The untold secret in the music industry is that the pen is mightier than the music note.Yet most artists dream of the time in the spotlight behind a microphone, when it is those who write the music who are immortalised .This has convinced some local musicians that it's time young artists start exploiting this untapped area.Ahead of the Standard Bank Joy of Jazz Festival later this year, musicians will host an intensive three-day development project, aimed at young musicians, called Geleza Kleva and Learn.Artists such as Judith Sephuma, Sibongile Khumalo, Ernie Smith and Nomfundo Xaluva will run workshops to advise aspirant artists on how to hone their talents and build business skills.Smith and Xaluva will focus on songwriting because "a good song is eternal"."Aside from the longevity and having your name in the credits, song-writing is also a lucrative career," they said.Smith said South Africa "absolutely" needed more songwriters."It's a job opportunity. One of the people who gets paid the most [in this industry] is a songwriter.and we're not tapping into this opportunity locally."Xaluva said many artists wanted the title "singer-songwriter", but needed to develop their song-writing skills to build sustainable careers."Whitney Houston was not a great songwriter, but she could sing. Many songwriters are not superstars but they have made superstars."It's about attaching yourself, as a singer, to a good songwriter."Here, everyone wants to do it themselves; we think the two go together but [that' s] not necessarily [so]."They said technology - digital programmes - affected the music industry, including song writing .Smith said this opened the industry up to people who had the tools; Xaluva said it necessitated asking what it means to be a songwriter, "the ability to be a storyteller, melodically and lyrically".Smith said: "Songwriting is eternal - the writer creates the message whichnever dies."..