FAQ

Q: What is Songwriters in Seattle?

A: SiS is a 501(c)3 non-profit org that supports our greater Seattle area creative songwriting community through educational, creative, and performance based events. Our events and communication are run through the Meetup.com website - see www.meetup.com/songwritersinseattle, for more details and www.meetup.com/songwritersinseattle/events/calendar to see our events calendar.

• We are all volunteer run - all donated money goes to organizational/admin expenses and the costs of running future events/projects.
• We are not a service but an infrastructure which, through the efforts of our volunteer event hosts and board of directors, allows our vibrant creative community to build and progress in a variety of ways.
• We are all about the art of songwriting and artist development.

Q: What are the values of the organization?

A: We believe that “a rising tide lifts all boats.” We are welcoming, inclusive, supportive, and compassionate toward all artists, regardless of background, genre, experience level, race, creed, preferences, or presentation.

• Songwriters should be able to express themselves as they desire and without judgement. We want all to feel safe in being themselves and expressing their creativity in any way they desire.

Q: What kinds of events and projects does SiS run?

A: Events generally fall under four larger categories: 1. Educational, 2. Creative, 3. Networking/Collaboration, and 4. Performance.

• From networking and collaboration events to seminars and workshops, critiques and music business round tables to performance showcases, song circles and open mics…there are typically 10 or more events every month!
• The event schedule is very organic based on what our volunteer hosts are willing and available to do. Some repeat regularly month to month, others only occur once. On the “project” side, past projects have included contests, a compilation CD, social media, flyers, business cards, and the creation of SiS branded merchandise…all of which help raise money and/or awareness for the organization.

Q: How do I sign up and get involved?

A: First, join us on Meetup (it’s free!) - That’s how our members communicate and where we manage our calendar of events.

• Then it is recommended that you attend a few events - introduce yourself to other members and see how the organization operates. The event leadership team is listed on the left column of the Meetup page - feel free to e-mail one of them or say hi at an event - they are often hosts.
• Discuss with the leadership team what you might like to volunteer for - we have a number of opportunities if you don’t have anything in particular in mind. Or maybe help introduce us to the person who books your favorite venue to set up a possible showcase, or maybe you have access to a space that would work for a different kind of event, or you know someone who might be willing to give a seminar…we would be happy to discuss the options.

Q: I’m not seeing what interests me on the event calendar…can I host an event on my topic of choice?

A: Yes, please! This is how all our events originate - someone sees a need and desires to fill it. See our event hosting guide for suggestions and details. We are an organic organization that meets the needs of those who want to be involved. It is often said that you get out of SiS what you put into it. Become involved and find yourself motivated, inspired, and progressing toward your goals faster than you imagined!

Q: How do I sign up for a showcase? Whenever a showcase reminder comes from Meetup, the roster is full. How do I get on a showcase roster?

A: 90% of the time, if you wait for the reminder, it will be too late. That being said, it’s actually quite simple to sign up for a spot on a showcase:

1. Go to our calendar to find a showcase venue and date which has available performance slots. Many venues are booked out months ahead (“[ROSTER FULL]”), so you may need to move forward in the calendar quite a bit to find open slots!
2. Go to our showcases page and fill out the form. More info is better, please!
3. Once you have submitted the form, someone will confirm you for an open slot or suggest an alternate if there’s any kind of scheduling issue to work out. Please be patient for a response as it can often take a couple of weeks to catch up on showcase requests. Thank you!

Q: How many showcases can I sign up for? How often can I play in showcases?

A: In order to allow the most people an opportunity to play in our showcases, we hold performers to the following guidelines: 1. No more than one performance at a particular venue per 6-month period (so twice per year), and 2. No more than one performance per month across any/all of our showcase venues. Not just calendar time, but 30-ish days. So no “end of month at Peace of Mind Brewing, then early next month at Couth Buzzard” performance scheduling. It is preferred if you request dates that fit to these guidelines, but if you submit something that doesn’t match the guidelines, we will work with you to find dates that fit.

Exception: If you fill in as a last minute substitute for a performer who cancels, that does not count in the timing policy above for consideration of showcase requests.

Q: Will you post (or tell your members about) my (or my favorite) open mic, gig, opportunity, or product?

A: Sorry, but no. If we allowed this, our schedule and e-mail reminders would be inundated with private promotions, which would drown out our group/community focused events. As we realize promotion of shows is a common desire from our community, we created the “Fans of Live Music in Seattle” Meetup group. Sign up and then contact Organizer Chris to be given Event Coordinator priveleges. Then you can post your shows to your heart’s content and reach fans, not just other musicians, who have opted in to hear about local shows.

Q: What is/was your monthly newsletter?

A: Our monthly newsletter ran monthly in 2017 and contained songwriter-relevant features, articles, opportunities, and more. See the archive here: https://us14.campaign-archive.com/home/?u=7bb18e468c3b96c7d69ba2fd7&id=e99e879eb9

It is not currently being published as we don’t have enough volunteers dedicated to making it happen. We need people to organize it all, write some current articles and collect current opportunities, then edit to make it presentable. Probably a 4-8 hr/month effort. Contact us if you’re interested in bringing this back!

Q: What is/was Northwest Music Experience (NWME)?

A: NWME at first was an attempt at creating a local music industry conference in the vein of SXSW - we even held an IndieGoGo campaign to fund it! We were not able to raise the necessary funds, so we used what money we did raise to scale back and start what was envisioned as an annual awards event. The first one was held in 2013 and it was great! We honored 40 finalists along with 8 genre category winners, and during our 6 hour event had 14 groups perform. However, even that was too big an endeavor for our small organization with a small budget and little volunteer time to make such a thing work consistently right now. The name lives on with a 501(c)3 organization in Portland, but Songwriters in Seattle is no longer associated with it. We have decided that awards shows are not a direction we are interested in.

Q: Meetup is unwieldy and difficult to use, especially with as many events as you have - how do you function with it?

A: It is true, Meetup can be difficult and time consuming to navigate. It also has its advantages, and for an organization with as little budget as we have, it has proven to serve the need pretty well. Here are some tips:

• Use the calendar view, not upcoming meetups or past meetups…you’ll waste lots of time scrolling through piles of events. (The calendar is by far the fastest way to navigate the most important information on the site.)
• Answer the group questions in your profile and fill out your profile as much as you can. Using the ‘Members’ tab is the best way to find others with similar or complementary interests (eg. music writer for your words, lyric writer for your music). If you don’t fill out any info, people won’t be able to connect with you very easily.
• Make a filter in your e-mail for Meetup messages to sort to a specific folder. There can be a lot, but if you turn off the reminders and messages altogether from your Meetup profile preferences, it will be much harder to know what’s going on and how to make the most of being a member. Better e-mail management at the receiving end is a better choice.
• Read the entire description associated with an event. Save yourself some time and frustration - there is usually important info there. The e-mail reminders only show the barest minimum first sentence or so.
• Please RSVP for events that you will attend, and leave a rating/comment afterward. This helps us plan for the future by knowing what’s working and what isn’t, whether we need larger venues, etc.
• Use the discussion board. Read, post, check back frequently - communicate with your fellow members.
• Connect with us on Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, and explore our website. All of these places contain additional information to help keep you updated and informed about what’s going on within the organization.
• Generally speaking, the other buttons/tabs/UI not mentioned above have little use. Just avoid them.

Welcome to Songwriters in Seattle - we hope to see you at an upcoming event!