mellofello

my 2 cents (for any Canadians on here, note that my 2 cents are still worth slightly more than yours, ;-)

MEANING - Don't waste your time here, never think about what you want to say ! Brilliant college students write brilliant essays every day, and nobody reads them. noone cares how brilliant you are. But if you start with a line that flows off the tongue and support it with other lines and just let it develop on its own it will often develop meaning on its own. and oftentimes way more profound and than anything you or I could come up with. It should ask questions as much as answer them. It's NOT AN ESSAY ! Oh, and one other thing. You don't have to agree with the meaning, you can open up a whole new world of songwriting by writing from someone elses perspective, even someone fictional. (??- But then it wouldn't be about ME ??!) yep, that's the point.

CLICHE - always bad, however if you can take a well known worn out phrase and alter it slightly it can be effective. Sorry the only reference I can think of here is country. George Strait - Blue Clear Sky. If they would have used the standard 'clear, blue sky' it just wouldn't have been much of a tune, u dig ?

rhymes - I actually really dig the almost ryhmes, if they flow off the tongue. something like "just got paid .... find my way". another one that works is to have the ryhme scheme words ryhme but with different syllables. i.e. - "just got paid.... lemonade".

same words - I also dig using the same words, but only internally and not in the same position i.e.- I work all day in the hot sun....... my baby wants me to get the work done.

consonance - can be used to great affect. i.e.- I borrowed a dollar from a bum on the street........ threw it in a barrel and burned it for heat.

p.s.- none of these are meant to be great lyrics, just illustrating each point, lol.