KCG Lyrics Builder — User Guide

Getting Started

Workspace Layout: The window has three columns:

• Inspiration Brief (left): describe themes, select genre/mood/perspective, add keywords, and curate the song map.
• AI Suggestions (center): display outline or lyric options for the selected section.
• Lyrics Workspace (right): a large text area to build the final lyric and export it.

Step-by-Step Workflow

1. Describe Your Song

• Inspiration Brief: In the top-left text area, describe the concept, emotions, or story you want. Use keywords to list imagery or anchor phrases.
• Selectors: Choose Genre, Mood, and Perspective from the pop-up menus. These values feed each AI prompt so the AI understands context.

2. Build a Song Map

• Click Build Song Plan. KCG Lyrics Builder sends your brief to AI and receives 4–6 sections (Verse, Chorus, Bridge, etc.), each with Purpose and Energy notes.
• Use Add to append new sections, Insert (above) to drop a section before the currently selected row, and the Move Up/Move Down buttons to refine the order. Finish by using Remove Selected or Clear Plan when you want to pare things back.

3. Generate Lyric Suggestions

• Choose a section in the Song Map, then press Inspire Selected Section. KCG Lyrics Builder requests six concise lines tailored to that section’s description.
• Select a suggestion to preview it. Double-click or press Insert Into Lyrics to append it to the lyric workspace. Want to grab everything? Hit Insert All Suggestions to transfer every current option in one go.
• Need alternatives? Select a line already generated and click Refresh / Variations. KCG Lyrics Builder asks AI for four new takes on that line.
• Use Thesaurus or Rhymes after highlighting a word in the lyrics or selecting a suggestion. The center list reloads with synonym or rhyme ideas tailored to that context, ready for double-click insertion.
• Use Clear Suggestions to reset the center column when moving to a new section.

4. Assemble and Export Lyrics

• As you accept lines or type manually, the right-hand text area collects the song. Click Insert Section Tag to drop the currently selected Song Map title in square brackets (with a spacer line), keeping your sections organized.
• When finished, click Copy Lyrics to Clipboard to paste into your DAW, notes app, email, etc.

Status & Busy Handling

• A status label near the top center reports actions (e.g., “Building a custom song map…”). Controls disable while AI requests are running to avoid overlapping calls.
• If AI returns an error, a message box provides HTTP status and response text. Update your API key or retry later.

Tips for Best Results

• Be specific: The more vivid the Inspiration Brief and keywords, the more targeted the suggestions.
• Iterate: Build a plan, test a few sections, edit the map, and regenerate as needed. Each button press sends a fresh AI prompt tailored to current selections.
• Manual tweaks: All lists and text areas support manual edits, so you can mix AI ideas with a writer's instincts.
• Word tools: Highlight a word in the Lyrics area (or select a suggestion line) to enable the Thesaurus/Rhymes buttons before requesting replacements.

Troubleshooting

• No response from AI: Verify your internet connectivity.
• Blank suggestions: Ensure you selected a Song Map row before requesting lines or variations.
• UI won’t resize properly: The window minimum size is 960 × 640; keep it at or above that for the three-column layout to remain usable.

Keyboard Shortcuts & Notes

• Standard text-edit shortcuts work inside the Inspiration and Lyrics text areas (Copy, Paste, etc.).
• The Song Map box supports single selection only. Use Insert (above), Move Up, and Move Down when you want to rearrange sections.
• Closing the main window quits the app.