How does one go about getting started as a songwriter?
Stephen Schwartz: I think everyone gets started slightly differently, but in the end, all the stories are essentially the same. In my case, I had always wanted to be a composer; I began being my own lyricist in college, because I couldn’t find people to write lyrics for my songs whose work I felt strongly enough about. Once I had graduated and was pursuing writing for the theatre as a profession, I went to New York and began trying to get people to hear my work (specifically, I had written the show PIPPIN while I was in college and was showing that around). Eventually, I met people who were interested and could help me. The lessons contained within this story are: 1) Write. Have work that you can show–a demo tape or CD, a sheaf of lyrics, a draft of a show–something. 2) Get yourself somewhere where people are in the business you want to be in–if it’s theatre, New York or maybe Chicago; if it’s film or TV, Los Angeles; if it’s the music business, Los Angeles or Nashville. 3) Begin tryin
