A Songwriter's Guide to Open String Harmony

OPEN STRING HARMONY — Playing Less, Saying More PDF chord wheel and songwriting reference for guitar.

A decision-making tool for songwriters who want to move between chords with purpose. Pick a key, follow the zones, build a song section. No Roman numerals. No theory jargon.

What it is

Circle-of-fifths chord wheel with a dedicated page for 8 guitar-friendly keys: G, D, A, E, C, F, Em, Bm. Standard EADGBE tuning. Standard shapes voiced so open strings ring through. Not open tuning. Not alternate tuning.

How the zones work

Every key page has three zones:

HOME — Your verse. Build freely here. EXPLORE — Tension and color. Dip in, resolve back to HOME. LAND — Your chorus. The destination, not a detour.

Arc: HOME EXPLORE HOME LAND HOME.

What's included:

• 8 key pages with HOME / EXPLORE / LAND zones.
• 10 progressions per key labeled by song section.
• Color chord substitutions — one lifted finger, different mood.
• 56 chord diagrams.
• Capo transposition chart — 8 keys across positions 1–7.

For

Songwriters who write by feel. Players with hand injuries or arthritis. Anyone stuck in the same four chords.

Not for

Jazz voicings, extended harmony, or alternate tuning systems. The simplicity is intentional.

This method came out of a hand injury that made barre chords impractical. The workaround became the approach. Every voicing played and verified by hand.

Format: PDF. Print it or use it on screen.

$15 — PDF download.

A softcover print edition is available on Amazon for $15 with Prime shipping.