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For
writers with dreams of hearing their songs on the radio, one of the
most important things is to get heard by publishers. But since
virtually every established publishing company in town has a policy
of "We do not accept unsolicited material," this is hard
to do. With the Play for Publishers Workshop, Barbara Cloyd
has created an opportunity for promising writers to get over this
hurdle.
These
three-day workshops are held in Nashville. Any writer
with a desire to write for the commercial Country market is invited
to apply. Sixteen applicants, carefully selected for their originality, creativity and
craftsmanship, will get the chance to present their songs to
publishers - established, successful professionals who are actively
involved in the day to day business of getting songs recorded. The publishers are not
paid for their time - they are there because they are always on the
look-out for talented new writers.
During the
workshop there are three different listening sessions, each attended
by two publishers. All of the sixteen writers selected present one song at each listening session and then
the group listens to the publishers and Barbara give feedback on the
craft and commercial potential of the songs. This gives every
writer who is selected a chance to spark the interest of six different
publishers.
Equally important,
listening to the feedback on
all the songs gives writers great insight into what qualities
a song needs in order to have a chance of getting cut. Because this
is such an incredible learning experience, many writers in the past
who were not selected to play for the publishers have asked if they
could still attend. Therefore, the current workshop will be held in
a venue large enough to accommodate any applicant who wants to sit
in and audit the workshop even if they are not one of the sixteen selected to present songs.
In
addition to the listening sessions with publishers, writers who
attend the workshop are given the opportunity to
play at a local writers night and to attend a show with hit writers at
The Bluebird Cafe. And, of course, every writer who attends gets the
opportunity to meet other talented writers who are serious about
their careers.
Sign up for mailing list of future workshops by sending an email to barbara@barbaracloyd.com
with "workshops mailing list" in the subject line
In
July 2007 writers who attended past workshops were asked what
tangible results they had from attending. Click
here to see their replies.
Read
spontaneous comments from participants in previous workshops
Nashville July
2006 Nashville
June 2005 Austin, TX
April 2005 Bethlehem, PA
Sept. 2004 Bristol,
TN Sept 2003
Nashville July 2003
REGIONAL
WORKSHOPS: Some of the publishers who participate in these workshops
enjoy traveling to other parts of the country to listen to new
writers. Songwriter organizations interested in bringing a Play for
Publishers Workshop to their area can contact Barbara at
615-383-5616 or barbara@barbaracloyd.com
APPLICATIONS
CLOSED FOR
PLAY
FOR PUBLISHERS WORKSHOP
June 19-21, 2008
Nashville, TN
with
Rusty Gaston - This
Music
Scott Gunter - Universal Music
Publishing
Jennifer Johnson -
Midas Music
Greg Gallo - Big Loud
Shirt
Mike Doyle - Major Bob
Music
Freeman Wizer -
Universal Publishing
Congratulations
to the writers who were invited to attend: Amanda Brown, Audrey
Auld Mezera, Carrie Johnson, Chris
Tedesco, Chris
Yurchuck, Dustin
Lynch, Grant
Peeples, Holly
Allen, Jamie
Nattier, Jill Spencer, Joe
Romano, Johnny
Rocket, LaTasha
Dawn, Liz
Miller, Sherri
Gough, Shirley Geier, Teresa
Russell, Terry Flynn
WORKSHOP
DETAILS:
COST:
Cost
for participants:
$275 (Scholarships available)
Cost
to audit: $150
Send check to Barbara Cloyd, PO Box 121497, Nashville TN 37212
or pay on line with Pay Pal.
LOCATION:
Days Inn Vanderbilt, 18th ansd West end near Music
Row
LODGING:
Participants
secure their own lodging. Days Inn will provide a discount
rate. A list of other options will
be provided upon request.
SCHEDULE:
Thurs June 19
9 AM to 3 PM Introduction to
Writing for Music Row by Barbara Cloyd
3 PM to 4:30 PM Guest speaker - a hit writer to be determined
7 PM Writers Night at Richard's Cafe - participants who want to will be scheduled to
play.
Fri June
20
9 AM Listening session with publishers
12:30 Lunch break
1:30 PM Listening session with publishers
6:30 PM Show with hit writers at The Bluebird Cafe featuring Barbara Cloyd
and friends
Sat June
21
12 PM to 3:30 PM Listening session with publishers
7PM Dinner and song swap at Barbara's house
For
more information email barbara@barbaracloyd.com
or call 615-383-5616.
TO
RECEIVE FEEDBACK:
Applicants who did not request it initially but would like to receive feedback on the craft and
commercial potential of the songs they sent in with their
application can do so now for an additional $30. Feedback will be sent within 3 weeks
of receipt of payment.
PAY
ON LINE
(Please note there is a 4% service
charge added to Pay Pal payments to offset our cost.)
(Please
note there is a 4% service charge added to Pay Pal payments to
offset our cost.)
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