# Principles for songwriting Treat the song as if it already exists, as I've realized in [[Songwriting, white noise, and meditation]]. [[Consider everything an experiment]]. [[Be willing to write a bad song]]. [[Don't worry about sense]]. Work. The people who work come up with good ideas, as taught in rule 7 of [[Corita Kent's ten rules for teachers and students]]. [[Write the song you want to hear]]. [[Show, don't tell]]. Honor your metaphor. [[Avoid adjectives]]. [[Don't overcook it]], and [[Don't coddle your song]]. Keep it simple. A multisyllabic word isn't going to make your song better.[^1] [[Go for clear over clever]]. - [[Best practices for sad songwriting]] - [[Songwriting is like meditation]] - [[What counts as showing up to songwriting-]] - [[In praise of short songs]] - [[Everything's a song]] - [[How to keep up a recording practice]] [^1]: [[How to Write One Song]] ch. 7