JPF Home Page Forums General Messages Songwriter Message Forum Critiques...what have you learned from them?

I've always found critiques incredibly valuable. In the beginning I felt very upset that my 'babies' were apparently way less beautiful than I thought! It was a massive hit to my ego, but over the years I've learned to accept this form of constructive criticism and I've become a better songwriter because of it.

These days I spend quite a bit of time critiquing other writer's work through my business, and I always remind the writers that its MY opinion based on what I've learned about hit songwriting.

To me, a good critique is one that points out the strengths and the weaknesses in a song without putting words in the writer's mouth. As a song critic, its not my job to write the song for them - its my job to give them direction, and stress areas of the song that can be made stronger and how to improve them.

When I critique a song, each comment is designed to guide the writer toward their end goal - to write the best song possible - regardless if they are writing for their personal pleasure or wanting to write hits for the radio. Either way, in order to get the most out of any song critique you have to have a strong self-esteem, be truly willing to listen and take advice on board, and understand that its not a personal attack on you or your song.

There can be an 'Ouch!' factor - especially the first few times your songs are critiqued, but anyone wanting a CAREER as a songwriter has to grow a tough hide and learn not to be 'precious' about their work.