So I may have peaked your attention with the snappy title, but for my first (virginity-losing)article, I'm going to hit you with the vitals for crafting the best song you can. 

1.  If writing a great pop song was easy, everybody would be doing it.  Stay humble!

2.  Your first ideas are the most instinctive, not the most creative.  Work and expand your instinctive ideas until you are pushing yourself to work in an atypical way (for you).  That'll take you to the more creative place.

3.  Learn from the greats but be a leader, not a follower.  Sure, you need to explore what Timbaland does to make his beats sound so unique.  Every track is a hook.  It's complex yet not wasteful.  More importantly, nobody had that Timbaland sound before him and nobody changed urban radio by changing urban music's tempo in the 90's the way Tim did.  He's a visionary....how can you get into that creative space?

4.  A great verse is good, a great chorus is even better, but the perfect marriage of the two is what you should strive for.  It's all about forward motion and that constant build.

5.  Don't bore us, hit us with the chorus.  It's the eargasm, so get to it...quick!

6. Constantly rework and improve your ideas.  Don't be satisfied.  Keep asking yourself "can I make this better?"

7.  Consider your demographic.  You should not be writing a Celine lyric and throwing in the David Foster piano and sting lines for a Miley highschool anthem.

8.  Work with others.  Learn how to listen (and not talk) through the art of co-writing.  It'll do a lot for your emotional and musical flexibility.

9.  No weak links.  Not with your writing, not with your production, not with your singers, not with your players.  Weak links will undermine your potential.

10. Define what a hook is and milk it....much more on that later!

That may have been a lot of food for thought, but it's a rich starting point. 

Do what you love, Love what you do!