible in as short a period of time as possible and worry about polishing it later. I find that developing lyrics works best this way too. Sometimes the song can move in directions that you were not expecting or intending when you began. This can be both a good thing and a bad thing depending on the original theme or intention. Sometimes digression can lead down roads you would not have otherwise traveled. I like to let my creative juices flow once the taps have been turned on because there is always a limit to this resource and it dries up eventually.
The gist of this is that you can find inspiration from a multitude of sources and once you have sparked a flame of creativity, fan it into a blaze and milk it for all its worth before you expend the fuel that maintains its ferocity!
Become a FAN at www.reverbnation.com/scottdouglasmcdonald or www.facebook.com/scottdouglasmcdonald
Today I'd like to address one of the most common challenges in any writer's day...inspiration.
Where does it comes from?
How can I initiate that spark of creativity?
I discover most of my inspiration from a variety of sources (as do most writers I am sure) and that is from something someone says to me during a conversation or something I myself say, something I've heard or seen on TV, perhaps a song I am listening to or even a melody line. I am not telling you to outright 'steal' someone else's creative work but you CAN find inspiration from it to create something original and something you can call your own.
Whether it is poetry, lyrics, music, academic or business writing or even a blog, you should take advantage of this inspiration once you've found it. It doesn't have much of a lifespan so once you do begin writing, don't stop until you've at least got a rough draft completed. If you take a break and come back to it later, you may find that your spark is gone and you cannot finish what you've started or almost as bad, what you do add is substandard material. If I am forced to abandon something I am writing, I rarely go back to it the next day because I find that the 'feeling' is not there and I cannot connect to the original theme or emotion, so I toss it out.
It is best to get as much out of yourself as possible in as short a period of time as possible and worry about polishing it later. I find that developing lyrics works best this way too. Sometimes the song can move in directions that you were not expecting or intending when you began. This can be both a good thing and a bad thing depending on the original theme or intention. Sometimes digression can lead down roads you would not have otherwise traveled. I like to let my creative juices flow once the taps have been turned on because there is always a limit to this resource and it dries up eventually.
The gist of this is that you can find inspiration from a multitude of sources and once you have sparked a flame of creativity, fan it into a blaze and milk it for all its worth before you expend the fuel that maintains its ferocity!
Become a FAN at www.reverbnation.com/scottdouglasmcdonald or www.facebook.com/scottdouglasmcdonald
Tuesday, December 9, 2014
Introducing...Scott Douglas McDonald
Today is December 10th, 2014. The first day of my blog. I'd like to take this opportunity to briefly introduce myself. I am an artist (songwriter among others) living in Vietnam. To make a decent living over here I am a Science teacher at an International School. I have been dabbling in various genres of artistic expression for longer than I care to remember. Through this blog, I'd like to share my experiences with you for a number of reasons. The first being that I am a teacher and thus feel a need to share with you. Second being that it helps to get things off of my mind from time to time. Third being that I feel my sharing with you may help you to avoid certain pitfalls or perhaps inspire your own direction to travel through this arena. Either way, I plan to share as much as I can about being an artist and living your dreams (especially through your music).www.reverbnation.com/scottdouglasmcdonald
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