Songwriting | Cassidy Dickens | All Levels | All-Day | Week 2 (July 13-18, 2025)
From passing down wisdom, to commemorating life’s most important moments, to simply making each other laugh, cry, and laugh some more—story songs are one of the oldest and most powerful forms of human connection.
“Songtelling” is a hands-on workshop where you’ll learn to spin your own stories—from your life, your memories, or your imagination!—into songs.
Open to writers and singers of all experience levels, “Songtelling” is anchored in the fundamental belief that EVERYONE has a story to tell. You’ll learn…
- How to mine your memories for great stories, get to the heart of what makes your tale worth telling, and capture a story’s essence in melody and lyrics.
- Pro songwriting structures and strategies that your most beloved artists use to craft great songs—and how you can use these as “templates” to easily construct your own story songs.
- How to add dimension to your stories, go beyond surface-level writing, and make powerful music that leaves a lasting impression.
You’ll work hands-on with professional singer-songwriter and recording artist, Cassidy Dickens, to bring your story song idea to life using traditional solo writing techniques, as well as the Nashville co-writing method. While students are welcome to bring instruments to write with, no prior songwriting experience or instrumental skill is required.
By the end of the week, you’ll have a song you’re proud to sing, a story you’re excited to share, and the skills to continue spinning your stories into songs for years to come.
About the Instructor
Marrying a powerful sense of traditional Appalachian storytelling with a modern folk sound, West Virginian artist Cassidy Dickens brings a “unique fusion of vulnerability, resilience, unguarded sincerity, and soul-stirring melodies” to the world of acoustic Americana. (HONK MAGAZINE)
Soon after releasing her debut album, Ghosts, in 2015, Cassidy made the leap from small-town West Virginia to Music City, where she cut her teeth collaborating with up-and-coming Nashville recording artists and earned a Josie Music Award nomination for her songwriting.
Today—with more than 15 years of touring, 7 years of professional songwriting, three full-length albums, and several songwriting awards under her belt—she’s thrilled to be back at home in the Mountain State.
Her newest album, All I’m Missing, was inspired by the story of her journey back home, with songs that call back to the people and places that first inspired her music career.