International Songwriters Association (ISA) Songs And Songwriting • Information For Members
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ISA • International Songwriters Association • Founded 1967 • Representing Songwriters In More Than 60 Countries Worldwide
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ISAInformation For Current ISA Members



INTRODUCTION TO THE ISA

The following information is for existing ISA Members. For more detailed information, International Songwriters Association members should refer to the ISA Private Members Site, by logging in, using the button on the top of this page.

This page explains:

• How to contact the International Songwriters Association

• How to access and explore the International Songwriters Association Private Members Site

and finally,

• How to access the International Songwriters Association Publications

Simply scroll down to the requisite section.

WHAT ISA MEMBERSHIP ENTITLES YOU TO

Membership of the International Songwriters entitles you to avail of an all-inclusive online service. In other words, your membership covers all of our services and all of our publications and there are no charges nor any limit to the number of times you access these services or publications.

Once you are invited to join, and for as long as your membership continues, you have immediate, constant and unlimited access to:

• The ISA Private Members Site, which comprises quite literally, hundreds of instructional articles and copies of our magazines both current and archived, as well as videos, downloads etc

• The ISA Advisory Service, which can advise on anything to do with songwriting, ranging from writing the song to analysing the contract

• The ISA Directory Information Service, which provides you with contact information on any publisher, label, or recording act

• The Songwriter Magazine, our quarterly publication, comprising anything from 50 to 100 pages depending on the season, with news, views, interviews, instructional articles etc

• The Songwriter NewsFlash, our constantly updated publication, which festures people or companies looking for songs, members' notices, instructional articles, news, charts etc

• The UK Star Directory, (106 pages), our constantly updated listing of every recording act which has had a UK chart entrt since 1996, and its contact record label and music publisher

• The book Selling Your Songs, (108 pages), our course in writing and in selling songs

Questions & Answers

Is everything online?
Everything the ISA has to offer is online.

However, if you ever have difficulties with online access (for example a situation or event which prevents you going online), let us know, and we will do our best to help.

I have not accessed the site or services for quite a while, but now my original code does not seem to work
Every so often, the codes change for reasons of security and this new code appears at the top of your log-in page. However, if you have not accessed any service or publication for a long period, you may have missed this. Simply send us an email and we will send you your latest access code.

Do I have to use a service or access the site every so often in order to remain a member?
Absolutely not. Your membership entitles you to access the site and use every service as often (or as little) as you like. It is entirely up to you. You can use every service every hour if so wish!

CONTACTING THE ISA

ISA operates from Limerick City, Ireland.  Contact us as follows:

• E-mail to internationalsongwriters@gmail.com (this is the most efficient method and the fastest) 

• Letter to International Songwriters Association Ltd at PO Box 46, Limerick City, Ireland

• Telephone to +353-61-228837 

We will reply by telephone, letter or e-mail to all communications, usually within a matter of hours. 

Simply call +353-71-228837 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, leaving your name, address telephone number, and your message, along with a suitable time at which you may be phoned. 

Detail your query so that the appropriate person will phone you back with the correct answer at the most suitable time. 

Questions & Answers

I do not like email. Will you reply by post?
Of course. In fact we still have members who prefer to have our reply drop in their mailbox and we are perfectly happy to continue doing that.

Why in recent years, did you start using an answering service to screen incoming calls?
Unfortunately over time, our telephone number has been published on thousands of sites, many advising people that the ISA provides a free advisory service for non-members as well as members.

This is true, but if we were to take every call as it came in, 90% of our time would be taken up dealing with non-members, to the detriment of our own members.

So, simply leave your name and number, and once we determine you are a member, we will respond to you by phone.

Don't worry - we will continue to reply to non-members, but members have to take priority!

I have sent you an email, but I have yet to get a reply. Why?
We reply to all emails received on the same day we receive them, seven days a week, so if you have not got a reply, something is definitely wrong!

99% of all emails reach their destination. But unfortunately, the fact that you have sent us an email does not necessarily mean that

(a) we have got it

or that if we have got it and have replied, that

(b) you have received our reply.

Accordingly, if you have sent an email and have not received a reply, then within 24 hours, you should re-send it but this time include your telephone number, your postal address, and if possible, an alternative email address.

We will then either email your alternative address, or we will write to you by snail-post. We may also phone you.

If 24 hours later however, you still have not received any reply from us, then it is obvious that it is we who are not receiving your emails.

If that happens, (and it is extremely unusual) then please phone

+353-61-228837

leaving a telephone number along with your name and postal address, and we will phone you back, and also write to you by post.

To be honest, it is extraordinarily rare for us not to receive an email from a member, and equally rare for a member not to receive our reply.

When it does happen, the member often discovers that our reply did in fact arrive, but had been diverted into his "spam" box or into another folder on his computer.

But in a small number of cases, it has not reached the member's computer at all, possibly because the member has previously accidentally deleted one of our emails as "spam", or inadvertently reported it is "spam", and as a result, their service provider has blocked subsequent emails from us from reaching that recipient.

Both these problems are easily resolved, but never assume that just because you have sent an email to us, that we must have got it!

The internet is brilliant - it's just not perfect! Well not yet anyway.

THE ISA PRIVATE MEMBERS SITE 

The ISA Private Members Site is open to all current members. 

You are given an access code on joining, and that code may change from time to time.

If it changes, an email is sent to you.

Here is a short listing of what is on the site.

Today's News
All of today's music industry, songwriting and music publishing news, assembled fresh each time you drop by 

The ISA
The Publications of the International Songwriters Association 

Copyright
How to obtain Copyright Protection for your songs

Directory
The addresses, telephone numbers and contact names, for hundreds of Music Publishers and Record Labels 

Hpw To Articles
Want to know more about Copyright? Placing your songs in Movies or on TV? Collaboration? Writer's block? Sharing credits? Song promotion? Making demos? Building a website? Putting together a home recording studio? And much more? It's all here in dozens and dozens of articles!     

Selling Your Songs
Read, print or download the current edition of the ISA's 108 page, 60,000 word book on selling your songs 

Links
You could be clicking for hours on the thousands of songwriting links on our public site. Here we have listed what in our opinion, are the Top 20 links that all songwriters need

Interviews
Read, print or download dozens of interviews with some of the world's top songwriters, including Mike Batt, Tom T Hall, Roger Cook, Gordon Lightfoot and many more

New On The Charts
The newest acts to make the charts, along with their record label name, and the names of every music publisher who has had a song recorded by that act since 1996! 

SongSeller Notice Board
Want to tell other members something? Want to read what they have to tell you? Or simply interested in seeing who is looking for new songs? Dozens of listings for you to peruse, updated each day

Song Contests
Read, print or download, the current crop of Song Contest Entry Forms

Songwriter Magazine
Read, print or download the current issue of Songwriter Magazine

Songwriter Magazine Archive
Read, print or download, back issues from the vaults of Songwriter Magazine

Songwriter Update
Read, print or download, the current issue of Songwriter Update
 
Uploading Your Songs
There are so many places nowadays where you can sell your CDs or even individual songs on the internet, or else, simply upload them for the benefit of posterity, that there is no reason why you cannot be out there if you want to! And here is where to upload them

Useful Downloads
The section where you can download some useful songwriting tools, such as "Web Design Mastery Trial" which was written to assist you in learning how to design a professional looking web page in the easiest possible fashion - with copy & paste codes • Plus a couple of useful Music Publisher and Record Label directories • Not to mention some stave paper, for when that musical idea hits you, and the shops are closed! • Oh and some sample songwriting and collaboration contracts as well • And let's not forget the latest editions of "Selling Your Songs", "Songwriter Magazine" and "Songwriter Update" • All free to read, print or download

Videos
Some top songwriters, music publishers and record label executives, inform and instruct - on video

Questions & Answers

How do I access the ISA Private Members Site?
Just insert the membership code, and when you click on the arrow, you transfer to the ISA Private Members Site Map, which lists everything on the site. 
 
The link to the site changes from time to time, and when it changes, you will be notified by email. 

My access code does not work. What can I do?
You are probably using an out-of-date code. 

Just send us an email whereupon we will send you your current access code.

THE ISA PUBLICATIONS

The ISA publishes two newsletters available to all members- "Songwriter Magazine", and "Songwriter NewsFlash".

The ISA also publishes two books  "Selling Your Songs" and "Directory Of Recording Stars", also available to all members. 

Questions & Answers

How do I access the ISA Publications "Songwriter Magazine", and "NewsFlash"?
"Songwriter Magazine" is published quarterly, on the 1st January, 1st April, 1st July and 1st October. 

The current issue can be viewed, printed or downloaded, on the ISA Private Members Site under the "Songwriter Magazine"  heading. 

If printing this off, it usually takes 70 pages.

"Songwriter NewsFlash"  is published occasionally (usually once or twice a month), and  appears on the ISA Private Members Site. 

The contents of are also updated on the ISA Private Members Site, under the "SongSeller NoticeBoard" heading.

How do I access the ISA Publications "Selling Your Songs", and "Directory Of Recording Stars"?
"Selling Your Songs" is revised twice yearly, and can be viewed, printed or downloaded,on the ISA Private Members Site under the "Selling Your Songs"  heading. 

If printing it off, it usually takes 108 pages.

The "Directory Of Recording Stars" is updated every 13 weeks, and can be viewed, printed or downloaded,on the ISA Private Members Site under the "Directories"  heading. 

If printing this off, it usually takes over 100 pages.

I can find the publications, but cannot view them. What can I do to rectify this?
If you can find but cannot view the publications, this is most likely because you do not have Adobe Reader on your computer.

Most modern computers come with Adobe Reader already installed, so any PDF file should open immediately, once it has been double-clicked.

If you are certain that you have a current version of Adobe Reader on your PC, but 

(1) the PDF still will not open or

(2) it will open, but you cannot click on the links

or 

(3) it will open, but you cannot copy and paste from the text

then you probably have an old version.

If so, you might consider updgrading to the current version. This costs nothing and is quite simple to do.

I can find the publications, and can view them, but they do not look the same on paper when I print them as they do on the screen. How can I make them look the same?
If you have any version of Adobe Reader (and 99% of all recent PCs will have this), then you will be able to view the publication exactly as it was intended. 

However, if it does not print exactly as it appears on screen, that may be because you have an early version of Adobe, or because your printer is not able to handle the PDF.

You can easily solve either or both these problems, as follows.

(1) If you are using an earlier version of Adobe Reader, the best way to solve problems you may be having is to download and install the (free) latest version from 

http://get.adobe.com/reader/


Don't worry--this is a very simple one-click procedure which should take about a minute.

(2) Depending on which printer you are using, a PDF file may not print properly unless you select  the "Print as image" option in the printer dialogue box. Using the "Print as image" option may take several minutes to print one page. 

When you go to "Print", a large box will come up, and somewhere there you will find a button marked "Advanced".

Click on that, and you reach the "Advanced Print Setup" screen. Down at the bottom is a box, usually unclicked, titled "Print As Image". Tick the box, click "OK", and then "OK" again on the original box and then press "Print".

If you have any problems viewing or printing this, simply email us and we will have a look at the problem for you.

ISA • International Songwriters Association (1967) Ltd
PO Box 46 Limerick City Ireland Tel 061-228837 Fax 061-2288379
ISA Website  http://www.songwriter.co.uk Editorial E-Mail  internationalsongwriters@gmail.com

International Songwriters Association Limited
Registered In Dublin, Ireland Company Number 38917
Registered Address
High Chaperal, Raheen Heights, Limerick City, Ireland
Postal Address
PO Box 46, Limerick City, Ireland


For reasons of copyright, unsolicited material must not be sent to International Songwriters Association Limited. Any unsolicited material received may be destroyed. If you decide to send solicited material, send only copies of that material, and not the originals. International Songwriters Association Limited cannot and willl not accept liability for material sent to it

This site is published by the International Songwriters Association Ltd, and will introduce you to the world of songwriting. It will explain music business terms and help you understand the business concepts that you should be familiar with, thus enabling you to ask more intelligent questions when you meet with your accountant/CPA or solicitor/lawyer. However, although this website includes information about legal issues and legal developments as well as accounting issues and accounting developments, it is not meant to be a replacement for professional advice. Such materials are for informational purposes only and may not reflect the most current legal/accounting developments. Every effort has been made to make this site as complete and as accurate as possible, but no warranty or fitness is implied. The information provided is on an "as is" basis and the author(s) and the publisher shall have neither liability nor responsibility to any person or entity with respect to any loss or damages arising from the information contained on this site. No steps should be taken without seeking competent legal and/or accounting advice

Certain pictures used on this Web site are commercial stock footage images of businesses and office environments generally, rather than specific images of ISA, its personnel, facilities or clients. Other pictures used on this site, include library images supplied by (amongst others) the ISA (International Songwriters Association), Dreamstime Library Inc, BMI (Broadcast Music Inc), ASCAP (American Society Of Songwriters, Authors and Publishers), PRS (Performing Rights Society), PPS (Professional Photographic Services), RTE (Radio Telefis Eireann) TV3, and various Public Relations organisations. Also, some pictures have been supplied by the songwriters, performers, or music business executives interviewed or mentioned throughout this website. All such images are and remain the property of the individual owners unless indicated to the contrary