The "right" way to write Japanese lyrics


I have been researching many various sites regarding advice for how to
properly write lyrics in Japanese.

Some say that you just [write what you want; not even syllabic structure is
needed](http://www.octavebox.com/songwriting/japanese-rock/).

On the other hand, I've seen documentation speaking meticulously on the
specific ways Japanese lyrics should be written. It even goes in to a more
mathematical, calculating way to view how to write words for Japanese songs.

I wonder if the latter is old-fashioned/customary method compared to a more
modern, contemporary method.

Any help, opinion or further advice on this matter would be very appreciated.




One thing that struck me quite vividly when I first started to listen to
Japanese lyrics is the near-ubiquity of mora-rhythm correspondence. You have
probably already noticed, but compared to English, syllables and
vowel/consonant combinations are broken or skipped much less often. I won't
say you can't (especially in hip-hop), but it seems to be avoided.

Most unintuitive (for English native speakers, probably) is the case of ん.
"なんだ" takes up three syllables' worth in the majority of songs I have heard
over the years). Similarly for っ: typically the previous mora is lengthened
(it's not really possible to _sing_ a stop) to preserve intelligibility.

