Lazy Bee Scripts
A verse to which we are averse

A few words about copyright

Lazy Bee Scripts will not publish any material which is copyrighted by anyone other than the person submitting the work.  If you have written lyrics to a Beatles tune, we may (possibly) publish the lyrics, but we will certainly not publish the music.  If the copyright belongs to someone else, we will not touch it.
On the other hand, we will happily publish original music and original arrangements of music which is out of copyright.  (This includes, for example, traditional tunes or the music of Gilbert and Sullivan.)
 
It is the playwrights responsibility to check (not guess or assume!) the copyright of any material submitted.

What our customers expect (and therefore what we need from authors)

When we publish a musical piece (with original music), we publish sheet music in the form of a piano and vocal score, with chord symbols above the vocal line.  (We use this format because it communicates the musical information to the widest range of musicians.)
We may also publish other material (conductor's score, band parts, backing and vocal CDs) but as optional extras.
The fundamental is the piano and vocal score. It is the composer's responsibility to deliver that to us in a format we can use.

If you wish to submit music for publication with a script

Firstly, make sure you tell us about it! (Don't start by sending music; start by telling us about it.)
When you send us a publication query (see the Guide to Getting Your Script Published) please tell us about the music and tell us the format in which you propose to deliver it to us.
 
Music can be submitted to Lazy Bee Scripts in the following formats (however, see below)

• Sibelius files [Sibelius 5 or earlier]
• MusicXML - this is an export option from recent versions of Finale
• Enigma Transportable Format (ETF) - this is an export option from older versions of Finale
• Midi files (with each line of the score played on a separate Midi instrument)

 
For pieces with small musical content, we may also consider

• Printed scores
• Handwritten scores
• Printed or handwritten scores as graphics files or .pdf files

But please ask us first - do not assume that we have the capacity to handle such material.

Transcription from Audio

Transcribing a score from an audio format (CD, mp3 file, .wav file, etc.) is a time-consuming process for a skilled (read 'expensive') musician.
Lazy Bee Scripts does not provide a transcription service free-of-charge.  We may be able to put the composer in touch with a transcription service used by (but not part of) Lazy Bee Scripts.  The use of this service will be the composer's responsibility in terms of finance, timescale and content.

The Submission Process

When you have told us about your script and about the music, we will decide what to do next.  If we like the idea, we will either ask to see the script first or both the script and the score.
Once again, please don't send us anything until we've agreed that we want to look at it!  The Guide to Getting Your Script Published will explain the submission process.

Preparing a Score for Submission

• Put in the lyrics to every verse.
  • Do all notes have matching syllables?
  • Do all syllables have matching notes?
  • If the syllables for the different verses require different notes, is this sorted out in a clear and musical way?
• Is there lead-in music before the vocal line starts? (Very few actors are pitch-perfect singers who can be relied upon to start a song without a musical cue.)
• Is there a metronome mark to indicate the speed of the music? (Whilst metronome marks are horribly rigid, they are more reliable than Italianate tempo markings.)
• Put in appropriate repeat marks, first and second endings, etc.

Optional Extras

Song recordings are a good idea.
Whilst musical notation is the language of musicians, not everyone involved with music is a musician.  In particular, we find increasing numbers of schools trying to put on musical pieces without the involvement of music readers.  Such organisations want to use recorded backing tracks for production and recorded vocal tracks for rehearsal.  Generally, these recordings come from the composer/song writer.
Bear in mind when you go down this route that you are trying to create a saleable product:  recording quality and performance quality both matter.
It is also worth noting that the lyrics of the recording must match the lyrics of the score which much match the lyrics in the script.  Furthermore, we will not publish anything that is intended to rhyme but does not manage it.  (See our withering notes on verse.)