Kathy "The Bob", 50/90, Electronic Music, FAWM, IndieArtist, LogicProX, Lyrics and Music, Modern Musician, Music Producer, Music Production, NaNoWriMo, NaSoAlMo, Rocktober, Songwriting

Gearing up for 50/90

Fifty-ninety begins July 4th and lasts through September 30. The challenge is to create 50 songs in 90 days. I think it will be an awesome way to focus.

Yesterday, I posted on my travel blog some thoughts about my childhood and how when we visited my step dad’s family in California’s Central Valley, I would leave the women behind in the living room talking about babies to sit with the men on the front porch talking trash about drinking, the neighbors, and other stuff I can’t remember while making home-made ice cream.

Anyway, that got me to thinking about how hanging out with musicians in places like FAWM and 50/90 and Sonic Academy is like hanging out with the guys on the front porch. While there are women there, the majority are men. And that’s more than okay.

I also notice that when I’m involved in podcasts and live videos in these communities, we focus on the music. Nothing else exists other than a passing comment about having more time to create music. There’s no politics. And it’s so refreshing.

So I’m thinking that maybe if I focus on the next 90 days, that when it’s over, all of this might be over. Or in a better place than where we are now. And if not, October brings Rocktober and November brings National Solo Album Month (NaSoAlMo), the music version of NaNoWriMo (instead of writing a novel in a month, you write an album). Maybe *then* it will be over. If not, then there’s Christmas and New Year’s and then maybe it will be over or mostly over in 2021.

 

Kathy "The Bob", #amwriting, Contemporary Romance, Cruise, Fiction, IndieAuthor, Las Vegas, Travel, Writing, YouTube

Travel-Inspired Reading/Writing

Novels set in interesting locations have always appealed to me. In fact, they’ve influenced where I’ve traveled. When I was in junior high (don’t go all Karen on me now), Gone With the Wind was the romantic read – the film was big back then. It was all about Rhett and Scarlett and that climb up those stairs. So, as a Southern California girl, I *had* to see the Antebellum South for myself. Maybe because I’m not only a reader/writer, but a history buff. (Don’t go all “that was marital rape” because it clearly wasn’t – check out this explanation.)

(On a side note: the wisest thing my mother ever said was, “Don’t judge the past by the present.” If you didn’t live it, you don’t understand it.)

In my adulthood, I read Oriental Hotel, and I *had* to visit the three places the book took place: Hong Kong, Singapore, and Bangkok. And, yes, as a history buff (not political), I was quite intrigued by the British Colonial period. There are numerous other books and movies that have also influenced my travels, or intrigued me, like Elephant Walk and Passage to India and, of course, The Love Boat, which started me cruising – lol!

Anyway, to get to my point, I like to write novels set on cruise ships and Las Vegas and other beach locales. I’ve uploaded a video featuring the Real Women Wear Red and Real Women Sing the Blues, both books set on cruise ships, on my Travel channel and will share here. That was so much fun, I’m thinking of creating videos for my other books, too.

But I’m not just reading fiction. I recently read The Tenth Island by Diana Marcum. It takes place in the Azores, featuring expats now living in Fresno, which is where my father lived so there’s that connection, too.

Travel is quite difficult, if not practically impossible right now. The cruise industry keeps canceling/delaying their ships. Understandable. Cruising is complicated. So reading and writing about far-away or fun locales is on my mind. I say I’ve been playing at working on the third novel in the “Real Women” series, but maybe it’s time to get serious about having fun.

 

Kathy "The Bob", Ableton Live, Electronic Music, IndieArtist, LogicProX, Lyrics and Music, Modern Musician, Music Producer, Music Production, Songwriting

Discovering Sound Design

(This may be repetitive for those who have read this blog for some time, but in a nutshell, this is the background to my music journey.)

I’ve always loved singing – even from a young age. My mother tells the story of me, smudge on cheek, sitting on the front porch singing with my step dad while he played guitar – me having no idea what the lyrics were to the song. Later, I performed in the school choir and sang as a soloist. I played an electric organ I got for my 7th birthday. Later, I moved on to piano and when groups like the Beatles were all the rage, I even played a few chords on the guitar.

I was stumped by three things.

Being told:

  • You have a great ear for music
  • Your writing is poetic, almost lyrical in rhythm

The first one was said by my school music teacher and later, my vocal coach in Las Vegas (he appeared in Mamma Mia), and the second was my literary agent when she signed me for Real Women Wear Red.

Thinking:

  • My favorite words in 1st Grade were “said” and “David”
  • My favorite songs had stripper-like drums

Later, when I met my father, he said “All my kids play the drums” and then it all fell into place. That explained some of my favorite songs, and, of course, the “d” in those words sounded like a drum – lol!

I also discovered my grandmother wrote poetry. Ah… I started putting it all together, pursuing songwriting and got a new music keyboard. But something wasn’t quite coming together. Then, as I started studying music production, first GarageBand, then LogicPro, and now Ableton Live, I realized how much I loved “sound” – it’s something more than just music.

I recently purchased Kick2 and Ana2 from Sonic Academy, learning deeper levels of sound design. And I absolutely love it! This is so bringing me out of the doldrums this weird time in our world has brought to us.

This also brings up questions, such as:

  • Should I do 50/90 this year?
  • Will I renew my TAXI A&R membership?

Neither seem all that focused on the kind of music and/or sounds I’m creating. Perhaps it’s time to reassess my goals.

Kathy "The Bob", Lyrics and Music, not producing music, not writing

Good Days, Bad Days

My last post headlined, “In the Midst of Chaos, Create.” That was a good day.

Today I’m stumped about what to create. I pull open my wip, make a couple of edits and then lose all interest in the story. Maybe because it’s the third in the “Real Women” series set on a cruise ship. Cruise ships remind me of “The Bob” or “Covid-19” if you must.

I open the Logic Pro X 10.5 update playlist, thinking maybe I can learn more on this update and create some music. My brain shuts down.

Today is a bad day. I can’t wrap my head around what is happening. Like most of you, I’m impatient for the return to “normal.” But Disneyland still isn’t setting real opening dates. Knott’s Berry Farm isn’t opening. I read headlines about the Berlin club scene in serious threat of demise.

I’ve never been one for large crowds or people crowding in my space, but many of my favorite activities are in areas with crowds. Cruise ships, Disney parks. Dance clubs (well, not recently – lol).

I’m also a planner, but how can you plan anything when you have no idea what will be open or what it will look like.

This may all seem rather insignificant, but the truth is, I already struggle with depression. Besides, my Faith, which only this weekend will I be attending my church (yes, I got a “reservation.”), these are the little things that make me happy. The little trips and planning of trips my husband and I do together.

Like my annual birthday dinner at Napa Rose at Disneyland Resort. Unfortunately, it will not be open in time for my birthday. So, yes, I’m feeling more depressed than normal. It’s situational. And situational is more difficult to overcome when the situation isn’t quite right.

Usually, I can lose myself in writing or music or planning or dreaming. But this is a bad day. A bad day is when I can’t get lost in the writing or music because I’m all too aware of what’s going on out there.

But I am reminded of “Wishin’ and Hopin,” a song from my childhood, back when I thought this was what life was all about – lol! It makes me smile, though, so I guess this is a good day after all. 🙂

 

Kathy "The Bob", #Coronavirus, #Protests, 2020, Artist, Cocktails, Cruise, Disney, IndieArtist, IndieAuthor, Romantic Comedy, Travel, Writing, YouTube

In the Midst of Turmoil, Create.

You will go nuts if you spend too much time on social media, or media, in general, especially in times like these. So what’s an artist to do? Create. Write. Paint, Sing. Cook. Produce Music. That’s where sanity lies.

So I thought I’d share a couple of my recent projects. Although I am not a painter or that kind of artist, I am a bit of a visual artist. My background is in book layout and production. Therefore, I’ve been dabbling a bit with videos on YouTube. Mostly posting some of our cruise and Disney videos, our time in Florida, Las Vegas, and some even feature my novels. That was so fun.

I’d created a book trailer when my first book was published but later when Google bought YouTube, they messed it all up. So I reimagined it with real video but kept the same tune. Makes me smile, taking me back to those heady days of getting an agent and publishing for the first time when we first moved to  Florida. Check it out:

One time in Florida was not enough so we moved back not twice but three times in all. Here’s the video of our last time when we had the great privilege of building a new house in a Central Florida beach town.

And here’s a link to a video that seems to be growing in views every day. Unlike most of my videos that may get a dozen views, this incredibly short video of Oasis of the Seas has climbed to almost 65,000. Go figure! Now if those viewers would buy my cruise books – lol!

To find out more about my novels, click here.

If you’d just like to subscribe to my Travel Channel on YouTube, click on this link.

Thanks for stopping by. Happy creating!