1. Rhyming Words
• A lot of writers use online dictionaries and a thesaurus when writing a piece so they can rhyme words together (although a great song doesn't always have to rhyme) or understand the meaning of another word that could be used other than the normal everyday word.
• Consider using the word "I'd" instead of "I would" or "I would like...", or "you'd" instead of "you would" or "I'm" instead of " I am". And vice versa. Grammar short cuts like these can be the difference between the a line of a verse or chorus fitting with the time of the song or not. Sometimes you may need a short syllable, and sometimes you may want to use the longer two or three syllables. Making these changes might help the words be more distinctive when sung or flow together better.
2. How Many Words Should It Be?
• You don't really want to apply science to this process, but usually a good song is about 2.5 - 3.5 minutes long. That includes any intros, solo's and hooks (a catchy melody line or an instrument in the song).
• Generally, you want to try to describe what you want to convey in the least amount of words, while still conveying your message. Less can be more. The most important thing is that the words encapsulate the emotion of your song.
• A good rule of thumb that works is if you read it and think, "Huh that seems long" then it's most likely already too long. In a lot of writings, if it takes you 30 seconds or more to read it out loud, then you're probably looking at a 5 minute song.
