Have you ever pursued a really dumb idea?

[BUTLER REDSFAN]

And it paid off? My brothers now exwife had a gastric bypass 4 years ago ..she decided after that that her crap didnt stink and basically dumped my brother...not saying my brother is completely blameless but this has left my brother massively bitter and broke...anyway,my wife and I had often remarked the things he has went thru since the divorce you could write a country song about it...I have jotted enough lyrics down over time to where I honestly think about pursuing this idea of putting this down in a song...as it turns out the guy who sits next to me at work was best friends with a country singer/songwriter growing up and they still keep in contact.....not sure how much money could be made out of this(writing or copyrighting a song) but I would obviously want my brother to get most of it as his credit has been ruined from all this.....

[Johnny Footstool]

Nothing to lose here. Make it happen.

[reds1869]

Not a dumb idea at all. If you think it will be ok with your brother, go for it.

[nate]

And it paid off? My brothers now exwife had a gastric bypass 4 years ago ..she decided after that that her crap didnt stink and basically dumped my brother...not saying my brother is completely blameless but this has left my brother massively bitter and broke...anyway,my wife and I had often remarked the things he has went thru since the divorce you could write a country song about it...I have jotted enough lyrics down over time to where I honestly think about pursuing this idea of putting this down in a song...as it turns out the guy who sits next to me at work was best friends with a country singer/songwriter growing up and they still keep in contact.....not sure how much money could be made out of this(writing or copyrighting a song) but I would obviously want my brother to get most of it as his credit has been ruined from all this.....

As someone who is songwriter that spends pretty much every waking minute writing music, pursuing opportunity and networking with other songwriters in the country music songwriting capital of the world, I would offer that the potential to spend money is much higher than the potential to make money.

It's hard to find takers for just lyrics. In co-writing (which is what you're looking to do), all parties typically bring the ability to sing and or play and instrument. People who just write lyrics are rare.

It's easy to find people who prey on the dreams of lyric writers and claim they can turn your lyrics into a song and shop it because it has "hit potential." Mostly, it's just a way to separate you from your money.

Also realize that as a lyricist, should your tune ever make money your slice of the pie is going to be divided greatly by the number of other folks it required to create your tune. At least, that means half if you need someone else to write music, maybe a third of that person gets someone else involved.

You _could_ find someone (especially here in Nashville) to do a "guitar/vocal" for you which is just...well...acoustic guitar and a vocal. Still, that person will have written the music for your song and may or may not want credit for it. However, it's one of the cheapest way to turn a lyric into something you can play for somebody.

None of these even touches on the hardest part: finding a way to make your music profitable.

[reds1869]

As someone who is songwriter that spends pretty much every waking minute writing music, pursuing opportunity and networking with other songwriters in the country music songwriting capital of the world, I would offer that the potential to spend money is much higher than the potential to make money.

It's hard to find takers for just lyrics. In co-writing (which is what you're looking to do), all parties typically bring the ability to sing and or play and instrument. People who just write lyrics are rare.

It's easy to find people who prey on the dreams of lyric writers and claim they can turn your lyrics into a song and shop it because it has "hit potential." Mostly, it's just a way to separate you from your money.

Also realize that as a lyricist, should your tune ever make money your slice of the pie is going to be divided greatly by the number of other folks it required to create your tune. At least, that means half if you need someone else to write music, maybe a third of that person gets someone else involved.

You _could_ find someone (especially here in Nashville) to do a "guitar/vocal" for you which is just...well...acoustic guitar and a vocal. Still, that person will have written the music for your song and may or may not want credit for it. However, it's one of the cheapest way to turn a lyric into something you can play for somebody.

None of these even touches on the hardest part: finding a way to make your music profitable.

As someone with ties to the music industry, I second everything Nate said. Even so, don't be afraid to pursue your dreams--just don't kill yourself doing it!