Table of Contents

• Foreword by Nik Venet
• About the Chapters...
• Acknowledgments
• Introduction  

PART I - INTEGRITY  

• Step One:  Touch Somebody
• If You're Doing It for the Money, You May Not Make Any
• The Art & Craft of Songwriting
• Songwriters ... A Community
• Do We Know Where We're Coming From?
• Stop and Look at Who's Listening
• Straight Lines
• Reality: The Training Wheels
• Chimera Is Curable
• Writing from the Inside
• Songwriters Say It All
• Art and Romance: An Analogy
• Do You Read?
• Cookies or Newspapers?
• The New Literacy
• Burning Desire to Communicate
• Some Points to View on Viewpoints 

PART II - CLARITY  

• Truth vs. Facts in Songwriting
• When Little Things Mean a Lot
• Listen & Learn
• Character Studies
• You Talkin' to Me?
• Judging Your Own Material
• Everyday Treasures
• Finding the Pony
• He Says, She Says
• Listeners Vote for Communication
• That's Entertainment
• Smoke and Mirrors  

PART III - TECHNOLOGY  

• Words or Music ... That Is the Question
• Writing Words to Music
• What, Me Study?
• Melody - The Unsung Hero
• The Rhythm of the Melody
• Reading Music
• Playing It by Ear
• Customs & Critics & Rules (Oh, My)
• But What Do Strangers Think?
• Is There Life Between Songs?
• "That Sounds Like It Belongs in a Movie"
• Subject Matters
• Titles: The Heart of the Matter
• You Oughta Be Write in Pictures
• Writing in the Margins
• Writing in Space
• Playing the Symbols Well
• Cleverness and Subtlety
• Starting with the Song

• Publication Dates
• Topical Guide
• Lyrics
• About the Author