Write like, er, better sort of lyric thingies what get, you know, the point across, kind of thing. Oh, Jon Lewin will explain it.

WRITING LYRICS often seems hard, perhaps the most difficult part of putting a song together. After all, you come up with instrumental passages every time you sit down to play, using sequences of chords quite easily and naturally. Unfortunately a set of lyrics rarely seems to come quite so casually.

But it should. Words are just language, and we use that all the time. If you can talk — or more importantly, listen — and you know which way up to hold a pen, then you can write lyrics. No problem.

LET'S GO

You don't need to have a definite subject to get started. All that's necessary is a single phrase or idea that happens to stick in your mind; it can be a particular expression like 'Is There Something I Should Know?', a catchphrase (er, 'Star Trekking'?), or even just words that sound good together ('Karma Chameleon', 'Hard Day's Night'). This could turn into the title, suggest a rhythm or a melody, even perhaps another line. We can call this first idea the hook, as it's the bit that's caught your attention, and will hopefully catch the listener.

You have to develop an ear for interesting phrases. Start listening to the way people say things, the odd phrases they use to describe ordinary objects. Read poetry, the papers, watch TV, listen to the radio — and write down anything that catches your fancy. To this end, you'll find that lots of writers carry notepads to scribble choice ideas into, as inspiration may strike anywhere; John Cale once said that he got most of his ideas from eavesdropping on aeroplanes, hence (presumably) all those songs about international terrorists.

You can also pick up lyrical ideas from your own playing — a riff will often prompt some words. This happened to Paul McCartney when he was writing the famous Beatles' song, 'Scrambled Egg'; all right, he changed it to 'Yesterday', but the phrasing is the same.

Once you get into the note-making habit, you'll find that the phrases you pick start to suggest other ideas to you. The more you exercise your imagination like this, the easier it will become to spark new ideas off the things you hear.

WRITE ON

Once you've got that initial germ of an idea, it should be easy to deduce what the rest of the song will be 'about'. Romance, maybe? Although LURV (erk, sloppy) is obviously the predominant lyrical theme in popular music, it doesn't have to be. You can write about literally anything you like, although it's easier if you pick a subject that you know as you will already be familiar with the right words and phrases. So what do you enjoy doing?

Yes, sex is a very popular topic, which unfortunately makes it harder to be original. One popular way of bringing naughties into your music is by dealing with it indirectly — dancing in popular music is almost always a metaphor for sexual activity of some sort. Wanna 'Rock Around The Clock', darling? Fancy a 'Twist', mister? (But where did 'The Mashed Potato' fit in?) One problem in writing a dance/sex song is that you have to be able to do it to the music. Has anyone written 'Do The Mosh' yet?

Then there's drink, and other inebriating substances, generally a popular form of recreation. Songs like 'Milk & Alcohol', 'Red Red Wine', 'White Line Fever', and 'Heroin' all prove the popularity of writing about getting treeless. Of course, it's quite possible to combine two subjects as did country singer Jimmy Buffett, with the eloquent pre-AIDS song, 'Why Don't We Get Drunk (And Screw)?'

Less universal hobbies also make fine subjects for songs. Look at all the skateboard-thrash bands about at the moment — is this the modern equivalent of surf music? And talking of The Beach Boys, their brief flirtation with hot rods proves that you can be as specific as you want in your chosen subject: '409' is about a car engine, replete with detail like "four speed, dual quad, positraction 409" — you could almost build one yourself from the chorus.

You can use songs to do anything, like list your favourite bands (Psychedelic Furs' 'We Love You'), or tell stories (any old folk song, Gabriel's 'Biko'). To that end, read the newspapers and pick out odd or interesting stories. Start a scrapbook, have fun with Copydex.

However, there are some basic premises that you should bear in mind (or ignore completely). You're more likely to attract the listener's attention if you're writing about something that they can identify with. Listen to Bill Bragg, or The Smiths. And why else do you think drivel like 'I Wanna Wake Up With You', 'Grandad', 'Torn Between Two Lovers' and so on is so popular? They put into words sentiments lots of people share, but are either unwilling or unable to articulate. Learn to express what your audience is feeling, and you're on your way to having a hit.

WORDY RAP

But to do that you have to learn to express yourself clearly. Think about the atmosphere you're trying to create as that will make a big difference to the sort of words you can use. A goth/punk song can use more eldritch words than a thrash-metal ditty, which in turn will use a wider, harsher vocabulary than a gentle conversational love song.

The type of rhymes you use (if any) will also alter depending on what kind of music you're doing: too many similar end-of-line rhymes can make serious songs sound comical, though they might work perfectly well in another context. Remember rhymes emphasise words, and you can end up destroying the sense of a phrase by putting a word in the wrong place just to make up a rhyme.

Again, there are guidelines that it helps to be aware of: don't use too much unfamiliar language, as it can end up sounding as strange to the listener as it does to you. Don't change the order of the words just to make up a rhyme. Can you imagine speaking the words you've written?

MAKE IT EASY...

When you're scribbling your first draft, you probably won't be paying much attention to overall design. But the words do have to make some sense when they're all put together, and it often helps to have the stanzas in a vaguely logical order. And if your chorus gives an oblique comment on the events you've described in the verse, it's not smart to start the song with it.

What you should commence with is a killer first line, packed with enough vibrant wit to set the listener quivering with anticipation for what is to come: "It's Saturday night, and I just got paid" for instance, or "I was born in a crossfire hurricane" perhaps. But probably not "Darken the city, night is a wire" (Duran Duran).

If you do use the song to make a socio-political point of any kind, take care. Irony or sarcasm in song very rarely works, and is horribly easily misinterpreted. You'll find the press and public will believe you're a fascist piggy-wiggy rather more readily than they'll accept your sense of humour.

If you're writing pop music, you'll almost certainly find yourself repeating lines, choruses, and even verses ("Second verse, same as the first," sang The Ramones). Don't be afraid of this time-honoured principle — it's vital that the audience remembers the song, and if that means you have to sing the same line 16 times, then that just gives them 16 goes at it.

STUCK IN THE MIDDLE

So what do you do if you get stuck? Go away, and come back to it later, perhaps. It helps to have two or three proto-songs on the boil at once, as you can swap between them as your muse ebbs and flows. You also might find you end up combining ideas.

But if you really can't get down to it, there are other possibilities. The whackiest is probably the famous William Burroughs cut-up method, which Bowie used to great effect in his "Low" and "Heroes" days. You simply cut up a text of some sort (your own, or anyone else's) into individual words or phrases. Then you throw them up in the air. Whee! Next simply re-arrange them in a new order. You'll either end up with mysterious and thought-provoking new phrases, or a pile of crap. Use what you want, and try again.

If you're short of words, try browsing in a thesaurus, or even a dictionary. Or simply make up gibberish that fits the tune you're working with — you'll often find that the mood and instrumentation of the playing stimulates you to come up with a word or two here and there that you can easily use as a basis.

On the matter of mood, it's often useful to read poetry that fits in with the atmosphere you're trying to create (I can recommend Auden for paranoia). Don't be a pretentious prannet, as ripping off Milton or Shelley is a very Seventies habit and should be discouraged. But pay attention to the way great writers use simple language to create moving poetry, and rip that off instead.

GET IT ON

If you're serious about writing lyrics, you'll need the basic songwriter's kit: a small notebook you can carry around for spur of the moment ideas, a larger pad (old diaries are a bargain) for more rambling thoughts, plus imagination, and numerous pens and pencils. And if you can afford it, a recording Walkman is good for noting snatches of tune.

And once you've got started, bear in mind that there are no rules to what you can say or how you say it. You'll learn by experience how best to express what you have to say, though paying attention to the above hints may save you some time. Good luck, and can I have a royalty when you chart?