music

‘They Lie Here’ by N.S. Ford – Review

Lee Hall 1 Comment

Thrilling and unputdownable with unique themes…

N.S. Ford has masterfully merged the genres of thriller and mystery with the themes of obsession, secrets and music to deliver a layered story I could not put down. There were twists, revelations and even after, there were more unexpected moments in this original and addictive read.

In my first two sittings of reading this I’d already reached the 50% mark and by then I was just as obsessed as main character ‘Kat Green’ who is on a mission to find missing 80’s musician ‘Roskoe Darke’. His band, the aptly named ‘Scorpio Hearts’ have a kind of cult following and through some unique flashbacks/snippets we learn of their history along with the backstory that all has a sinister feel. ‘Kat’ is clever, obsessed and willing to go to extreme lengths for her investigation, even if she does refer to herself in third person often, there’s reasoning behind it and that also reflects the whole story which is cleverly plotted.

During the earlier stages, there is a lot of build as everything is laid out and then the revelations begin. Just like N.S. Ford’s last release, the well-executed twists are becoming a theme or even sub-genre of the author’s work and its definitely something that will keep me coming back. Music is also a key theme that runs throughout the story which serves as a study of how fans and those in the industry are effected by success while also merging with the mystery/thriller elements which makes for a unique unpredictable reading experience.

5 Stars

Guest Post: Music to Write By: Motivator or Procrastinator? By Emma Jordan

Lee Hall 1 Comment

Introducing author Emma Jordan who talks about music and writing…

Image by Pexels from Pixabay

As an indie romance author, I love making all my own writing decisions, from series concept to book marketing and even the actual writing bit. Who wouldn’t?

But what I REALLY love is deciding what music to play, whether I’m:

· Researching an idea;

· Creating a Spotify playlist of my novels;

· Creating an Amazon playlist to inspire me on car journeys;

· Distracting myself from writing;

· Tidying my CDs;

· Taking a break from writing;

· Avoiding editing;

· Celebrating self-publishing a book;

· Trying to write character arcs.

The rhetorical question is: do I play music to motivate my writing or to avoid writing?

A little of both, as any graduate historian will conclude.

I’ve included music in all three of the romance novels in my series, Love is Everything (across all musical genres):

Everything, Except You – four decades of country music and 80s film themes;

Everything and Nothing – seventies rock and classic rock;

Everything For Her – 90s pop and Latin music (this is the book I’m currently, musically, distracted from);

Even my Christmas novella, Everything This Christmas, includes Christmas songs (and films).

You know when people say they’ll listen to anything?

I really do, I’ve seen New Kids on the Block and Andrea Bocelli live shows – not together, although that could inspire an intriguing book one day. I’ve spent five days at a country festival that I had to be dragged away from, I RockFit to Rammstein and I’ve seen Muse perform 12 times in six countries (don’t even get me started on combining travel and music).

I even volunteer to write music reviews and interview musicians for Lyric Magazine, because I love sharing my love of songwriting and storytelling.

I’ve always loved music. I grew up in a music-loving household. We didn’t have much, but we had cassettes. I remember 13th July 1985 as a 7 year old, standing in the lounge in front of BBC One and yelling to my Mum, ‘It’s On!’ just as Live Aid, the first charity concert, was about to kick off 12 hours of live music (including Paul Young. Swoon).

As a teen, I took babysitting jobs based on the person’s cassette collection, and if there was a twin deck I could record from. As an adult, and parent, I need live shows as much as my daughter needs to read (proud mama moment; she’s book-obsessed). Perhaps my gig obsession is not for the reason you think. I’m deaf in my right ear, which probably explains my addiction to live shows (front and centre if possible) I need to feel the music. It also makes for great writing inspiration when I hear something completely different to what’s actually being said. Talk about Four Candles.

I absolutely can’t wait for live shows to resume again, so that I can convince myself, ‘I’ll write on the train’ when I actually mean I’ll listen to artist’s music all the way back home, reliving the show, drifting to sleep with a huge grin across my face.

What do you listen to when you’re supposed to be working?

Romance writer Emma Jordan hangs out on Twitter and Instagram (as well as Spotify and Amazon’s KDP reports) and loves to connect with readers and potential-readers.

To celebrate the 1st book birthday of my second romance novel, Everything and Nothing, all readers can add this to their #TBRPile FOR FREE before the end of Friday 16th July 2021.

Author’s Spotlight: Lee Hall Interview

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Hello friends and followers. Today I would like to share a very recent interview about writing that I did with awesome fellow blogger Dr K. Make sure you like and subscribe!

Dr. K's Waiting Room

Lee Hall, author of Consistent Creative Content, the Order of the Following series, and others

1. First, introduce yourself a bit. What is your name (or pen name) and where are you from?

Allow me to introduce myself. My name is Lee Hall and I am an independently published author from the UK. Indie publishing to me means that I have self-funded my own books from scratch all the way to publication.

2.Next, tell us a bit about your most recent work. Is this your first published book? What is it about and what genre would you classify it as?

My most recent release and seventh book, Consistent Creative Content, is a non-fiction guide for indie authors and bloggers. This part-memoir part-guide lays out my journey as an author and blogger which is full of advice and experiences. Basically stuff I have learned over many years from…

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Defining Cyberpunk

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Let’s start with some mood music:

Defining Cyberpunk

The standard definition is as follows:

Cyberpunk is a subgenre of science fiction in a dystopian futuristic setting that tends to focus on a “combination of low-life and high tech” featuring advanced technological and scientific achievements, such as artificial intelligence and cybernetics, juxtaposed with a degree of breakdown or radical change in the social order.

That being said the point to this rambling stream of consciousness is to introduce you to some notable authors that have embraced Cyberpunk as a creative writing outlet. Many authors start out with the line “I don’t know who said it first” when asked where was Cyberpunk as a subgenre of Science Fiction born. Since Cyberpunk 2077 the game is front and center right now, I’m going to start with the writer/creator of said game and work backwards.

So here we go Mike Pondsmith, being inspired by…

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‘The Word of the Rock God’ by Brooklynn Dean – Review

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An intimately descriptive fable that merges rock and roll with a powerful message…

Using an encapsulating and immersive writing style Brooklyn Dean places you on stage between your favourite musicians – that’s how it feels anyway. Its intimate and needs to be in order to capture every facial expression, every deep thought and every moment that makes up this parable or even biblical tale of the prophet who faces temptation. On the surface it could be perceived as good versus evil but beneath that is a story full of depth and meaning.

‘Max’ is content with the life he leads as a typically free spirited creative. While his bandmates ‘Phillip’ and ‘Craig’ are partying, he would rather be writing new material over coffee while feeding from the energy of performing. He’s an artist who stands for purity even relaying his message to younger people not to dive in and that it’s okay to wait for certain things in life. Not only is he placed between his two bandmates on stage but figuratively as well – ‘Phillip’ stands as a sometimes sassy but always likeable guardian of sorts, he’s an old friend or even a shoulder to cry on while ‘Craig’ is lesser so but still makes up the band on Max’s other shoulder and this is where the genius of interpretation and symbolism begins. In fact that deep symbolism is all around us.   

While we see the band and their smaller venue touring life captured night after night ‘Max’ encounters two different women who turn out to be so much more. One of them persists with temptation of the many vices our main character has avoided and they start to weigh upon him. Gradually she weaves her way beneath the surface of his consciousness and all of sudden things that never mattered to him start to take over the things that do. The positive message of purity Max carries becomes muddied and almost corrupt where once the art mattered now it seemingly doesn’t.

Like all great stories The Word of the Rock God gives the reader opportunity to interpret the symbolism of it in our own way. It’s what isn’t there that makes you think and leaves a lasting impression after. Even the ending, although satisfying is decided by those who take on these words. From the simple concept of a demon trying to tempt a prophet to the belief of your own art and even the responsibility of being in a position to deliver a message to your audience positively. Sometimes we can lose ourselves or even fall off the path while trying to be someone else so desperately, perhaps being yourself is all that matters. All of this is wrapped up with the rock and roll lifestyle of a performer who lives for his art and it’s delivered through an original unique reading experience. Highly recommended to anyone looking for something a little different.

5 Stars – Rock and roll man! Thank you to the author for providing a copy of the book in exchange for a review.

Weekly Ramble #69

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From every shit-uation there are positives and good eventual outcomes. People have a lot more time now. The hustle and bustle of life’s busyness has slowed down and even I can feel people are taking their time to do things they didn’t before.

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These are the best sales I’ve ever had outside of Book promo

Book reviews are up. Book sales are up. And social media engagement is up. I’m even writing new stuff. I’ve always tried to justify my place in the arena with both books and a presence and it’s times of struggle like this that people look for reads and people who are carrying on in the face of adversity.

Writers and artists are needed even more so and while the social media socialite types who produce nothing are being starved out of attention, people are looking to genuine content creators and it gets no more genuine than a book or a blog.

We’ll look back on this time as one of invisible pressure and hardship. But take those away and you’ll find it was a period where we all had time to read that book, watch that show or paint that wall. 

All of a sudden this will be over and we’ll be back in the arms of friends, family and even co workers. We’ll forget what it truly means to be isolated and away from groups. We’re a herd species, until recently anyway.  The rat race will resume and it will all be forgotten. Humans have a fickle way of carrying on. Whether it comes from a vaccine or even medication, we’ll beat it, we’re too resilient not to I salute all of those carrying on in the face of this adversity – by carrying on I mean, writing a few words a day, speaking to friends over skype, cooking that meal, staying busy; we’ll get through, we always do!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The stories that inspire us – PlayStation 2

Lee Hall 3 Comments

The stories we read, see and hear sometimes leave a lasting effect on our lives. Stories inspire us to be who we are. They shape our own journey and can take the mind anywhere. There are some stories that effect us so much, they even shape our future…

Image result for playstation 2

It is the most successful gaming console to date and this week twenty years ago it was released; apart from the wave of some readers probably muttering ‘Oh god I am old’ this is a fantastic piece of history to celebrate in gaming and I was lucky enough to be a kid at the time… 

158 Million people owned a PS2 with the original release coming out in Japan on the 4th of March 2000 – the rest of the world would have to wait until later on in the year and me, I got hold of one after spending all of my 13th birthday money in 2002. To this day I still remember shopping around finding the best deal which came from the now extinct (in the UK) Woolworths.

Having been very lucky to own its predecessor PlayStation, like all kids I wanted the new thing and so that fresh plastic smell dominated the living room as I opened the packaging and set it up. The very first game I played was Medal of Honor: Frontline – which was a tribute to history itself while also nodding to the Spielberg epic ‘Saving Private Ryan’. A group of us crowded around the living room television while it took us away to artillery fire and allied soldiers on a beach in France. I have always embraced the imagination of where a game takes you and this was history.

Image result for medal of honor frontline ps2

PlayStation 2 had a lasting influence on my life and even now as a writer its still inspires my stories. Back then I had all the time in the world to play but not a lot of income so new games would be sparse and arrive via birthdays and Christmas. I could always rely on a service which doesn’t exist anymore: Blockbuster video game rentals… The race would be on to complete a rented game in the handful of days I owned it and many many times I succeeded but again with a small crowd around the screen.

Image result for red faction ps2

Red Faction shaped my science fiction writing….

Not only did the games of PlayStation 2 shape my writing influence they also played a huge part in introducing me to the music I would come to align myself with.

These were still the days when parents overlooked age ratings on games and by Christmas 2002 my uncle gifted me possibly the greatest PS2 game ever and not for the reasons you think.

Yes the story was great and the whole production was amazing and Grand Theft Auto Vice City is indeed an incredible playing experience but for me it was a gateway to rock music.

Image result for gta vice city

Bands like Twisted Sister, Judas Priest, Iron Maiden, Megadeath, Motley Crue and Tesla would blare out of my room while I cruised along Vice Beach – this was my safe haven and back then rock music was bullying material at school. That music paved my interest into the bands I listen to today and without out it there would be no Rock and Roll man!

Looking back on this era of gaming, it truly was a golden age and I’ve only mentioned the tip of what is a huge iceberg of games, so check out my favourites below….

Do you have any PlayStation 2 memories?

Image result for gta san andreas Image result for half life ps2 Image result for spiderman 2 ps2 

Image result for wwe smackdown shut your mouth Image result for metal gear sons of liberty Image result for dead to rights ps2

Image result for the simes ps2 Image result for simposns hit and srunImage result for max payne ps2

The Band Director’s Lessons About Life: Volume 1 – 50 Parables on Life’s Performance Cycle by Donald Lee – Review

Lee Hall 1 Comment

An inspiring array of modern life lessons told from experience with a spiritual outlook…  

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From the opening pages its clear to see that Donald Lee is a tenured teacher and has used his many experiences to create what is a gem of a book about so much in life with music/performance teaching being the theme.

It consists of short parables that present readers with insightful lessons on many different subjects ranging from time management, knowledge, belief, having fun, performing, forgiveness, failure and so much more (50 in total) – all of which come from the authors time spent teaching band. Every parable begins with a quote from an inspirational figure and closes with a reflection that galvanizes the lesson and an overall insight on each subject. The main insight is spiritual growth and this book will help you look towards being happier, peaceful and successful in whatever you tackle.

There are a heap of self help and spiritual type books out there that cater to certain subjects but this one you’ll find has mass appeal across ages, beliefs and walks of life to provide spiritual insight on ourselves and others. It’s inclusive to anyone much like music and teaching. Everyone will find something to relate to in this book that has meaning and inspiration because we are all in the big band of life together!

‘What you seek is within you, not without you…’

5 Stars – I thoroughly enjoyed this. Thank you to the author for reaching out and providing a copy in exchange for a review – all thoughts are my own! Reviews left via amazon and Goodreads… 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Rocketman – Review

Lee Hall 3 Comments

A candid tell-all story about a truly great musician and artist…

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Rocketman succeeds somewhat where other biographical stories fall short because this film follows Elton John on a very personal and sometimes brutal level. First and foremost it’s a musical which is delivered in way best described as fantasy.

Lead man Taron Egerton whom I was yet to find a good film of until now has found a great way of not only embodying Elton John but also carrying it in his own style while still very much resembling the music superstar we all know. In fact the realism and brutality of fame intertwines brilliantly with a back catalogue of well known and  sometimes melancholy songs that blend together to bring what is a fun immersive story.

We see Elton’s routes from his very early home life and interest in playing the piano. His mother played by the probably over glamourous Bryce Dallas Howard who is believable with an English accent. This is also where the absence of a Father figure emerges for young Elton while he tries to figure out his emerging talent. Soon the story transitions to Egerton’s portrayal where he meets long time lyricist and friend Bernie Taupin; the film does well in telling a story of two artists here; the perfomormer and the writer; something where a lot of bio’s fall short. Eventually they make their way over to the US where Elton’s performance at the LA Troubadour club is portrayed in a fantastical but real way showing the effect of his talent to a new audience. His rise to fame and fortune follows while the life of a Rockstar begins to take its toll.

Overall the premise of this film is delivered in an original reflective way as we are introduced to Elton in full bright orange garb as he sits down for group therapy. He tells the story as if he is in that therapy; from drugs, alcohol and even shopping addiction to even loneliness nothing is sugar coated in what is a great biopic about a great musical artist.

Even the next morning I found myself singing to myself.

5/5 Starts