The Song Beneath the Story 

How Songwriting Can Teach Every Writer About Emotion, Connection, and Creative Flow

Have you ever wondered where a song comes from? Every song begins with a spark: an emotion, an experience, an image, or an idea. In this workshop, we’ll explore the creative principles behind great songs and discover how they can strengthen your writing – even if you’ve never written a note of music.

Song may be our most universal form of storytelling. By examining how songwriters use emotion, structure, rhythm, rhyme, repetition, and melody to create lasting impact, writers of all disciplines can gain fresh tools for engaging readers and making their work more memorable. Whether you write poetry, fiction, memoir, or essays, you’ll leave with practical insights into creativity, craft, and the art of connecting with an audience.

Speaker Bio

Ian Janco is a songwriter, poet, novelist, recording artist, and producer whose work explores the intersection of story, emotion, and creativity. Over the past decade, he has written thousands of songs across genres, including folk, Americana, pop, rock, and R&B, with his music earning millions of streams and placements in film and television.

A graduate of the Liverpool Institute for Performing Arts, Ian has collaborated with artists and music companies around the world while performing more than 1,000 live shows. Beyond music, he has self-published his own poetry and completed several novels, bringing a multidisciplinary perspective to the creative process.

Drawing from years of experience as a professional writer and performer, Ian’s workshops focus on finding the emotional heart of a story, overcoming creative blocks, and using the principles of songwriting to create more memorable and impactful writing in any form. More on his website.