Every Writer Needs To Know This Magic Formula

Whats up steemians! In today's post, we will discuss why there are certain song structures that work better than others… at least from a scientific perspective. This post is not exclusively written for musicians. I’m sure every writer in any field can learn something from this.

I will always link some music in my posts that you should listen to while reading. It helps a lot to get the right vibe, and you will remember much (MUCH!) better.

Which structure do I mean? You probably guessed it. It's this structure: 

• Intro
• Verse 1
• Pre-Chorus
• Chorus
• Verse 2
• Pre-Chorus
• Chorus
• Bridge
• Chorus
• Chorus
• Outro

Now… let’s look at something amazing. It is called the three-act structure, and it is almost always used in cinema and Hollywood film production.

Screenwriters have perfected the art of storytelling over decades. In the book Screenplay(1979), Syd Field introduced the worlds now most popular structure to film. Basically, every movie you know follows this principle. The name says is - it consists of three parts.

1. Setup - we are introduced to the hero and his problem 
2. Confrontation - the shit hits the fan. Our hero’s attempts to bring the adventure to a halt only results in more complications.
3. Resolution - the hero has to face his ultimate obstacle, and in doing so, he either succeeds or fails.

Let's transcribe this to our music. 

Act 1

• The first few seconds we have to win people over - otherwise they’ll skip our song. That's the job of our intro.
• This opening sets the mood for the rest of the song and introduces our characters. This is done in the first verse.
• But… just as we begin to like our character and want him to be happy, they are confronted with a problem. Something rattles their status quo.We do this in the first pre-chorus.

Act 2

• This is where we fully realize the weight of our problem. Besides the intro - this part can make or break a film. Yes, that's our first chorus.
• Things slowly sink in. The character tries to deal with the problem. Our second verse.
• He gets used to this new situation and becomes a different person. He has to, because trouble is lurking around the corner. We are back at our pre-chorus.

The Midpoint

• Our second big moment happens. It comes in strong, and we naturally assume it will be the big final. This is where the second chorus happens.
• But something unexpected happens… We move into new terrain. Our bridge jumps in.

Act 3

• When everything seems as though we couldn't possibly go back to normality our second turning point happens. The third chorus!
• And we move quickly to the climax. Fourth chorus.
• Then we return to status quo of the introduction, but since a lot had happened in the course of the story, things are slightly different. We finally did it… the outro.

So I hope this quick explanation helps a bit to understand why this basic song structure makes a lot sense to use it in most of your songs. Feel free to leave comments or ask questions. 

Thanks for reading!

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