Hehe, this thread has shifted to be about the reality of selling demos in Cincinnati :-)

It's a perfectly fine business model, Polly, when you separate the cowrite and the demoing. As I get it it's pretty much a package deal with Haze, and that's fine too if the writer accepts that model. It could be fine if Haze delivers consistantly, and has some work he can show up as examples in advance, so the writer knows what to expect. A great song is a great song, no matter how it's done.

Cowrites/demos between musicians works this way too, except there's no money involved and we usually share some of the workload. This proves the big disadvantage the lyricist is in.

At the end of the day it really isn't sustainable for a musician with a studio setup, to cowrite with lyricists only, if the musician/producer is to do all the work for free. So I certainly get why you do it this way.

The partnership between Elton John and Bernie Taupin was one of a kind, and would be more like the exception that confirms the rule, in this matter.

But I would also contest that this way of doing business is specificly aimed at lyricists only, as the idea of charging for demoing the song in combination with a cowrite will just not fly with songwriters who can play and produce themselves. So you'll win some, and you'll lose some. At the end of the day, you always look for opportunities to write with great musicians, and you won't be getting that action with this setup. So it will be somewhat demanding to keep this up in the long run, unless you work with other models of cowriting for different people (which would actually be pretty strange?).