Check your song for length. If the words "Stairway to Freebird" come to mind then you might want to re-think that extra verse or bridge. Nashville likes tidy three to three and a half minute songs that get the point across. We generally do not add solos unless the song is a little short or you specifically request one. Some publishers find solos to be a very convenient place to stop your tape. Make sure you have proper song form. That means that your verses are the same musically in chord structure. You can have slight deviations in your second verse melodically (this is pretty common) but don't write a four line first verse and a seven line second verse. I know this is basic stuff but many people make this mistake. Always meter your lyric with the same accents that you would speak the lyric in conversation. For example: "I WALKED into the room".....not.."I walked INTO the room" etc.You don't want to emphasize incidental words such as - "the" , "but", "as".....make sure the primary focus words are the ones you bring to the forefront of your melody. Basically...to sum it up...SING IT LIKE YOU SAY IT!!!! What's Hot..........What's Not........... Hotttttttt!!!!!!!! "Edgy" contemporary sound. Most artists are looking for songs with a pop tinge to them. Every label wants a cross-over artist. Artists like Keith Urban, Kenny Chesney, Rascall Flatts etc. are the acts that are selling the most records by far. Nashville always wants what sells. Uptempo Songs!!!!!! If you want eliminate 80% of the songwriting competition then write uptempo. I know Country Music history is filled with hardcore ballads but you have to remember that artists have to tour and to do that they need many more uptempo songs than ballads. MP3s.....many pitches are being done via mp3s these days. Producers, artists and managers can access them immediately which is much easier than waiting for a cd copy. You can use free software like MusicMatch to make mp3s. Industry standard is 128 kbps record quality. Some people claim they can hear a difference between the cd master and mp3....some people also claim the moon landing never happened. Let's just say that an mp3 is so close in quality that it's not a concern. What people use to listen to music is a much bigger variable than digital formats these days. If you want to be taken seriously as a writer then you need to get up to speed using mp3s as a medium. Notttttttt!!!!!!! Waltzes are generally frowned upon by publishers and artists alike. They tend to sound dated. Try not to kill someone in your song. If you do talk about death then try to be subtle about it......don't use words like cancer etc 'cause they are just too stark for a listener. Positive songs are generally much more pitchable in the music biz. Songs that get too complicated. If you make every chorus different in your song the listener won't be able to lock in on it. Most monster hits in any genre are songs that the listener can sing along with the chorus by the time it comes around the second time. Most people butcher the verses to Sweet Home Alabama but EVERYONE can sing the chorus! Keeping melodies and chorus lyrics simple is the key to great songwriting....remember your target audience.