How to compose a song ?

Everyone else has given good advice.
Here is my addition.

From how your question is worded it seems you’ve never written any songs at all.
I will cater my answer to that starting point.

You obviously listen to music.
Music makes you feel things.

Know that you too can write a song. You can.

This is the first step.

There is no credential that qualifies a person to write the greatest song ever.

Anyone who tells you otherwise has illusions that are their problem, not yours.

Do you play any instrument at all?

Is it an instrument that is used in music you like?
Have you learned any songs by artists you like?
This is invaluable in understanding the parts that make up most songs.
The verse-chorus-verse- type things Mr. Torres was talking about are real.
Listen to music you like with these elements in mind and you’ll see they are everywhere.

Suddenly you can see behind the curtain.
Most everything follows these elements. There are No rules of what is acceptable though.
Remember this with everything you do. No rules. You can learn basic guidelines, and use them to guide you but in the end, follow your feeling. Create your own guidelines, your own secret language, and learn from those who’ve come before you.
The definition of a “song” is like the definition of a “sandwich”.
It is only a general concept. A veggie sandwich and a roast beef sandwich have a lot in common. They can both be called sandwiches but they don’t have the exact same ingredients. Same as a car. You know what a car is, but if you watch them drive by on the road, you’ll see dozens of different kinds with different features and speeds etc.
I’ll assume you know how to make a sandwich. Once, in the past, someone showed you how to make some type of sandwich Or maybe you learned by watching. Now. If you’re at home and you want to make a sandwich, you might follow a certain recipe but I’m sure you can also “Improvise” a sandwich with what you have available. You got bread. Check. Now what’s in the fridge? OK. A little of this, a little of that. BAM. You’ve got a sandwich you came up with on the fly. Maybe it’s something you’ve never made before but anyone can walk in the room and see that it’s a sandwich.
If you want Peanut butter and Jelly but instead you make Peanut butter and Honey, it’s still a sandwich right?
OK. Done with that metaphor.

Back to instruments.
Guitar and Piano (or even Bass Guitar) are by far the most common and both will give you the tools you need, along with your voice if you want lyrics, to make music.
Remember that most everything you hear on the radio, or have ever bought online or CD or whatever, started as a rough idea and demo recording that was then fleshed out to make the recording you then hear. Even if the songwriter(s) could “hear” everything in their head, the final version, from the beginning (sometimes called the arrangement) they still almost always Catch the idea in a basic form.
All this said, you don’t have to play an instrument. A lot of songwriters only write lyrics and melodies and then partner with another musician who puts chords “under” that.

Which leads me to the next thing.

Especially at first, you need to catch ideas when they come.

This means that if and when you have some random melody or lyric, or guitar/piano riff pop in your head, you need to be ready to capture it. Right then. This can happen anywhere. While walking, reading, cooking, eating, working, trying to sleep. Etc. Albert Einstein is often quoted asking “Why do I always get my best ideas in the shower?” The creative thinking that goes into the things he is known for comes from the same place as those who write music. Again, if someone tells you other wise, that is their illusion and their problem, not yours.

Some artists say songwriting is often like trying to get a photo of a rare animal in the forest. You prepare your camera and wait ’til it comes along. Snap, you instantly take the photo. If you have to pull the camera out and set up, the animal will be gone by the time your equipment is ready. If you hunt it down it is likely to run away before you can see it.

After time, you’ll learn the ways of “tracking” it and it’ll be easier to go to it, rather than it coming to you.

So for You what this means is have a Voice Recorder and or paper and pen available at all times.
If you use a “smart” phone, it will have a voice recorder (voice memo app) already built into it, or you can get an app for free or a couple bucks.

This is all you need to capture and therefore write a song that then becomes the fancy version you may decide to record and share with others. Some people even release recordings made right on their phone. You can get multitrack apps to build ideas with multiple instruments or voices.
I love the “Four Track” app by Sonoma Wireworks. It’s $10 but very simple to use and ease of use is paramount for capturing and nurturing the moment.

New musical ideas are like dreams.

No matter how much you think you’ll remember it later, even ten minutes from now, you probably won’t. It’s just gone. If you Do remember it after that time, the thing that made it special will have left and you’re stuck with the feeling of “It seemed so cool before. What happened?”
Sitting down with the intention to write is absolutely a great practice, and often separates the pros from the amateurs. Not always. As Mr. Torres said, “writers write consistently”. You can’t hit a home run, or even a base hit if you don’t step up to the plate.

Again. Right now, today, make sure you have a voice recorder available and always have it on you.
If you don’t have a smart phone (good for you) you can by a simple voice recorder at Radio Shack or Best Buy etc. Mini tape ones are available, but a digital one is going to be more useful in the sense that you can easily transfer recordings to a computer and use them in recording software or emailing/texting it to people you’re writing with. Last time I checked you can get a digital recorder for $30 and up. I’m not assuming you can afford this but it is a worth while purchase if you can.

So. Perhaps I’ve said enough at this point.
Learn some other peoples songs that you like. Not “Mary had a Little Lamb”, a song you like.
This will give you an idea of the mechanics of a song. Once you get this, you’ll see how to take a couple of ideas, and piece them together in a certain order, and with repeating parts in some places and suddenly you have a real song. Also, remember, you can always return to or add to a pre-existing song.
If you listen to stuff on the radio or some other form of popular music delivery, just internet search for “chords” and the name of the song you like.
You’ll get results. Some are better than others.
I won’t go into how to learn the basics of an instrument here.

So. No rules. This is self expression.

Let as many ideas come as you can. If you write a tune that you end up not liking, it’s OK. I guarantee you every major songwriter you like does this. They just don’t share those songs. Many people think that artists either create exclusively great work or they are average. This is not true. Ask them, if you have the chance. This is why some people call it a “craft”. It is the past future and present all in one. Don’t judge the ideas when they come. You can judge them later if you choose. At the moment of music’s conception, respect yourself, (because the idea is coming from within you) and just let it come. In a way you’re just listening rather than creating. To expand ideas, you kind of ask yourself questions like “what am I trying to say? how do I feel?”, etc. and then listening to the answer that comes.

AS you write more, look back and ask yourself what was the situation when certain ideas came to you. Or certain songs ended up being good ones. Are their any elements, like time of day, the place you were, who you were with, the mood/emotion you had, how tired or rested you were, what you were eating?
OK. That’s my long addition to the pile of already good advice.
Happy writing.
-Lars

Hi! There are times when inspiration hits you and lyrics come easily, but there are also other times when you don't feel inspired and that's when you got to work a little harder to write a great song or there are times when you just got nothing and your stuck for awhile.

"The 3 E's of Songwriting: EDUCATION: learn the craft of a song. EXPOSURE: expose yourself to great songs and study them. EXPERIENCE: writers write consistently."

So, how to compose a song...there are 4 elements that make up a song.

1. 
   

   Verse: The verse is the place where the listener is introduced to the characters. It tells the story and sets the emotional tone. The verse lyric its words contains the plot, the details, and the action.

   
   


2. 
   

   Pre-Chorus: The pre-chorus is sometimes referred to as the lift, channel, climb, or set-up.

   
   


3. 
   

   Chorus: Melodically, the chorus is the catchy, repetitious part of a song that you sing along with. Lyrically, the chorusʼs job is to summarize the idea and emotion of the song in a general way to hammer home its title.

   
   


4. 
   

   Bridge: The bridgeʼs job is to add contrast, a new perspective, or additional information; to take the song to the next level; and to lead the listener back to the chorus and title from a new angle.

   
   

There is no one way, but here are six examples of a Song Layout:

Verse 1 - Chorus - Verse 1 - Chorus

Verse 1 - Chorus - Verse 2 - Chorus

Verse 1 - Chorus - Verse 2 - Chorus - Bridge - Chorus

Verse 1 - Pre-Chorus - Chorus - Verse 2 - Pre-Chorus - Chorus

Verse 1 - Pre-Chorus - Chorus - Verse 2 - Pre-Chorus - Chorus - Bridge - Chorus Chorus - Verse 1 - Chorus - Verse 2 - Chorus - Bridge - Chorus

HomeWork: Take time to listen to different Artists and see if you can figure out the layout of the song and which parts of the song are the verses, pre-chorus, chorus, and bridge.

You can record song ideas using your recording device on your phone or you could use a songwriting app or a recording app or software.

Hope this Helps and All the Best as you explore songwriting and recording your song ideas.

If you are interested in making beats and hiphop, which it seems like you might be, considering your tags, and you have access to a computer, smart phone, or tablet-- you can get free or very inexpensive software that you can use to compose music.

The most fully-featured of these are called DAWs, which stands for Digital Audio Workstation.

If you have access to a smart phone, you can even learn on a miniature version of a DAW, called a micro- DAW. On Android, there's Audio Evolution ($6.99): https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.extreamsd.aemobile&hl=en

on an Apple device, or there is one called NanoStudio ($6.99)
https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/nanostudio/id382263651?mt=8

There are tons of online tutorials and communities to learn from in support of these apps.

On a regular computer I use Reaper (free):
http://www.reaper.fm/
which is available as a free download, and politely asks for a small amount of $ every time you open it but still works.

All of these enable you to begin multitracking, and you can use free VST plugins in Reaper:
https://www.reddit.com/r/WeAreTheMusicMakers/comments/2fldky/new_to_reaper_need_vst_instruments_any_suggestions/

that will function as synthesizers, virtual instruments, drum machines, and recording effects for your songs.

Good luck, watch instructional videos online (I do all the time) and keep making work!

Sit down and take time. If you play an instrument, just start playing chords on it. Start singing whatever comes to mind - let the lyrics flow. Or, if you're more computer-oriented, sit down and start typing whatever lyrics come to mind. If you have the gift, melodies will come to you - you will hear them in your mind and then start playing them on your instrument. As for form, the other people who answered here gave you some good advice, too. But for starters, just sit down and start singing and playing. As for inspiration, write about what inspires you - love, nature, politics, God - whatever moves you to express yourself. And don't forget to listen to the greats from yesteryear - they really knew their stuff - as a foundation. Google "best songs ever written" and go from there - study them, listen to them, learn from them. And above all, enjoy the process!

There're a ton of different ways to compose a song. do you have any experience with instruments? that would be a plus. writing a song takes time and real effort. I would try and listen to some of your favorite artists to try and get an understanding of how they structure their music. Once you get that down you can come of with some idea of what you want to write about; Love, breakup, people, ect. its important to write about something you understand so you can put emotion behind it. Real raw emotion helps to connect with other people through your music. Structuring can be done in numerous ways... one way can start off with a couple of verses then a chorus, bridge then a few more verses after that and it could end with a chorus, Its pretty much at your own discretion. There is no wrong way of writing and structuring a song. If you are a beginner at it sit down at a piano or with a tune with out words to write to. I hope you find this helpful.

Example:
V1
V2
Chorus
V3
Chorus
Bridge
V1
Chorus

Do you play an instrument or do you sing?
You have to listen to your feelings and write everything that comes to you, then you put it in a format a-b-c--d or other formats.
Once you like what you heard , that will give you the style of the melody, then you look for the harmony that the song requires.
Place the rhythm, chose you instruments-=orchestration.
Record it.

I posted this mistakenly as a comment before, but in case this answer flags the questioner.

Check out https://www.coursera.org/learn/songwriting

I took this particular course and it's a really good way to have some basic structure in learning the process. I think it did require that you have some method of recording at least your voice. The course eventually asks for submissions for which you record words and/or music, but they provide backing music tracks for you to use, so it's not like you have to know or learn how to play an instrument, too. They also have suggestions for recording programs, some of which are free.

It covers a lot of points already made above, but like I said, it's value is in the structure of the program; it gives you different aspects to focus on every week so you can "build up" in a constructive manner.

Robin Frederick is a wonderful resource on songwriting, she has a lot of content available online from her blog, her books are also wonderful and recommended by Taxi Music.

http://robinfrederick.com/learn-how-to-write-a-song/