The Thirteenth Hour Podcast

Originally aired on August 1, 2022.This week, I'm making one last track for the next Thirteenth Hour soundtrack album. Just when I think it's done, I think of another track I want to make. I think that's because I really do think of all these tracks as accompaniments to various sections in the books. The nice thing about that is once you find a central theme (e.g. elements of The Thirteenth Hour theme is one), you can repeat and vary it throughout depending on the needs of the scene. This one goes along with a short segment from The Thirteenth Hour where Logan meets his crewmates again in a dream. You can read that section on the original show notes at https://13thhr.wordpress.com/2022/08/01/the-thirteenth-hour-podcast-364-musical-interlude-creating-im-here-youre-not/The track we're making today is basically a slow reworking of The Thirteenth Hour theme, similar to what I did with Empty Hands and the meditative theme that became the music video of pixelated Logan flying through the clouds. This track is most similar to the latter but won't have the angelic accents that that track ended up with. I'd like to give it a more somber tone to fit with the nature of the passage above so will be thinking about which sounds would best pair with the base layer I made this week. I was thinking of something haunting, kind of like the sounds of a Theremin, but am not sure I can make that with my midi keyboard. But I may be able to find something close. We shall see! Stay tuned!∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞ Signup for the mailing list for a free special edition podcast, a demo copy of The Thirteenth Hour, and access to retro 80s soundtrack!Like what you see or hear? Consider supporting the show over at Thirteenth Hour Arts on Patreon or adding to my virtual tip jar over at Ko-fi. Join the Thirteenth Hour Arts Group over on Facebook, a growing community of creative people.Have this podcast conveniently delivered to you each week on Spotify, iTunes, Stitcher, Player FM, Tunein, and Googleplay Music.Follow The Thirteenth Hour’s Instagram pages: @the13thhr for your random postings on ninjas, martial arts, archery, flips, breakdancing, fantasy art and and @the13thhr.ost for more 80s music, movies, and songs from The Thirteenth Hour books and soundtrack.Listen to Long Ago Not So Far Away, the Thirteenth Hour soundtrack online at: https://joshuablum.bandcamp.com/ or Spotify. Join the mailing list for a digital free copy. You can also get it on CD or tape.Website: https://13thhr.wordpress.comBook trailer: http://bit.ly/1VhJhXYInterested in reading and reviewing The Thirteenth Hour for a free book? Just email me at [email protected] for more details!

Originally aired on March 28, 2022.This week, I'm working on the last piece in the upcoming second Thirteenth Hour soundtrack. The track, called "Homecoming" is an incidental piece of music I made back in the summer but wasn't sure how to finish. But today, I'm wrapping it up by adding two additional layers - a short melody for the "verses" using a xylophone sound (to invoke the feeling of nostalgia/childhood) as well as a choral vocal overlay. The draft plays at the end of the episode. A few pictures from part of the book that inspired this piece:Next week, we're going to do another Q and A episode! If you have questions or things you'd like to share, feel free to email me them at [email protected].∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞This spring, if you're looking for an adult of child mask, check out Thirteenth Hour mask combo package on Etsy. This fall, it became really hard to find good quality masks for our kids as they were going back to school. There are still long wait times for some of the companies we like best, so I thought, why not try to find an alternative? I eventually settled on the triple layer masks available for printing on by the company Flashbay. They were one of the few companies I found that were transparent about their third party safety data (Junior: https://static.flashbay.com/images/certificates/Junior_REACH.pdf?v=1617870020, Adult: https://static.flashbay.com/images/certificates/Sky_Performance.pdf?v=1603078812) which is nice. I was impressed by how well these masks performed on the filtration tests, even after repeat washings. Also, I really liked how both the ears and nose piece could be adjusted for a good fit.The Thirteenth Hour mask combo also comes with Thirteenth Hour hand sanitizer! (But of course.)There are now Thirteenth Hour toys! If you'd like to pick up one of these glow in the dark figures for yourself, feel free to email me or go to the Etsy store I set up (https://www.etsy.com/shop/ThirteenthHourStudio) and get them there. If the past few months have got you needing a break, you may want to chill out to this 80s synth throwback track for a upcoming LP with the accompanying music video:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vQTPuv-cJQg&t=22sEmpty Hands, the synth EP soundtrack to the novella, Empty Hands, is now out for streaming on Bandcamp. Stay tuned. Follow along on Spotify! There is also a growing extended Thirteenth Hour playlist on Spotify with a growing number of retro 80s songs.Check it out![spotify id="spotify:user:jsblum:playlist:0UEHg7euO45dtmZTbH1akD" width="300" height="380" /]As always, thanks for listening!∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞ Signup for the mailing list for a free special edition podcast, a demo copy of The Thirteenth Hour, and access to retro 80s soundtrack!Like what you see or hear? Consider supporting the show over at Thirteenth Hour Arts on Patreon or adding to my virtual tip jar over at Ko-fi. Join the Thirteenth Hour Arts Group over on Facebook, a growing community of creative people.Have this podcast conveniently delivered to you each week on Spotify, iTunes, Stitcher, Player FM, Tunein, and Googleplay Music.Follow The Thirteenth Hour’s Instagram pages: @the13thhr for your random postings on ninjas, martial arts, archery, flips, breakdancing, fantasy art and and @the13thhr.ost for more 80s music, movies, and songs from The Thirteenth Hour books and soundtrack.Listen to Long Ago Not So Far Away, the Thirteenth Hour soundtrack online at: https://joshuablum.bandcamp.com/ or Spotify. Join the mailing list for a digital free copy. You can also get it on CD or tape.Website: https://13thhr.wordpress.comBook trailer: http://bit.ly/1VhJhXYInterested in reading and reviewing The Thirteenth Hour for a free book? Just email me at [email protected] for more details!

Originally aired on March 7, 2022.This week, I'm working on two music pieces - one of the last tracks from the upcoming second Thirteenth Hour soundtrack. The song, called "No Hero (The Future is Here)" is basically the equivalent of the soundtrack's ending track (like a song that would play over the ending credits). Some previews:https://www.instagram.com/reel/CakaktDhREt/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_linkhttps://www.instagram.com/reel/CanVCs6BWnG/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_linkI'm working on the backing synth track today. The version on the podcast was an early warmup. At the time of this writing, many, many frustrating recording attempts (and hours) later, I do have a version of the backing track that is 95% done. Speaking of ending tracks, I've also been playing around with the ending song from the US release of Legend, which we'll be talking about in the coming week. The song playing as the movie ends is "Loved by the Sun" by Tangerine Dream and sung by Jon Anderson from the band Yes. I'm just messing around with on the guitar with my kids in the version on the podcast, but here is a much better orchestral version of the song done by kids with the O'Keefe Music Foundation, a nonprofit that provides free music instruction to children. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kE9I8eGgJfoLook for more on Legend next week and the release of Once Upon a Dream later this year!∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞ Signup for the mailing list for a free special edition podcast, a demo copy of The Thirteenth Hour, and access to retro 80s soundtrack!Like what you see or hear? Consider supporting the show over at Thirteenth Hour Arts on Patreon or adding to my virtual tip jar over at Ko-fi. Join the Thirteenth Hour Arts Group over on Facebook, a growing community of creative people.Have this podcast conveniently delivered to you each week on Spotify, iTunes, Stitcher, Player FM, Tunein, and Googleplay Music.Follow The Thirteenth Hour’s Instagram pages: @the13thhr for your random postings on ninjas, martial arts, archery, flips, breakdancing, fantasy art and and @the13thhr.ost for more 80s music, movies, and songs from The Thirteenth Hour books and soundtrack.Listen to Long Ago Not So Far Away, the Thirteenth Hour soundtrack online at: https://joshuablum.bandcamp.com/ or Spotify. Join the mailing list for a digital free copy. You can also get it on CD or tape.Website: https://13thhr.wordpress.comBook trailer: http://bit.ly/1VhJhXYInterested in reading and reviewing The Thirteenth Hour for a free book? Just email me at [email protected] for more details!https://13thhr.wordpress.com/2024/06/24/the-thirteenth-hour-podcast-463-update-on-theres-a-wild-heart-beating-acoustic-live-more-work-on-no-hero/

Originally aired on July 19, 2021.Awhile back, I ordered some lenticular 3D cards from the French company, Pops, which did the lenticular wiggle cards for the resin figurines I made. They now have smaller form 3D cards that will serve as contest rewards. What's the contest, you ask? It's a review contest. If you can help the show get more Apple Podcasts reviews and are the 5th or 10th listener to write in, I'll send you one of the cards!I also start working on a slow instrumental synth track for next The Thirteenth Hour soundtrack LP. Thanks for listening!∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞There are now Thirteenth Hour toys! If you'd like to pick up one of these glow in the dark figures for yourself, feel free to email me or go to the Etsy store I set up (https://www.etsy.com/shop/ThirteenthHourStudio) and get them there. If the past few months have got you needing a break, you may want to chill out to this 80s synth throwback track for a upcoming LP with the accompanying music video:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vQTPuv-cJQg&t=22sEmpty Hands, the synth EP soundtrack to the novella, Empty Hands, is now out for streaming on Bandcamp. Stay tuned. Follow along on Spotify! There is also a growing extended Thirteenth Hour playlist on Spotify with a growing number of retro 80s songs.Check it out![spotify id="spotify:user:jsblum:playlist:0UEHg7euO45dtmZTbH1akD" width="300" height="380" /]As always, thanks for listening!∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞ Signup for the mailing list for a free special edition podcast, a demo copy of The Thirteenth Hour, and access to retro 80s soundtrack!Like what you see or hear? Consider supporting the show over at Thirteenth Hour Arts on Patreon or adding to my virtual tip jar over at Ko-fi. Join the Thirteenth Hour Arts Group over on Facebook, a growing community of creative people.Have this podcast conveniently delivered to you each week on Spotify, iTunes, Stitcher, Player FM, Tunein, and Googleplay Music.Follow The Thirteenth Hour’s Instagram pages: @the13thhr for your random postings on ninjas, martial arts, archery, flips, breakdancing, fantasy art and and @the13thhr.ost for more 80s music, movies, and songs from The Thirteenth Hour books and soundtrack.Listen to Long Ago Not So Far Away, the Thirteenth Hour soundtrack online at: https://joshuablum.bandcamp.com/ or Spotify. Join the mailing list for a digital free copy. You can also get it on CD or tape.Website: https://13thhr.wordpress.comBook trailer: http://bit.ly/1VhJhXYInterested in reading and reviewing The Thirteenth Hour for a free book? Just email me at [email protected] for more details!https://13thhr.wordpress.com/2021/07/19/the-thirteenth-hour-podcast-310-apple-review-contest-and-thirteenth-hour-homecoming-instrumental-track/

Originally aired on May 10, 2021.https://13thhr.wordpress.com/2021/05/10/the-thirteenth-hour-podcast-300-special-anniversary-podcast-edition-and-like-a-hood-ornament-27-watching-the-rocketeer-cartoon-episode-8-with-my-daughter/Welcome to episode 300! This show has been going in some fashion since 2014 and continuously since early 2015 so in commemoration, I've gathered together a few clips from past episodes and time when I've been guests of fellow podcasters discussing some aspects of The Thirteenth Hour. We start off with a short clip from my first podcast in this format (since the first 15 had been just reading aloud from an earlier draft of The Thirteenth Hour pre-publication to try to catch errors). We recently had Paul and Ric from the Classic Gamers Guild on the show to talk about the making of their pixelart adventure game, though in Jan of 2020, I was actually a guest on their show to discuss The Rocketeer (of course). I have included a little segment that talks about the age of the show at that time and what it is about. You can listen to their full episode here: https://www.cggpodcast.com/e/water-cooler-4/Some years before, when I was living in New England, I was interviewed on his radio show, The Author's Hour, fellow author Wayne Barber hosted me on his show. There's an excerpt here about what The Thirteenth Hour is about and what so many of the things touched upon in this show have been about over the years. Just one episode before, my brother, Jeremy, had just been on (my first guest!) to talk about the homebrew games we attempted to make in the 90s (which we circled back to in episode 298 with Ric and Paul). The full episode (#30) is below, but Jeremy comes on the show briefly today to talk about what he's been up to. Find more of his writing over at https://pixelgrotto.tumblr.com/.Our next guest for today, Adam from @mom_gave_them_away, who has been on the show a number of times before (see below for one of those times) comes on to share what he has been doing and what he is passionate about. One of the great things about the show (and the reason I've kept doing it these past 6 years) is that through it, I've met so many talented, creative people I probably wouldn't have encountered otherwise.At the same time we recorded the show linked above (#220), we also recorded one for Adam's show. I've included a clip in this episode (about Spacecamp and other 80s movies), and you can listen to the full episode on Spotify above or on his Patreon.To do the next episode of The Rocketeer cartoon (#8), this week, my daughter joins for the whole segment. It was a happy little coincidence that in the first clip on this show (from episode #16), she was an infant, and here, she's almost 7. It was a great thing to be able to do with her.∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞ Signup for the mailing list for a free special edition podcast, a demo copy of The Thirteenth Hour, and access to retro 80s soundtrack! Like what you see or hear? Consider supporting the show over at Thirteenth Hour Arts on Patreon or adding to my virtual tip jar over at Ko-fi. Join the Thirteenth Hour Arts Group over on Facebook, a growing community of creative people. Have this podcast conveniently delivered to you each week on Spotify, iTunes, Stitcher, Player FM, Tunein, and Googleplay Music. Follow The Thirteenth Hour’s Instagram pages: @the13thhr for your random postings on ninjas, martial arts, archery, flips, breakdancing, fantasy art and and @the13thhr.ost for more 80s music, movies, and songs from The Thirteenth Hour books and soundtrack. Listen to Long Ago Not So Far Away, the Thirteenth Hour soundtrack online at: https://joshuablum.bandcamp.com/ or Spotify. Join the mailing list for a digital free copy. You can also get it on CD or tape. Website: https://13thhr.wordpress.com Book trailer: http://bit.ly/1VhJhXY Interested in reading and reviewing The Thirteenth Hour for a free book? Just email me at [email protected] for more details!

Originally aired on March 1, 2021This week's show piggybacks off last week's episode and the Patreon exclusive episode that came out last week. We're making the slow, meditative Thirteenth Hour theme that was playing in the background of last week's episode and then creating a visual for it in Adobe Premiere. I always thought that cloudscape scenes were peaceful and naturally meditative, so I'm using that a stock footage first person cloudscape as a background as well as some pixelart animations of Logan that I created years ago. Here's the end result:https://youtu.be/Pd_qfZCc4D0Speaking of music, the song "Many Miles" debuted this past week. It ended up taking 6 years, but I'm glad with how it ended up turning out! https://www.instagram.com/reel/CLXNZk_Bz2T/?igshid=enga3ubaar16As always, thanks for listening!∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞ Signup for the mailing list for a free special edition podcast, a demo copy of The Thirteenth Hour, and access to retro 80s soundtrack!Like what you see or hear? Consider supporting the show over at Thirteenth Hour Arts on Patreon or adding to my virtual tip jar over at Ko-fi. Join the Thirteenth Hour Arts Group over on Facebook, a growing community of creative people.Have this podcast conveniently delivered to you each week on Spotify, iTunes, Stitcher, Player FM, Tunein, and Googleplay Music.Follow The Thirteenth Hour’s Instagram pages: @the13thhr for your random postings on ninjas, martial arts, archery, flips, breakdancing, fantasy art and and @the13thhr.ost for more 80s music, movies, and songs from The Thirteenth Hour books and soundtrack.Listen to Long Ago Not So Far Away, the Thirteenth Hour soundtrack online at: https://joshuablum.bandcamp.com/ or Spotify. Join the mailing list for a digital free copy. You can also get it on CD or tape.Website: https://13thhr.wordpress.comBook trailer: http://bit.ly/1VhJhXYInterested in reading and reviewing The Thirteenth Hour for a free book? Just email me at [email protected] for more details!https://13thhr.wordpress.com/2021/03/01/the-thirteenth-hour-podcast-290-making-a-slow-meditative-thirteenth-hour-theme-track-and-accompanying-cloudscape-video/

Originally aired February 22, 2021.This week's episode comes at a time of increasing national and global anxiety about the future, and as inhabitants on this rock orbiting a star on the edge of the Milky Way, we're subject to the milieu of the environment, and unfortunately, there's a lot of angst in the soup. And as anyone who's ever had a muscle cramp can attest, the way around a cramp is not with more tension, it's relaxing into it - leaning in to the pain. In this episode, I talk about the concept of the "receiving body" (ukemi in Japanese, though usually translated as "breakfall"). If we meet the impact of a blow or a fall head on, we play a game of structural strength with the opposing force. When you play that game with the ground, you always lose (unless you are Chuck Norris, of course). Just as a good training partner (uke, a.k.a. "receiver") is able to flow with an attacker and ride off (or simulate) the impact of an attack so his partner can learn how the body moves and responds, doing a good ukemi means never making a dead landing. It means rolling with the force of the fall as best you can. The ability to relax the body in such situations is counter-intuitive, since the natural instinct is to brace for impact, but remember, the ground always wins in a game of strength. Ukemi is not limited to the physical, though. We are always receiving bodies of the slings and arrows that life throws at us. There, too, the ability to relax is counter-intuitive. Thankfully, as with breakfalls, the ability to relax into potential pain can be taught and practiced. We all have the ability within ourselves. In this episode, I talk about one of the simplest (though I didn't say easiest), most natural (again, natural does not mean intuitive) things we all know how to do - breathing. It does take a bit of practice to do it in a way that slows things down to a more manageable pace, but the good news is that once you know how to do it, you can practice deep, slow breathing almost anywhere, anytime, and it doesn't have to be during a time of official "meditation" (I did it the other day in a dentist's chair). If the music playing during the breathing segment sounds familiar, it's because it's similar to the intro podcast music. It's a slow reworking of The Thirteenth Hour theme. For Patreon supporters, watch for an exclusive podcast episode on it sometimes this week as well as a longer stretch to accompany the breathing exercise. I'll make an accompanying video soon as well.Speaking of music, the song "Many Miles" debuts tomorrow. It ended up taking 6 years, but I'm glad with how it ended up turning out! As always, thanks for listening!∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞ Signup for the mailing list for a free special edition podcast, a demo copy of The Thirteenth Hour, and access to retro 80s soundtrack!Like what you see or hear? Consider supporting the show over at Thirteenth Hour Arts on Patreon or adding to my virtual tip jar over at Ko-fi. Have this podcast conveniently delivered to you each week on Spotify, iTunes, Stitcher, Player FM, Tunein, and Googleplay Music.Follow The Thirteenth Hour’s Instagram pages: @the13thhr for your random postings on ninjas, martial arts, archery, flips, breakdancing, fantasy art and and @the13thhr.ost for more 80s music, movies, and songs from The Thirteenth Hour books and soundtrack.Listen to Long Ago Not So Far Away, the Thirteenth Hour soundtrack online at: https://joshuablum.bandcamp.com/ or Spotify. Join the mailing list for a digital free copy. You can also get it on CD or tape.Website: https://13thhr.wordpress.comBook trailer: http://bit.ly/1VhJhXYInterested in reading and reviewing The Thirteenth Hour for a free book? Just email me at [email protected] for more details!https://13thhr.wordpress.com/2021/02/22/the-thirteenth-hour-podcast-289-knowing-yourself-relaxing-into-existential-angst-and-deep-breathing-with-thirteenth-hour-reading/

Originally aired on October 5, 2020.This week, there was so much "housekeeping" business to take care of, I made it a whole episode. Here's the lineup:-I am just about done the title track, "Once Upon a Dream," for the next Thirteenth Hour soundtrack LP. I finally figured out what was missing from the backing part. More synth (there's a surprise). Then it all fit together. It's odd, in a way, since the beat is fast (120 bpm), but the vocals are actually quite slow, much slower than I anticipated. So there's an alternating ascending / descending note progression that can be heard in the background (that's the new part) that helps to bridge the gap between the tempo of the beat and the speed of the vocals. This version can be heard at the end of the episode.-Speaking of synth, check out the weekly podcast, SR Weekly. Steven, the host, who goes by the alias Synth Redneck, used to host his show on youtube but has since moved it over to an audio only format that is available on major podcasting platforms. If you check out the 9/16/20 episode, you'll hear The Thirteenth Hour synth orchestra theme as one of the selections in that week's set. If you're a synth musician yourself, you can submit your music for consideration to be included in a future episode or just check out the lineup with each episode to discover some great new music.-By the way, proceeds from the next Thirteenth Hour LP, Once Upon a Dream, will also be donated to the organization Corazon de Vida (see last week's episode). If you are also interested in helping to support their mission, learn more at https://www.corazondevida.org/get-involved. Join me and others at the virtual event that Corazon de Vida is throwing on 10/29/20 at 7 PM PST by clicking on the picture below or here.-Speaking of guests, next week's we'll be hearing from author and illustrator Brian Fies, of works such as What Ever Happened to the World of Tomorrow? for another installment of the Like a Hood Ornament Rocketeer segment. I hope also to have finished the short story, "The Last Rocketeer" in time for that episode, since they are tied together serendipitously, as we'll discuss in the episode.-Speaking of other creative folks, check out frequent podcast guest Adam of ACToyDesign on Patreon for an exclusive podcast all about toys, including a lot of retro 80s content.-This year, Halloween falls on a Saturday, always a treat when you're a kid (at least it was that way when I was a kid and you could spend all day out collecting bags a bags of candy - one year, I collected two whole pillowcases). Stay tuned! I'll try to come up with something special for the end of the month!∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞ Signup for the mailing list for a free special edition podcast, a demo copy of The Thirteenth Hour, and access to retro 80s soundtrack!Like what you see or hear? Consider supporting the show over at Thirteenth Hour Arts on Patreon or adding to my virtual tip jar over at Ko-fi. Join the Thirteenth Hour Arts Group over on Facebook, a growing community of creative people.Have this podcast conveniently delivered to you each week on Spotify, iTunes, Stitcher, Player FM, Tunein, and Googleplay Music.Follow The Thirteenth Hour’s Instagram pages: @the13thhr for your random postings on ninjas, martial arts, archery, flips, breakdancing, fantasy art and and @the13thhr.ost for more 80s music, movies, and songs from The Thirteenth Hour books and soundtrack.Listen to Long Ago Not So Far Away, the Thirteenth Hour soundtrack online at: https://joshuablum.bandcamp.com/ or Spotify. Join the mailing list for a digital free copy. You can also get it on CD or tape.Website: https://13thhr.wordpress.comBook trailer: http://bit.ly/1VhJhXYInterested in reading and reviewing The Thirteenth Hour for a free book? Just email me at [email protected] for more details!https://13thhr.wordpress.com/2020/10/05/the-thirteenth-hour-podcast-269-october-updates-and-most-recent-draft-of-once-upon-a-dream/

Originally aired on September 21, 2020.This week, I'm wrapping up "Once Upon a Dream" and discussing more on the idea of creating a creative arts collective. Last week, I created a private Facebook group called Thirteenth Hour Arts - For Creators, Not Haters. Many thanks to all who joined!This week, I'm launching a Patreon of the same name and idea - a place to share in the creative process, though more specific to things related to the creation of The Thirteenth Hour books, music, podcast, pictures, figures, and the like, as well all the other things that have influenced those properties. Hopefully, people will be able to share what they do as well so we can all build off each others' creative energy.You can go to the Pateron by clicking the picture below or going here:∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞ Signup for the mailing list for a free special edition podcast, a demo copy of The Thirteenth Hour, and access to retro 80s soundtrack!Like what you see or hear? Consider supporting the show over at my virtual tip jar over at Ko-fi. Have this podcast conveniently delivered to you each week on Spotify, iTunes, Stitcher, Player FM, Tunein, and Googleplay Music.Follow The Thirteenth Hour’s Instagram pages: @the13thhr for your random postings on ninjas, martial arts, archery, flips, breakdancing, fantasy art and and @the13thhr.ost for more 80s music, movies, and songs from The Thirteenth Hour books and soundtrack.Listen to Long Ago Not So Far Away, the Thirteenth Hour soundtrack online at: https://joshuablum.bandcamp.com/ or Spotify. Join the mailing list for a digital free copy. You can also get it on CD or tape.Website: https://13thhr.wordpress.comBook trailer: http://bit.ly/1VhJhXYInterested in reading and reviewing The Thirteenth Hour for a free book? Just email me at [email protected] for more details!https://13thhr.wordpress.com/2020/09/21/the-thirteenth-hour-podcast-267-wrapping-up-once-upon-a-dream-and-creative-community-3-start-of-thirteenth-hour-arts-patreon/

Originally aired on September 20, 2014.This week, I'm adding vocals to "Once Upon a Dream" and discussing more on the idea of creating a creative arts collective. To start, I ended up creating a private Facebook group called Thirteenth Hour Arts - For Creators, Not Haters.Here's the premise I've copied from my inaugural post there:Welcome to The Thirteenth Hour Arts Collective - a place to create, not hate!There are so many ways to be creative in the world. Although I publicly create books, music, and toys for The Thirteenth Hour stories, those are informed by a number of other things, like 80s films, new wave music, martial arts, dance, and so forth.I'm sure you have or had many things in your own life that are kind of the same. Please share them here - you may inspire someone else (or yourself) to make time and space for creative pursuits!When Logan's hoverboard flies in The Thirteenth Hour, it emits a cloud of rainbow colored smoke. There were rainbows all over the place in the 80s (Rainbow Brite, Skittles, Reading Rainbow, etc), and if not exactly rainbows, plenty of kids' shows used the idea of different colors coming together to represent strength or unity through diversity and/or teamwork (Voltron, Captain Planet, etc). Rainbows encourage us to look off into the distance, towards that ephemeral spot where the rainbow ends. To me, they have always represented hope and possibility for the future, so I'm using them as a symbol for this group to represent creativity, especially the diversity of creative pursuits and people that practice them in hopes that it can be something we all share in and benefit from. ∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞ Signup for the mailing list for a free special edition podcast, a demo copy of The Thirteenth Hour, and access to retro 80s soundtrack!Like what you see or hear? Consider supporting the show over at my virtual tip jar over at Ko-fi. Have this podcast conveniently delivered to you each week on Spotify, iTunes, Stitcher, Player FM, Tunein, and Googleplay Music.Follow The Thirteenth Hour’s Instagram pages: @the13thhr for your random postings on ninjas, martial arts, archery, flips, breakdancing, fantasy art and and @the13thhr.ost for more 80s music, movies, and songs from The Thirteenth Hour books and soundtrack.Listen to Long Ago Not So Far Away, the Thirteenth Hour soundtrack online at: https://joshuablum.bandcamp.com/ or Spotify. Join the mailing list for a digital free copy. You can also get it on CD or tape.Website: https://13thhr.wordpress.comBook trailer: http://bit.ly/1VhJhXYInterested in reading and reviewing The Thirteenth Hour for a free book? Just email me at [email protected] for more details!

Originally aired on September 7, 2020.This week, I'm continuing to record the backing tracks for "Once Upon a Dream" - the solo, the chorus, and so forth. Next will be the vocals, the outro riffs, and maybe a few electric guitar accents here and there.Speaking of which, I thought it might be a nice thing to add some of the magnet dolls I talked about recently as part of the special edition of the Once Upon a Dream LP. Here are the magnet dolls, by the way, of Logan and Aurora plus all their stuff:In the latter part of the podcast, I talk about the idea of trying to create some kind of online community to showcase the creative process. I touch on that in many of these podcasts, and I've been thinking about trying to help people showcase the creative things they do in their own lives. In may ways, that's one of the messages of The Thirteenth Hour - creating the world you want to inhabit. You may have noticed that on my Instagram posts, I have little emoticons before the post, kind of like these: 👾🎤📖🎸🍓🎨🕹🏹🙋🏽‍♀️🤸🏼‍♂️🌈🎭🎬I've organized the different kinds of art types by sense, more or less, to showcase themSight🎨 - visual art (e.g. paintings, illustrations, sketches, sculptures ...)🕹- digital worlds🎬 - films📖 - stories Sound🎤 - audio entertainment (e.g. podcasts, audiobooks ...)🎸 - music Taste / Smell🍓- food, gardens Touch⚒- tools made of metal, wood, plastic, ceramic ...🪑- furniture🏕- places to live📟 - electronics💍 - jewelry🧣- clothing🧸- toys Movement🏹 - safety, confidence, inner peace (e.g. through martial arts disciplines)🤸🏼‍♂️- movement, health (e.g. dance, gymnastics ...) Mind🙋🏽‍♀️- knowledge (e.g. through teaching)🎭 - characters (e.g. acting)👾 - memory👨‍👩‍👦‍👦 - community🌈 - hope and possibility, freedom of expressionEspecially in 2020, when there is so much turmoil in the world, we could all use a little positivity to bring out the better parts of humanity - our desire to explore and create - rather than human drama and politics.I've been thinking about creating a Facebook group for this for awhile or perhaps a Patreon community to do this. What do you think?∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞ Signup for the mailing list for a free special edition podcast, a demo copy of The Thirteenth Hour, and access to retro 80s soundtrack!Like what you see or hear? Consider supporting the show over at my virtual tip jar over at Ko-fi. Have this podcast conveniently delivered to you each week on Spotify, iTunes, Stitcher, Player FM, Tunein, and Googleplay Music.Follow The Thirteenth Hour’s Instagram pages: @the13thhr for your random postings on ninjas, martial arts, archery, flips, breakdancing, fantasy art and and @the13thhr.ost for more 80s music, movies, and songs from The Thirteenth Hour books and soundtrack.Listen to Long Ago Not So Far Away, the Thirteenth Hour soundtrack online at: https://joshuablum.bandcamp.com/ or Spotify. Join the mailing list for a digital free copy. You can also get it on CD or tape.Website: https://13thhr.wordpress.comBook trailer: http://bit.ly/1VhJhXYInterested in reading and reviewing The Thirteenth Hour for a free book? Just email me at [email protected] for more details!

Originally aired on August 31, 2020.This week, I'm working up and wrapping up few concurrent projects - starting the recording of the backing track for "Once Upon a Dream" discussed last on episode 261 and finishing up a little "kitbashed" minifigure of Aurora from The Thirteenth Hour discussed a bit last episode. The magnet dolls discussed last episode are in the editing process, so I'll be printing those out soon!One of Aurora's costumes is this one from a picture in the book:I've been working on a custom miniature of Aurora in this outfit made from a few different Wonder Woman mini figures.I ended up using parts from all three different verions of these little Wonder Women to make the figure, plus some Apoxie Sculpt clay and paint. These are the pics from last week. Here's what the finished figure looks like:These pictures are viewable at: https://13thhr.wordpress.com/2020/08/31/the-thirteenth-hour-podcast-264-starting-the-recording-process-for-once-upon-a-dream-and-custom-minifigure-making/∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞ Signup for the mailing list for a free special edition podcast, a demo copy of The Thirteenth Hour, and access to retro 80s soundtrack!Like what you see or hear? Consider supporting the show over at my virtual tip jar over at Ko-fi. Have this podcast conveniently delivered to you each week on Spotify, iTunes, Stitcher, Player FM, Tunein, and Googleplay Music.Follow The Thirteenth Hour’s Instagram pages: @the13thhr for your random postings on ninjas, martial arts, archery, flips, breakdancing, fantasy art and and @the13thhr.ost for more 80s music, movies, and songs from The Thirteenth Hour books and soundtrack.Listen to Long Ago Not So Far Away, the Thirteenth Hour soundtrack online at: https://joshuablum.bandcamp.com/ or Spotify. Join the mailing list for a digital free copy. You can also get it on CD or tape.Website: https://13thhr.wordpress.comBook trailer: http://bit.ly/1VhJhXYInterested in reading and reviewing The Thirteenth Hour for a free book? Just email me at [email protected] for more details!

Originally aired on August 10, 2020.This week, I'm working on the title track from the next Thirteenth Hour soundtrack LP, Once Upon a Dream. I have the keyboard riffs and the lyrics mostly done and am now trying to figure out how they go together. I've recorded a bare bones version here with just the vocals and the piano chords, which is how many of these songs start. In the coming week's, I'll be refining the skeleton of the song as I figure out how the different riffs work into the song, where the backing beat will come in, how the solo will sound, etc.In the Like a Hood Ornament segment, I'm talking a bit about how my kids and I have been working on a costume paper mache rocketpack for my daughter for Halloween (she'd like to be Kit Secord from the cartoon, who you can see at the bottom of these images below).Viewable at: https://13thhr.wordpress.com/2020/08/10/the-thirteenth-hour-podcast-261-musical-interlude-the-making-of-once-upon-a-dream-and-like-a-hood-ornament-16-the-last-rocketeer-and-kit-secord-rocketpack-updates/We still have to figure out how to attach straps, and I'm wondering if it might be fun to figure out how to light up the engines and/or attach the little banks of purple LEDs on the bottom that this version of the pack has. Maybe we'll make an electrical switch wired to the gloves, like in the movie.Also, the next segment of the fanfic short story, "The Last Rocketeer," describing a team-up between Centauri from The Last Starfighter and a 71 year-old Cliff Secord who has long since given up being the Rocketeer (but secretly wants one last flight) is up.You can read the first chapter on Wattpad here: https://www.wattpad.com/919346978-the-last-rocketeer-1-in-which-cliff-finds-aHere's part 2: https://www.wattpad.com/926948946-the-last-rocketeer-2-nighttime-visitorsAnd here's the section I was reading from in episode 260: https://www.wattpad.com/930869004-the-last-rocketeer-3-into-the-depths-of-hellThe first part of Chapter 4 is here: https://www.wattpad.com/934519790-the-last-rocketeer-4-in-which-the-proverbialMore coming next week!∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞ Signup for the mailing list for a free special edition podcast, a demo copy of The Thirteenth Hour, and access to retro 80s soundtrack!Like what you see or hear? Consider supporting the show over at my virtual tip jar over at Ko-fi. Have this podcast conveniently delivered to you each week on Spotify, iTunes, Stitcher, Player FM, Tunein, and Googleplay Music.Follow The Thirteenth Hour’s Instagram pages: @the13thhr for your random postings on ninjas, martial arts, archery, flips, breakdancing, fantasy art and and @the13thhr.ost for more 80s music, movies, and songs from The Thirteenth Hour books and soundtrack.Listen to Long Ago Not So Far Away, the Thirteenth Hour soundtrack online at: https://joshuablum.bandcamp.com/ or Spotify. Join the mailing list for a digital free copy. You can also get it on CD or tape.Website: https://13thhr.wordpress.comBook trailer: http://bit.ly/1VhJhXYInterested in reading and reviewing The Thirteenth Hour for a free book? Just email me at [email protected] for more details!

Originally aired on July 13, 2020.On this week's show, I'm continuing the recording process to a song I started a number of months ago, "The Last Dance," last discussed on episodes 223, 224, 225, and 256. We're discussing the recording of the vocals as well as additional synth tracks, like a simple instrumental solo. Speaking of which, I added a voiceover to a track that I recently finished, "The Land of Dreams" (see below for the video or here for the audio track) to make the animations match up with the part of the The Thirteenth Hour the track accompanies. ∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞ There are now Thirteenth Hour toys! If you'd like to pick up one of these glow in the dark figures for yourself, feel free to email me or go to the Etsy store I set up (https://www.etsy.com/shop/ThirteenthHourStudio) and get them there. If the past few months have got you needing a break, you may want to chill out to this 80s synth throwback track for a upcoming LP with the accompanying music video:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vQTPuv-cJQg&t=22sEmpty Hands, the synth EP soundtrack to the novella, Empty Hands, is now out for streaming on Bandcamp. Stay tuned. Follow along on Spotify! There is also a growing extended Thirteenth Hour playlist on Spotify with a growing number of retro 80s songs.Check it out![spotify id="spotify:user:jsblum:playlist:0UEHg7euO45dtmZTbH1akD" width="300" height="380" /]As always, thanks for listening!∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞ Signup for the mailing list for a free special edition podcast, a demo copy of The Thirteenth Hour, and access to retro 80s soundtrack!Like what you see or hear? Consider supporting the show over at my virtual tip jar over at Ko-fi. Have this podcast conveniently delivered to you each week on Spotify, iTunes, Stitcher, Player FM, Tunein, and Googleplay Music.Follow The Thirteenth Hour’s Instagram pages: @the13thhr for your random postings on ninjas, martial arts, archery, flips, breakdancing, fantasy art and and @the13thhr.ost for more 80s music, movies, and songs from The Thirteenth Hour books and soundtrack.Listen to Long Ago Not So Far Away, the Thirteenth Hour soundtrack online at: https://joshuablum.bandcamp.com/ or Spotify. Join the mailing list for a digital free copy. You can also get it on CD or tape.Website: https://13thhr.wordpress.comBook trailer: http://bit.ly/1VhJhXYInterested in reading and reviewing The Thirteenth Hour for a free book? Just email me at [email protected] for more details!https://www.instagram.com/tv/CCh6wtpFHFG/?utm_source=ig_web_button_share_sheet https://13thhr.wordpress.com/2020/07/13/the-thirteenth-hour-podcast-257-musical-interlude-recording-vocals-and-layered-synths-for-the-last-dance/

Originally aired on July 6, 2020.On this week's show, I'm starting the formal recording process to a song I started a number of months ago, "The Last Dance," last discussed on episodes 223, 224, and 225. I got stuck for awhile since the original way I'd conceptualized the song was much slower. It took awhile for it to evolve in my mind and to work out how to play certain parts and sing some sections within my vocal range more comfortably. The song starts out without no accompanying beat, and although I knew I wanted to fold one in later in the song, the original tempo felt too slow, and I wasn't sure how to make it work. I eventually stumbled on the right speed (120 beats/min), which in may ways felt right, as it fit the 80s new wave songs that I've always liked. (E.g. "If You Leave" by OMD from the Pretty in Pink soundtrack is also 120 bpm.) The original, stripped down, slower version I had originally envisioned may still work but probably not with my vocals or this arrangement. This speed probably also fits better with the other songs on the upcoming album this one will be on. In the next few weeks, watch for the final iteration of this song once I record the vocals and a few other layers for the chorus and outro. Once that's done, I think it'd be fun to add a pixelart visual for it since there are no pictures of this part of The Thirteenth Hour, and it'd be a fun illustration, with lots of fantastical creatures (faeries, elves, griffins, unicorns, a backflipping chimp, and many other dancing animals) besides our protagonists, Logan and Aurora, awkwardly trying to navigate the beginnings of young love, with all its stops and starts, trials and tribulations, and bittersweet awkward moments familiar to anyone who's been there and/or watched a teen movie. ∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞ There are now Thirteenth Hour toys! If you'd like to pick up one of these glow in the dark figures for yourself, feel free to email me or go to the Etsy store I set up (https://www.etsy.com/shop/ThirteenthHourStudio) and get them there. If the past few months have got you needing a break, you may want to chill out to this 80s synth throwback track for a upcoming LP with the accompanying music video:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vQTPuv-cJQg&t=22sEmpty Hands, the synth EP soundtrack to the novella, Empty Hands, is now out for streaming on Bandcamp. Stay tuned. Follow along on Spotify! There is also a growing extended Thirteenth Hour playlist on Spotify with a growing number of retro 80s songs.Check it out![spotify id="spotify:user:jsblum:playlist:0UEHg7euO45dtmZTbH1akD" width="300" height="380" /]As always, thanks for listening!∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞ Signup for the mailing list for a free special edition podcast, a demo copy of The Thirteenth Hour, and access to retro 80s soundtrack!Like what you see or hear? Consider supporting the show over at my virtual tip jar over at Ko-fi. Have this podcast conveniently delivered to you each week on Spotify, iTunes, Stitcher, Player FM, Tunein, and Googleplay Music.Follow The Thirteenth Hour’s Instagram pages: @the13thhr for your random postings on ninjas, martial arts, archery, flips, breakdancing, fantasy art and and @the13thhr.ost for more 80s music, movies, and songs from The Thirteenth Hour books and soundtrack.Listen to Long Ago Not So Far Away, the Thirteenth Hour soundtrack online at: https://joshuablum.bandcamp.com/ or Spotify. Join the mailing list for a digital free copy. You can also get it on CD or tape.Website: https://13thhr.wordpress.comBook trailer: http://bit.ly/1VhJhXYInterested in reading and reviewing The Thirteenth Hour for a free book? Just email me at [email protected] for more details!https://13thhr.wordpress.com/2020/07/06/the-thirteenth-hour-podcast-256/

Originally aired on December 2, 2019.This week, I continue work on a ballad written from the perspective of Aurora from The Thirteenth Hour from a passage in the book where our young protagonists are starting to realize that there might be more to their relationship than just friendship. I've been fiddling with adding a beat to the song and was listening to two examples - one by Debbie Gibson ("Lost in Your Eyes") which adds a beat after a piano intro riff and another by Alphaville ("Forever Young") which actually has no backing beat at all in the original version until about 1 and a quarter minutes into the song.https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8Ms3mJFkSeg https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t1TcDHrkQYgOriginal show notes: https://13thhr.wordpress.com/2019/12/02/the-thirteenth-hour-podcast-225-musical-interlude-the-making-of-the-last-dance-part-3/∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞ There are now Thirteenth Hour toys! If you'd like to pick up one of these glow in the dark figures for yourself, feel free to email me or go to the Etsy store I set up (https://www.etsy.com/shop/ThirteenthHourStudio) and get them there. If you haven't checked out "Arcade Days," the song and video Jeff Finley, Brent Simon, and I finished last winter, click on the link below to do so!https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w6MD6UCYeQ4You can find more pictures and preview clips of "Arcade Days" on IG as well as this podcast's FB page.Empty Hands, the synth EP soundtrack to the novella, Empty Hands, is now out for streaming on Bandcamp. Stay tuned. Follow along on Spotify! There is also a growing extended Thirteenth Hour playlist on Spotify with a growing number of retro 80s songs.Check it out![spotify id="spotify:user:jsblum:playlist:0UEHg7euO45dtmZTbH1akD" width="300" height="380" /]As always, thanks for listening!∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞ Signup for the mailing list for a free special edition podcast, a demo copy of The Thirteenth Hour, and access to retro 80s soundtrack!Like what you see or hear? Consider supporting the show over at my virtual tip jar over at Ko-fi. Have this podcast conveniently delivered to you each week on Spotify, iTunes, Stitcher, Player FM, Tunein, and Googleplay Music.Follow The Thirteenth Hour’s Instagram pages: @the13thhr for your random postings on ninjas, martial arts, archery, flips, breakdancing, fantasy art and and @the13thhr.ost for more 80s music, movies, and songs from The Thirteenth Hour books and soundtrack.Listen to Long Ago Not So Far Away, the Thirteenth Hour soundtrack online at: https://joshuablum.bandcamp.com/ or Spotify. Join the mailing list for a digital free copy. You can also get it on CD or tape.Website: https://13thhr.wordpress.comBook trailer: http://bit.ly/1VhJhXYInterested in reading and reviewing The Thirteenth Hour for a free book? Just email me at [email protected] for more details!

Originally aired on November 25, 2019.This week, I continue work on a ballad written from the perspective of Aurora from The Thirteenth Hour from a passage in the book where our young protagonists are starting to realize that there might be more to their relationship than just friendship. Last week I had a rough draft of the lyrics. This week, I'm singing the second draft and playing the chords on the keyboard.While I was practicing the intro riff, I kept wanting to play the theme from the 1991 movie, The Rocketeer, scored by James Horner. It's not surprising since it's one of my favorite soundtracks and one of my most favorite movies of all time, though I've never tried figuring out the intro theme, which is played partly on the piano if I'm not mistaken.I'm playing it in the key of C, just like "The Last Dance," which is probably why the two kept getting mixed up in my head, even though they don't sound much alike.https://www.instagram.com/p/B5PBnTMlstV/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_linkSpeaking of the Rocketeer, if you can find a copy of the Nov 2019 magazine, Fine Scale Modeler, you can find a picture of this most excellent painted Rocketeer figurine!See pictures for this episode at: https://13thhr.wordpress.com/2019/11/25/the-thirteenth-hour-podcast-224-musical-interlude-the-making-of-the-last-dance-part-2-rocketeer-theme/∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞ There are now Thirteenth Hour toys! If you'd like to pick up one of these glow in the dark figures for yourself, feel free to email me or go to the Etsy store I set up (https://www.etsy.com/shop/ThirteenthHourStudio) and get them there. If you haven't checked out "Arcade Days," the song and video Jeff Finley, Brent Simon, and I finished last winter, click on the link below to do so!https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w6MD6UCYeQ4You can find more pictures and preview clips of "Arcade Days" on IG as well as this podcast's FB page.Empty Hands, the synth EP soundtrack to the novella, Empty Hands, is now out for streaming on Bandcamp. Stay tuned. Follow along on Spotify! There is also a growing extended Thirteenth Hour playlist on Spotify with a growing number of retro 80s songs.Check it out![spotify id="spotify:user:jsblum:playlist:0UEHg7euO45dtmZTbH1akD" width="300" height="380" /]As always, thanks for listening!∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞ Signup for the mailing list for a free special edition podcast, a demo copy of The Thirteenth Hour, and access to retro 80s soundtrack!Like what you see or hear? Consider supporting the show over at my virtual tip jar over at Ko-fi. Have this podcast conveniently delivered to you each week on Spotify, iTunes, Stitcher, Player FM, Tunein, and Googleplay Music.Follow The Thirteenth Hour’s Instagram pages: @the13thhr for your random postings on ninjas, martial arts, archery, flips, breakdancing, fantasy art and and @the13thhr.ost for more 80s music, movies, and songs from The Thirteenth Hour books and soundtrack.Listen to Long Ago Not So Far Away, the Thirteenth Hour soundtrack online at: https://joshuablum.bandcamp.com/ or Spotify. Join the mailing list for a digital free copy. You can also get it on CD or tape.Website: https://13thhr.wordpress.comBook trailer: http://bit.ly/1VhJhXYInterested in reading and reviewing The Thirteenth Hour for a free book? Just email me at [email protected] for more details!

Originally aired on November 18, 2019.This week, I start work on a new ballad written from the perspective of Aurora from The Thirteenth Hour from this passage in the book where our young protagonists are starting to realize that there might be more to their relationship than just friendship. You can see the passage referred to on the original page of show notes here: https://13thhr.wordpress.com/2019/11/18/the-thirteenth-hour-podcast-223-musical-interlude-the-making-of-the-last-dance-part-1/∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞ Signup for the mailing list for a free special edition podcast, a demo copy of The Thirteenth Hour, and access to retro 80s soundtrack!Like what you see or hear? Consider supporting the show over at my virtual tip jar over at Ko-fi. Have this podcast conveniently delivered to you each week on Spotify, iTunes, Stitcher, Player FM, Tunein, and Googleplay Music.Follow The Thirteenth Hour’s Instagram pages: @the13thhr for your random postings on ninjas, martial arts, archery, flips, breakdancing, fantasy art and and @the13thhr.ost for more 80s music, movies, and songs from The Thirteenth Hour books and soundtrack.Listen to Long Ago Not So Far Away, the Thirteenth Hour soundtrack online at: https://joshuablum.bandcamp.com/ or Spotify. Join the mailing list for a digital free copy. You can also get it on CD or tape.Website: https://13thhr.wordpress.comBook trailer: http://bit.ly/1VhJhXYInterested in reading and reviewing The Thirteenth Hour for a free book? Just email me at [email protected] for more details!

Originally aired on October 7, 2019.This week, I'm reading from a short excerpt from The Thirteenth Hour sent to a draft of a music track I just wrote to score this particular passage. It was done on the iOS app, Auxy, and was meant to be an ambient, introspective instrumental piece. Because skipping stones feature in the excerpt a few times, I tried to find synthesizer effects that sounded like splashes of water.For the text, please see the original post at https://13thhr.wordpress.com/2019/10/07/the-thirteenth-hour-podcast-217-musical-interlude/∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞ Signup for the mailing list for a free special edition podcast, a demo copy of The Thirteenth Hour, and access to retro 80s soundtrack!Have this podcast conveniently delivered to you each week on Spotify, iTunes, Stitcher, Player FM, Tunein, and Googleplay Music.Follow The Thirteenth Hour’s Instagram pages: @the13thhr for your random postings on ninjas, martial arts, archery, flips, breakdancing, fantasy art and and @the13thhr.ost for more 80s music, movies, and songs from The Thirteenth Hour books and soundtrack.Listen to Long Ago Not So Far Away, the Thirteenth Hour soundtrack online at: https://joshuablum.bandcamp.com/ or Spotify. Join the mailing list for a digital free copy. You can also get it on CD or tape.Website: https://13thhr.wordpress.comBook trailer: http://bit.ly/1VhJhXYInterested in reading and reviewing The Thirteenth Hour for a free book? Just email me at [email protected] for more details!

Originally aired on September 9, 2019.This week, I'm finishing a track I started several years ago. When a sibling of one of my friends got engaged, I said I'd make a music track for them to commemorate the occasion. And then ... well, fast forward a few years. Still not done! All excuses aside, today is the day. I'm keeping my promise and finishing it. It's made with Auxy, like the track I finished last week. The draft (90-95% done) plays at the end of the episode. More at https://13thhr.wordpress.com/2019/09/09/the-thirteenth-hour-podcast-213-musical-interlude-i-try-to-finish-a-chiptune-track-i-started-years-ago/Edit: the final version is here: https://joshuablum.bandcamp.com/track/our-place-in-the-worldIn the meantime, this page formerly had what I affectionately dubbed a "starving artist" section on little side hustles you could do (mostly on the internet, often with a phone) to make a few bucks here and there, often in gift cards. Well, now you can listen to this show (as well as other podcasts) and get paid to do so! Check out https://www.podcoin.com/ to listen to the show and start earning points that you can redeem for gift cards (Amazon, Target, Starbucks, etc) or donations to a number of charities. Use the code "Thirteen" when you sign up to get 300 extra points. The Thirteen Hour Podcast is now on BONUS this week, so you can earn more than normal (1.5x).Speaking of music, if you haven't checked out "Arcade Days," the song and video Jeff Finley, Brent Simon, and I have been working on the past year, click on the link below to do so!https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w6MD6UCYeQ4You can find more pictures and preview clips of "Arcade Days" on IG as well as this podcast's FB page.Between Two Worlds, the synth EP follow up to Long Ago Not So Far Away is now out for streaming on Bandcamp. The bonus track, called "Flight of the Cloudrider" has a 80s movie mashup music video (see if you can identify all the movies!) which is available on youtube. This app was largely created with the iphone app Auxy.Stay tuned. Follow along on Spotify! There is also a growing extended Thirteenth Hour playlist on Spotify with a growing number of retro 80s songs.Check it out![spotify id="spotify:user:jsblum:playlist:0UEHg7euO45dtmZTbH1akD" width="300" height="380" /]As always, thanks for listening!∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞ Signup for the mailing list for a free special edition podcast, a demo copy of The Thirteenth Hour, and access to retro 80s soundtrack!Have this podcast conveniently delivered to you each week on Spotify, iTunes, Stitcher, Player FM, Tunein, and Googleplay Music.Follow The Thirteenth Hour’s Instagram pages: @the13thhr for your random postings on ninjas, martial arts, archery, flips, breakdancing, fantasy art and and @the13thhr.ost for more 80s music, movies, and songs from The Thirteenth Hour books and soundtrack.Listen to Long Ago Not So Far Away, the Thirteenth Hour soundtrack online at: https://joshuablum.bandcamp.com/ or Spotify. Join the mailing list for a digital free copy. You can also get it on CD or tape.Website: https://13thhr.wordpress.comBook trailer: http://bit.ly/1VhJhXYInterested in reading and reviewing The Thirteenth Hour for a free book? Just email me at [email protected] for more details!

Originally aired on September 2, 2019.This week, I'm adding to the track I started back in Episode 208. I think it will eventually be used as accompaniment for flying sequence music videos or a video game with a flying pixelart Logan:https://13thhr.wordpress.com/2019/09/02/the-thirteenth-hour-podcast-212-musical-interlude-chiptune-flying-track-2/For now, though, I've made a little pixelart still that I edited in Photoshop that will be the cover art for the track:A game is a long term project. For now, I'll probably just be making the musical tracks. In the episode, I also have a few updates on two other musical pieces I've been working on.Edit: a near final copy of the track is released here: https://joshuablum.bandcamp.com/track/a-dream-and-a-wishIn the meantime, this page formerly had what I affectionately dubbed a "starving artist" section on little side hustles you could do (mostly on the internet, often with a phone) to make a few bucks here and there, often in gift cards. Well, now you can listen to this show (as well as other podcasts) and get paid to do so! Check out https://www.podcoin.com/ to listen to the show and start earning points that you can redeem for gift cards (Amazon, Target, Starbucks, etc) or donations to a number of charities. Use the code "Thirteen" when you sign up to get 300 extra points. The Thirteen Hour Podcast is now on BONUS this week, so you can earn more than normal (1.5x).Speaking of music, if you haven't checked out "Arcade Days," the song and video Jeff Finley, Brent Simon, and I have been working on the past year, click on the link below to do so!https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w6MD6UCYeQ4You can find more pictures and preview clips of "Arcade Days" on IG as well as this podcast's FB page.Between Two Worlds, the synth EP follow up to Long Ago Not So Far Away is now out for streaming on Bandcamp. The bonus track, called "Flight of the Cloudrider" has a 80s movie mashup music video (see if you can identify all the movies!) which is available on youtube. This app was largely created with the iphone app Auxy.Stay tuned. Follow along on Spotify! There is also a growing extended Thirteenth Hour playlist on Spotify with a growing number of retro 80s songs.Check it out!As always, thanks for listening!∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞ Signup for the mailing list for a free special edition podcast, a demo copy of The Thirteenth Hour, and access to retro 80s soundtrack!Have this podcast conveniently delivered to you each week on Spotify, iTunes, Stitcher, Player FM, Tunein, and Googleplay Music.Follow The Thirteenth Hour’s Instagram pages: @the13thhr for your random postings on ninjas, martial arts, archery, flips, breakdancing, fantasy art and and @the13thhr.ost for more 80s music, movies, and songs from The Thirteenth Hour books and soundtrack.Listen to Long Ago Not So Far Away, the Thirteenth Hour soundtrack online at: https://joshuablum.bandcamp.com/ or Spotify. Join the mailing list for a digital free copy. You can also get it on CD or tape.Website: https://13thhr.wordpress.comBook trailer: http://bit.ly/1VhJhXYInterested in reading and reviewing The Thirteenth Hour for a free book? Just email me at [email protected] for more details!

Originally aired on August 26, 2019.This week, I'm using the iOS app Auxy to work on a variation of the synth track I started back in Episode 208. I think it will eventually be used as accompaniment for flying sequence music videos or a video game with a flying pixelart Logan:More at https://13thhr.wordpress.com/2019/08/26/the-thirteenth-hour-podcast-211-musical-interlude-chiptune-flying-track-1/That, however, is a long term project. For now, I'll probably just be making the musical tracks. In the meantime, this page formerly had what I affectionately dubbed a "starving artist" section on little side hustles you could do (mostly on the internet, often with a phone) to make a few bucks here and there, often in gift cards. Well, now you can listen to this show (as well as other podcasts) and get paid to do so! Check out https://www.podcoin.com/ to listen to the show and start earning points that you can redeem for gift cards (Amazon, Target, Starbucks, etc) or donations to a number of charities. Use the code "Thirteen" when you sign up to get 300 extra points. The Thirteen Hour Podcast is now on BONUS this week, so you can earn more than normal (1.5x).[gallery ids="10506,10505" type="rectangular"]Speaking of music, if you haven't checked out "Arcade Days," the song and video Jeff Finley, Brent Simon, and I have been working on the past year, click on the link below to do so!https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w6MD6UCYeQ4You can find more pictures and preview clips of "Arcade Days" on IG as well as this podcast's FB page.Between Two Worlds, the synth EP follow up to Long Ago Not So Far Away is now out for streaming on Bandcamp. The bonus track, called "Flight of the Cloudrider" has a 80s movie mashup music video (see if you can identify all the movies!) which is available on youtube. This app was largely created with the iphone app Auxy.Stay tuned. Follow along on Spotify! There is also a growing extended Thirteenth Hour playlist on Spotify with a growing number of retro 80s songs.Check it out![spotify id="spotify:user:jsblum:playlist:0UEHg7euO45dtmZTbH1akD" width="300" height="380" /]As always, thanks for listening!∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞ Signup for the mailing list for a free special edition podcast, a demo copy of The Thirteenth Hour, and access to retro 80s soundtrack!Have this podcast conveniently delivered to you each week on Spotify, iTunes, Stitcher, Player FM, Tunein, and Googleplay Music.Follow The Thirteenth Hour’s Instagram pages: @the13thhr for your random postings on ninjas, martial arts, archery, flips, breakdancing, fantasy art and and @the13thhr.ost for more 80s music, movies, and songs from The Thirteenth Hour books and soundtrack.Listen to Long Ago Not So Far Away, the Thirteenth Hour soundtrack online at: https://joshuablum.bandcamp.com/ or Spotify. Join the mailing list for a digital free copy. You can also get it on CD or tape.Website: https://13thhr.wordpress.comBook trailer: http://bit.ly/1VhJhXYInterested in reading and reviewing The Thirteenth Hour for a free book? Just email me at [email protected] for more details!

Originally aired on August 5, 2019.This week, we’re discussing Empty Hands behind the scenes, specifically the influence of Dungeons and Dragons and the character creation process. Just like the D and D alignments, the eight Rangers in Empty Hands have their own specific alignment that informs which sidearm they are assigned. (If the idea of D and D morality alignments are as mysterious to you as they were to me before my brother explained them to me, check out the graphic I found on the internet below). The rest of the episode focuses on two new synth tracks. I add a second track to finish up "A Place of our Own" (see episodes 202 - 204 and the pixelart animation below).https://www.instagram.com/p/B0P9qs9FECp/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_linkhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wk3XSV6H6w0I also start a new track that IG musician @nikeboyocta approached me about inspired by Van Halen's "Dreams" (video above). Look for more on IG and in coming weeks!-----------------In the meantime, this page formerly had what I affectionately dubbed a "starving artist" section on little side hustles you could do (mostly on the internet, often with a phone) to make a few bucks here and there, often in gift cards. Well, now you can listen to this show (as well as other podcasts) and get paid to do so! Check out https://www.podcoin.com/ to listen to the show and start earning points that you can redeem for gift cards (Amazon, Target, Starbucks, etc) or donations to a number of charities. Use the code "Thirteen" when you sign up to get 300 extra points. The Thirteen Hour Podcast is now on BONUS this week, so you can earn more than normal (1.5x). [gallery ids="10506,10505" type="rectangular"]Empty Hands, the synth EP soundtrack to the novella, Empty Hands, is now out for streaming on Bandcamp. Follow along on Spotify! There is also a growing extended Thirteenth Hour playlist on Spotify with a growing number of retro 80s songs.Check it out![spotify id="spotify:user:jsblum:playlist:0UEHg7euO45dtmZTbH1akD" width="300" height="380" /]As always, thanks for listening!∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞ Signup for the mailing list for a free special edition podcast, a demo copy of The Thirteenth Hour, and access to retro 80s soundtrack!Have this podcast conveniently delivered to you each week on Spotify, iTunes, Stitcher, Player FM, Tunein, and Googleplay Music.Follow The Thirteenth Hour’s Instagram pages: @the13thhr for your random postings on ninjas, martial arts, archery, flips, breakdancing, fantasy art and and @the13thhr.ost for more 80s music, movies, and songs from The Thirteenth Hour books and soundtrack.Listen to Long Ago Not So Far Away, the Thirteenth Hour soundtrack online at: https://joshuablum.bandcamp.com/ or Spotify. Join the mailing list for a digital free copy. You can also get it on CD or tape.Website: https://13thhr.wordpress.comBook trailer: http://bit.ly/1VhJhXYInterested in reading and reviewing The Thirteenth Hour for a free book? Just email me at [email protected] for more details!

Originally aired on July 8, 2019.This week, I finished "A Place of Our Own" and experiment with distilling it down to a few key notes to make a theme for Aurora, one of the main protagonists for The Thirteenth Hour books.Edit: "A Place of Our Own" is here https://joshuablum.bandcamp.com/track/a-place-of-our-ownIn other news, Empty Hands has an official launch date - 7/13/19! I'll probably be doing a little pixel art music video to go along with the launch of the album as well.In the meantime, this page formerly had what I affectionately dubbed a "starving artist" section on little side hustles you could do (mostly on the internet, often with a phone) to make a few bucks here and there, often in gift cards. Well, now you can listen to this show (as well as other podcasts) and get paid to do so! Check out https://www.podcoin.com/ to listen to the show and start earning points that you can redeem for gift cards (Amazon, Target, Starbucks, etc) or donations to a number of charities. Use the code "Thirteen" when you sign up to get 300 extra points. The Thirteen Hour Podcast is now on BONUS this week, so you can earn more than normal (1.5x).Speaking of music, if you haven't checked out "Arcade Days," the song and video Jeff Finley, Brent Simon, and I have been working on the past year, click on the link below to do so!https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w6MD6UCYeQ4You can find more pictures and preview clips of "Arcade Days" on IG as well as this podcast's FB page.Between Two Worlds, the synth EP follow up to Long Ago Not So Far Away is now out for streaming on Bandcamp. The bonus track, called "Flight of the Cloudrider" has a 80s movie mashup music video (see if you can identify all the movies!) which is available on youtube. This app was largely created with the iphone app Auxy.Stay tuned. Follow along on Spotify! There is also a growing extended Thirteenth Hour playlist on Spotify with a growing number of retro 80s songs.Check it out!As always, thanks for listening!∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞ Signup for the mailing list for a free special edition podcast, a demo copy of The Thirteenth Hour, and access to retro 80s soundtrack!Have this podcast conveniently delivered to you each week on Spotify, iTunes, Stitcher, Player FM, Tunein, and Googleplay Music.Follow The Thirteenth Hour’s Instagram pages: @the13thhr for your random postings on ninjas, martial arts, archery, flips, breakdancing, fantasy art and and @the13thhr.ost for more 80s music, movies, and songs from The Thirteenth Hour books and soundtrack.Listen to Long Ago Not So Far Away, the Thirteenth Hour soundtrack online at: https://joshuablum.bandcamp.com/ or Spotify. Join the mailing list for a digital free copy. You can also get it on CD or tape.Website: https://13thhr.wordpress.comBook trailer: http://bit.ly/1VhJhXYInterested in reading and reviewing The Thirteenth Hour for a free book? Just email me at [email protected] for more details!https://13thhr.wordpress.com/2019/07/08/the-thirteenth-hour-podcast-204-musical-interlude-a-place-of-our-own-part-3/

Originally aired July 1, 2019.This week, I'm working on the musical piece I started last week, "A Place of Our Own." I'm just playing through it, working out the kinks, mistakes and all. Typically, it takes many, many takes and a fair amount of practice to get a piece to a point where I can record it without mistakes (or, at least, minimal ones that I can adjust to or work around). So this week's episode is a mostly unedited window into a little of that process. Stay tuned over the next few weeks for additional progress.In other news, Empty Hands has an official launch date - 7/13/19! I'll probably be doing a little pixel art music video to go along with the launch of the album as well.In the meantime, this page formerly had what I affectionately dubbed a "starving artist" section on little side hustles you could do (mostly on the internet, often with a phone) to make a few bucks here and there, often in gift cards. Well, now you can listen to this show (as well as other podcasts) and get paid to do so! Check out https://www.podcoin.com/ to listen to the show and start earning points that you can redeem for gift cards (Amazon, Target, Starbucks, etc) or donations to a number of charities. Use the code "Thirteen" when you sign up to get 300 extra points. The Thirteen Hour Podcast is now on BONUS this week, so you can earn more than normal (1.5x).Speaking of music, if you haven't checked out "Arcade Days," the song and video Jeff Finley, Brent Simon, and I have been working on the past year, click on the link below to do so!https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w6MD6UCYeQ4You can find more pictures and preview clips of "Arcade Days" on IG as well as this podcast's FB page.Between Two Worlds, the synth EP follow up to Long Ago Not So Far Away is now out for streaming on Bandcamp. The bonus track, called "Flight of the Cloudrider" has a 80s movie mashup music video (see if you can identify all the movies!) which is available on youtube. This app was largely created with the iphone app Auxy.Stay tuned. Follow along on Spotify! There is also a growing extended Thirteenth Hour playlist on Spotify with a growing number of retro 80s songs.Check it out!As always, thanks for listening!∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞ Signup for the mailing list for a free special edition podcast, a demo copy of The Thirteenth Hour, and access to retro 80s soundtrack!Have this podcast conveniently delivered to you each week on Spotify, iTunes, Stitcher, Player FM, Tunein, and Googleplay Music.Follow The Thirteenth Hour’s Instagram pages: @the13thhr for your random postings on ninjas, martial arts, archery, flips, breakdancing, fantasy art and and @the13thhr.ost for more 80s music, movies, and songs from The Thirteenth Hour books and soundtrack.Listen to Long Ago Not So Far Away, the Thirteenth Hour soundtrack online at: https://joshuablum.bandcamp.com/ or Spotify. Join the mailing list for a digital free copy. You can also get it on CD or tape.Website: https://13thhr.wordpress.comBook trailer: http://bit.ly/1VhJhXYInterested in reading and reviewing The Thirteenth Hour for a free book? Just email me at [email protected] for more details!https://13thhr.wordpress.com/2019/07/01/the-thirteenth-hour-podcast-203-musical-interlude-a-place-of-our-own-part-2/

Originally aired on June 24, 2019.Ideas for songs sometimes come at the most random times and places. I think the idea for this little instrumental track came when I was cooking dinner or putting my kids to bed. I remember humming a voice recording to myself since I didn't have time to work on it at the time and didn't want to forget it (my phone is full of similar such recordings; I used to use a tape recorder but this is one area where modern tech has made life a lot easier). I'm tentatively calling it "A Place of Our Own." It will go to the next Thirteenth Hour book where the main protagonists, Logan and Aurora, will be building a house for themselves on an island - a kind of sanctuary for themselves away from the turmoil of the world (at least temporarily). The essence of it will probably also form a theme for Aurora (like in Peter and the Wolf, how each character has a musical theme). Stay tuned over the next few weeks for additional progress.In the meantime, this page formerly had what I affectionately dubbed a "starving artist" section on little side hustles you could do (mostly on the internet, often with a phone) to make a few bucks here and there, often in gift cards. Well, now you can listen to this show (as well as other podcasts) and get paid to do so! Check out https://www.podcoin.com/ to listen to the show and start earning points that you can redeem for gift cards (Amazon, Target, Starbucks, etc) or donations to a number of charities. Use the code "Thirteen" when you sign up to get 300 extra points. The Thirteen Hour Podcast is now on BONUS this week, so you can earn more than normal (1.5x).Speaking of music, if you haven't checked out "Arcade Days," the song and video Jeff Finley, Brent Simon, and I have been working on the past year, click on the link below to do so!https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w6MD6UCYeQ4You can find more pictures and preview clips of "Arcade Days" on IG as well as this podcast's FB page.Between Two Worlds, the synth EP follow up to Long Ago Not So Far Away is now out for streaming on Bandcamp. The bonus track, called "Flight of the Cloudrider" has a 80s movie mashup music video (see if you can identify all the movies!) which is available on youtube. This app was largely created with the iphone app Auxy.Stay tuned. Follow along on Spotify! There is also a growing extended Thirteenth Hour playlist on Spotify with a growing number of retro 80s songs.Check it out!As always, thanks for listening!∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞ Signup for the mailing list for a free special edition podcast, a demo copy of The Thirteenth Hour, and access to retro 80s soundtrack!Have this podcast conveniently delivered to you each week on Spotify, iTunes, Stitcher, Player FM, Tunein, and Googleplay Music.Follow The Thirteenth Hour’s Instagram pages: @the13thhr for your random postings on ninjas, martial arts, archery, flips, breakdancing, fantasy art and and @the13thhr.ost for more 80s music, movies, and songs from The Thirteenth Hour books and soundtrack.Listen to Long Ago Not So Far Away, the Thirteenth Hour soundtrack online at: https://joshuablum.bandcamp.com/ or Spotify. Join the mailing list for a digital free copy. You can also get it on CD or tape.Website: https://13thhr.wordpress.comBook trailer: http://bit.ly/1VhJhXYInterested in reading and reviewing The Thirteenth Hour for a free book? Just email me at [email protected] for more details!

Originally aired on June 17, 2019.This week, I add the guitar, synth, and vocals to "And Now, We Are One," the last track on the last Empty Hands track, which is an ode to the ending themes of 80s action movies as well as the intros (and sometimes closings) of 80s Saturday morning / after school cartoon shows. I don't really possess the Sammy Hagar / Freddy Mercury / Stan Bush type pipes to do the vocals the way I envisioned them, so I just recorded myself several times singing the same vocals so it sounds like a chorus of men singing, which a lot of old cartoons (esp 70s and 80s anime) tends to do in their intros anyway. Aside from a few electric guitar bits and the solo, the track is basically done. That plus final Empty Hands edits mean that it should be out in a few weeks (hopefully)! The pixelart coverart for the song is below - 8 bit figures (I used the guys from the NES game Kung Fu as a sort of template), Tron grid, and pastel colors in all their 80s glory:In the meantime, this page formerly had what I affectionately dubbed a "starving artist" section on little side hustles you could do (mostly on the internet, often with a phone) to make a few bucks here and there, often in gift cards. Well, now you can listen to this show (as well as other podcasts) and get paid to do so! Check out https://www.podcoin.com/ to listen to the show and start earning points that you can redeem for gift cards (Amazon, Target, Starbucks, etc) or donations to a number of charities. Use the code "Thirteen" when you sign up to get 300 extra points. The Thirteen Hour Podcast is now on BONUS this week, so you can earn more than normal (1.5x). [gallery ids="10506,10505" type="rectangular"]Speaking of music, if you haven't checked out "Arcade Days," the song and video Jeff Finley, Brent Simon, and I have been working on the past year, click on the link below to do so!https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w6MD6UCYeQ4You can find more pictures and preview clips of "Arcade Days" on IG as well as this podcast's FB page.Between Two Worlds, the synth EP follow up to Long Ago Not So Far Away is now out for streaming on Bandcamp. The bonus track, called "Flight of the Cloudrider" has a 80s movie mashup music video (see if you can identify all the movies!) which is available on youtube. This app was largely created with the iphone app Auxy.Stay tuned. Follow along on Spotify! There is also a growing extended Thirteenth Hour playlist on Spotify with a growing number of retro 80s songs.Check it out!As always, thanks for listening!∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞ Signup for the mailing list for a free special edition podcast, a demo copy of The Thirteenth Hour, and access to retro 80s soundtrack!Have this podcast conveniently delivered to you each week on Spotify, iTunes, Stitcher, Player FM, Tunein, and Googleplay Music.Follow The Thirteenth Hour’s Instagram pages: @the13thhr for your random postings on ninjas, martial arts, archery, flips, breakdancing, fantasy art and and @the13thhr.ost for more 80s music, movies, and songs from The Thirteenth Hour books and soundtrack.Listen to Long Ago Not So Far Away, the Thirteenth Hour soundtrack online at: https://joshuablum.bandcamp.com/ or Spotify. Join the mailing list for a digital free copy. You can also get it on CD or tape.Website: https://13thhr.wordpress.comBook trailer: http://bit.ly/1VhJhXYInterested in reading and reviewing The Thirteenth Hour for a free book? Just email me at [email protected] for more details!https://13thhr.wordpress.com/2019/06/17/the-thirteenth-hour-podcast-201-musical-interlude-and-now-we-are-one-part-3/

Originally aired on June 3, 2019.This week, I continue working on the last track on the last Empty Hands track, which is an ode to the ending themes of 80s action movies as well as the intros (and sometimes closings) of 80s Saturday morning / after school cartoon shows.Next week, stay tuned for episode 200!In the meantime, this page formerly had what I affectionately dubbed a "starving artist" section on little side hustles you could do (mostly on the internet, often with a phone) to make a few bucks here and there, often in gift cards. Well, now you can listen to this show (as well as other podcasts) and get paid to do so! Check out https://www.podcoin.com/ to listen to the show and start earning points that you can redeem for gift cards (Amazon, Target, Starbucks, etc) or donations to a number of charities. Use the code "Thirteen" when you sign up to get 300 extra points. The Thirteen Hour Podcast is now on BONUS this week, so you can earn more than normal (1.5x).[gallery ids="10506,10505" type="rectangular"]Speaking of music, if you haven't checked out "Arcade Days," the song and video Jeff Finley, Brent Simon, and I have been working on the past year, click on the link below to do so!https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w6MD6UCYeQ4You can find more pictures and preview clips of "Arcade Days" on IG as well as this podcast's FB page.Between Two Worlds, the synth EP follow up to Long Ago Not So Far Away is now out for streaming on Bandcamp. The bonus track, called "Flight of the Cloudrider" has a 80s movie mashup music video (see if you can identify all the movies!) which is available on youtube. This app was largely created with the iphone app Auxy.Stay tuned. Follow along on Spotify! There is also a growing extended Thirteenth Hour playlist on Spotify with a growing number of retro 80s songs.Check it out!As always, thanks for listening!∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞ Signup for the mailing list for a free special edition podcast, a demo copy of The Thirteenth Hour, and access to retro 80s soundtrack!Have this podcast conveniently delivered to you each week on Spotify, iTunes, Stitcher, Player FM, Tunein, and Googleplay Music.Follow The Thirteenth Hour’s Instagram pages: @the13thhr for your random postings on ninjas, martial arts, archery, flips, breakdancing, fantasy art and and @the13thhr.ost for more 80s music, movies, and songs from The Thirteenth Hour books and soundtrack.Listen to Long Ago Not So Far Away, the Thirteenth Hour soundtrack online at: https://joshuablum.bandcamp.com/ or Spotify. Join the mailing list for a digital free copy. You can also get it on CD or tape.Website: https://13thhr.wordpress.comBook trailer: http://bit.ly/1VhJhXYInterested in reading and reviewing The Thirteenth Hour for a free book? Just email me at [email protected] for more details!https://13thhr.wordpress.com/2019/06/03/the-thirteenth-hour-podcast-199-musical-interlude-and-now-we-are-one-part-2-and-many-miles-update/

Originally released May 27, 2019.This week, instead of focusing on "Many Miles," which I'm still working on, I thought I'd do a little intro to the last Empty Hands track, which is an ode to the ending themes of 80s action movies as well as the intros (and sometimes closings) of 80s Saturday morning / after school cartoon shows. In other words, its cheesy as hell, but in the right spirit, hopefully it will be fun. The lyrics hark back to the elemental philosophy discussed in the book (earth, wind, water, fire, and void), itself taking inspiration from Japanese esoteric Buddhism.NEW! This page formerly had what I affectionately dubbed a "starving artist" section on little side hustles you could do (mostly on the internet, often with a phone) to make a few bucks here and there, often in gift cards. Well, now you can listen to this show (as well as other podcasts) and get paid to do so! Check out https://www.podcoin.com/ to listen to the show and start earning points that you can redeem for gift cards (Amazon, Target, Starbucks, etc) or donations to a number of charities.If you haven't checked out "Arcade Days," the song and video Jeff Finley, Brent Simon, and I have been working on the past year, click on the link below to do so!https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w6MD6UCYeQ4You can find more pictures and preview clips of "Arcade Days" on IG as well as this podcast's FB page.Between Two Worlds, the synth EP follow up to Long Ago Not So Far Away is now out for streaming on Bandcamp. The bonus track, called "Flight of the Cloudrider" has a 80s movie mashup music video (see if you can identify all the movies!) which is available on youtube. This app was largely created with the iphone app Auxy.Stay tuned. Follow along on Spotify! There is also a growing extended Thirteenth Hour playlist on Spotify with a growing number of retro 80s songs.Check it out!As always, thanks for listening!∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞ Signup for the mailing list for a free special edition podcast, a demo copy of The Thirteenth Hour, and access to retro 80s soundtrack!Have this podcast conveniently delivered to you each week on Spotify, iTunes, Stitcher, Player FM, Tunein, and Googleplay Music.Follow The Thirteenth Hour’s Instagram pages: @the13thhr for your random postings on ninjas, martial arts, archery, flips, breakdancing, fantasy art and and @the13thhr.ost for more 80s music, movies, and songs from The Thirteenth Hour books and soundtrack.Listen to Long Ago Not So Far Away, the Thirteenth Hour soundtrack online at: https://joshuablum.bandcamp.com/ or Spotify. Join the mailing list for a digital free copy. You can also get it on CD or tape.Website: https://13thhr.wordpress.comBook trailer: http://bit.ly/1VhJhXYInterested in reading and reviewing The Thirteenth Hour for a free book? Just email me at [email protected] for more details!https://13thhr.wordpress.com/2019/05/27/the-thirteenth-hour-podcast-198-musical-interlude-starting-on-and-now-we-are-one/

Originally aired May 20, 2019.This week, I'm adding a synthesized accented track to the vocals and backing track of "Many Miles." Inching closer towards completion!I'm also basically done the instrumental melody of "Dragons' Eyes" as a short (~2 min) fill for Empty Hands, which has a little scene referencing the song. There's only one more track to be done for the soundtrack to be done.Speaking of which, for those of you on the mailing list, check your inboxes for a message asking for volunteers to help with the finishing touches of the upcoming martial arts fantasy novella, Empty Hands. Your suggestions and critiques are most welcome, and not only will you get a free copy of the book and soundtrack, your name will be in the acknowledgements section of the book. If you're not on the mailing list but are interested in joining and/or helping out, here's a link or just email me directly, and I'll be in touch with further instructions. Thank you!∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞Speaking of music, if you haven't checked out "Arcade Days," the song and video Jeff Finley, Brent Simon, and I have been working on the past year, click on the link below to do so!https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w6MD6UCYeQ4You can find more pictures and preview clips of "Arcade Days" on IG as well as this podcast's FB page.Between Two Worlds, the synth EP follow up to Long Ago Not So Far Away is now out for streaming on Bandcamp. The bonus track, called "Flight of the Cloudrider" has a 80s movie mashup music video (see if you can identify all the movies!) which is available on youtube. This app was largely created with the iphone app Auxy.Stay tuned. Follow along on Spotify! There is also a growing extended Thirteenth Hour playlist on Spotify with a growing number of retro 80s songs.Check it out![spotify id="spotify:user:jsblum:playlist:0UEHg7euO45dtmZTbH1akD" width="300" height="380" /]As always, thanks for listening!∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞ Signup for the mailing list for a free special edition podcast, a demo copy of The Thirteenth Hour, and access to retro 80s soundtrack!Have this podcast conveniently delivered to you each week on Spotify, iTunes, Stitcher, Player FM, Tunein, and Googleplay Music.Follow The Thirteenth Hour’s Instagram pages: @the13thhr for your random postings on ninjas, martial arts, archery, flips, breakdancing, fantasy art and and @the13thhr.ost for more 80s music, movies, and songs from The Thirteenth Hour books and soundtrack.Listen to Long Ago Not So Far Away, the Thirteenth Hour soundtrack online at: https://joshuablum.bandcamp.com/ or Spotify. Join the mailing list for a digital free copy. You can also get it on CD or tape.Website: https://13thhr.wordpress.comBook trailer: http://bit.ly/1VhJhXYInterested in reading and reviewing The Thirteenth Hour for a free book? Just email me at [email protected] for more details!https://13thhr.wordpress.com/2019/05/20/the-thirteenth-hour-podcast-197-musical-interlude-reworking-many-miles-part-8-dragons-eyes-instrumental-part-3/

Originally aired May 13, 2019.This week, I've finally come to the point of having a rough initial draft of "Many Miles" that I started a long time ago. It will play at the end of the episode. While still a work in progress, it's definitely farther along than last week. It's been a tedious process indeed to get it to this point.I've also included the second part of working on a long lost instrumental melody that would later become the folk ballad "Dragons' Eyes" in The Thirteenth Hour. This is a tune that I would mess around with as a kid and in college, where there were pianos all over. I never had a name for it but wrote the first few verses of the song in the novel to its melody. I figured reworking to make a short fill for Empty Hands, which has a little scene referencing the song, would be a nice way to come full circle. This week, I'm doing it to a slow (~70 bpm) beat.Speaking of which, for those of you on the mailing list, check your inboxes for a message asking for volunteers to help with the finishing touches of the upcoming martial arts fantasy novella, Empty Hands. Your suggestions and critiques are most welcome, and not only will you get a free copy of the book and soundtrack, your name will be in the acknowledgements section of the book. If you're not on the mailing list but are interested in joining and/or helping out, here's a link or just email me directly, and I'll be in touch with further instructions. Thank you!∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞Speaking of music, if you haven't checked out "Arcade Days," the song and video Jeff Finley, Brent Simon, and I have been working on the past year, click on the link below to do so!https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w6MD6UCYeQ4You can find more pictures and preview clips of "Arcade Days" on IG as well as this podcast's FB page.Between Two Worlds, the synth EP follow up to Long Ago Not So Far Away is now out for streaming on Bandcamp. The bonus track, called "Flight of the Cloudrider" has a 80s movie mashup music video (see if you can identify all the movies!) which is available on youtube. This app was largely created with the iphone app Auxy.Stay tuned. Follow along on Spotify! There is also a growing extended Thirteenth Hour playlist on Spotify with a growing number of retro 80s songs.Check it out![spotify id="spotify:user:jsblum:playlist:0UEHg7euO45dtmZTbH1akD" width="300" height="380" /]As always, thanks for listening!∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞ Signup for the mailing list for a free special edition podcast, a demo copy of The Thirteenth Hour, and access to retro 80s soundtrack!Have this podcast conveniently delivered to you each week on Spotify, iTunes, Stitcher, Player FM, Tunein, and Googleplay Music.Follow The Thirteenth Hour’s Instagram pages: @the13thhr for your random postings on ninjas, martial arts, archery, flips, breakdancing, fantasy art and and @the13thhr.ost for more 80s music, movies, and songs from The Thirteenth Hour books and soundtrack.Listen to Long Ago Not So Far Away, the Thirteenth Hour soundtrack online at: https://joshuablum.bandcamp.com/ or Spotify. Join the mailing list for a digital free copy. You can also get it on CD or tape.Website: https://13thhr.wordpress.comBook trailer: http://bit.ly/1VhJhXYInterested in reading and reviewing The Thirteenth Hour for a free book? Just email me at [email protected] for more details!

Originally aired on May 6, 2019.This week, I'm continuing to work on the vocal part of a track called "Many Miles" that I started a long time ago ... I'm a little farther along than last week, but it's still slow going. Here's the first part. There's still some parts in the middle that don't quite sound right with the timing, so I'll keep working ...However, I'm starting to experiment with a long lost instrumental melody that would later become the folk ballad "Dragons' Eyes" in The Thirteenth Hour. This is a tune that I would mess around with as a kid and in college, where there were pianos all over. I never had a name for it but wrote the first few verses of the song in the novel to its melody. I figured reworking to make a short fill for Empty Hands, which has a little scene referencing the song, would be a nice way to come full circle.Speaking of which, for those of you on the mailing list, check your inboxes for a message asking for volunteers to help with the finishing touches of the upcoming martial arts fantasy novella, Empty Hands. Your suggestions and critiques are most welcome, and not only will you get a free copy of the book and soundtrack, your name will be in the acknowledgements section of the book. If you're not on the mailing list but are interested in joining and/or helping out, here's a link or just email me directly, and I'll be in touch with further instructions. Thank you!∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞Speaking of music, if you haven't checked out "Arcade Days," the song and video Jeff Finley, Brent Simon, and I have been working on the past year, click on the link below to do so!https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w6MD6UCYeQ4You can find more pictures and preview clips of "Arcade Days" on IG as well as this podcast's FB page.Between Two Worlds, the synth EP follow up to Long Ago Not So Far Away is now out for streaming on Bandcamp. The bonus track, called "Flight of the Cloudrider" has a 80s movie mashup music video (see if you can identify all the movies!) which is available on youtube. This app was largely created with the iphone app Auxy.Stay tuned. Follow along on Spotify! There is also a growing extended Thirteenth Hour playlist on Spotify with a growing number of retro 80s songs.Check it out![spotify id="spotify:user:jsblum:playlist:0UEHg7euO45dtmZTbH1akD" width="300" height="380" /]As always, thanks for listening!∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞ Signup for the mailing list for a free special edition podcast, a demo copy of The Thirteenth Hour, and access to retro 80s soundtrack!Have this podcast conveniently delivered to you each week on Spotify, iTunes, Stitcher, Player FM, Tunein, and Googleplay Music.Follow The Thirteenth Hour’s Instagram pages: @the13thhr for your random postings on ninjas, martial arts, archery, flips, breakdancing, fantasy art and and @the13thhr.ost for more 80s music, movies, and songs from The Thirteenth Hour books and soundtrack.Listen to Long Ago Not So Far Away, the Thirteenth Hour soundtrack online at: https://joshuablum.bandcamp.com/ or Spotify. Join the mailing list for a digital free copy. You can also get it on CD or tape.Website: https://13thhr.wordpress.comBook trailer: http://bit.ly/1VhJhXYInterested in reading and reviewing The Thirteenth Hour for a free book? Just email me at [email protected] for more details!https://13thhr.wordpress.com/2019/05/06/the-thirteenth-hour-podcast-195-musical-interlude-reworking-many-miles-part-6-starting-dragons-eyes-instrumental/

Originally aired on March 18, 2019.This week, I'm finally finishing the last music track to accompany The Thirteenth Hour novella, Empty Hands, an introspective instrumental piece called "Memories of a Better Time." I thought last week would be it, but after having listened to the outcome, thought there was still something missing, so this week, we're adding a short whistled intro.The novella the song will be embedded in is basically done in terms of its initial skeleton, though I'm putting the final edits on the first draft and working on the illustrations. This past week, I worked on more of the latter as well as the little blurb that accompanies the book when it's listed online - arguably (for me) the hardest part to write since it's typically what people use to decide if they want to invest the time to read something or not. The second draft, by the way, is typically where I send portions out to other people for critique, so if you'd like to be a part of that, I'll be sending out an email to the advance readers group on the mailing list (link below) soon. Much appreciated!∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞Speaking of music, if you haven't checked out "Arcade Days," the song and video Jeff Finley, Brent Simon, and I have been working on the past year, click on the link below to do so!https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w6MD6UCYeQ4You can find more pictures and preview clips of "Arcade Days" on IG as well as this podcast's FB page.Between Two Worlds, the synth EP follow up to Long Ago Not So Far Away is now out for streaming on Bandcamp. The bonus track, called "Flight of the Cloudrider" has a 80s movie mashup music video (see if you can identify all the movies!) which is available on youtube. This app was largely created with the iphone app Auxy.Stay tuned. Follow along on Spotify! There is also a growing extended Thirteenth Hour playlist on Spotify with a growing number of retro 80s songs.Check it out![spotify id="spotify:user:jsblum:playlist:0UEHg7euO45dtmZTbH1akD" width="300" height="380" /]As always, thanks for listening!∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞ Signup for the mailing list for a free special edition podcast, a demo copy of The Thirteenth Hour, and access to retro 80s soundtrack!Have this podcast conveniently delivered to you each week on Spotify, iTunes, Stitcher, Player FM, Tunein, and Googleplay Music.Follow The Thirteenth Hour’s Instagram pages: @the13thhr for your random postings on ninjas, martial arts, archery, flips, breakdancing, fantasy art and and @the13thhr.ost for more 80s music, movies, and songs from The Thirteenth Hour books and soundtrack.Listen to Long Ago Not So Far Away, the Thirteenth Hour soundtrack online at: https://joshuablum.bandcamp.com/ or Spotify. Join the mailing list for a digital free copy. You can also get it on CD or tape.Website: https://13thhr.wordpress.comBook trailer: http://bit.ly/1VhJhXYInterested in reading and reviewing The Thirteenth Hour for a free book? Just email me at [email protected] for more details!https://13thhr.wordpress.com/2019/03/18/the-thirteenth-hour-podcast-188-musical-interlude-making-memories-of-a-better-time-part-4/

Originally aired on March 11, 2019.This week, I'm finishing the last music track to accompany The Thirteenth Hour novella, Empty Hands, an introspective instrumental piece called "Memories of a Better Time." It fits in with a piece of the novella where the main character, Logan, is thinking back to his childhood friend, Aurora. It also has some similarities to the track "Empty Hands," also for the novella, which we did in episode 175 and the same descending note progression that we used there as well as in the song "There's a Wild Heart Beating." Today, we are adding the flute section.The novella the song will be embedded in is basically done in terms of its initial skeleton, though I'm putting the final edits on the first draft. The second draft is typically where I send portions out to other people for critique, so if you'd like to be a part of that, I'll be sending out an email to the advance readers group on the mailing list (link below) soon. Much appreciated!∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞Speaking of music, if you haven't checked out "Arcade Days," the song and video Jeff Finley, Brent Simon, and I have been working on the past year, click on the link below to do so!https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w6MD6UCYeQ4You can find more pictures and preview clips of "Arcade Days" on IG as well as this podcast's FB page.Between Two Worlds, the synth EP follow up to Long Ago Not So Far Away is now out for streaming on Bandcamp. The bonus track, called "Flight of the Cloudrider" has a 80s movie mashup music video (see if you can identify all the movies!) which is available on youtube. This app was largely created with the iphone app Auxy.Stay tuned. Follow along on Spotify! There is also a growing extended Thirteenth Hour playlist on Spotify with a growing number of retro 80s songs.Check it out![spotify id="spotify:user:jsblum:playlist:0UEHg7euO45dtmZTbH1akD" width="300" height="380" /]As always, thanks for listening!∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞ Signup for the mailing list for a free special edition podcast, a demo copy of The Thirteenth Hour, and access to retro 80s soundtrack!Have this podcast conveniently delivered to you each week on Spotify, iTunes, Stitcher, Player FM, Tunein, and Googleplay Music.Follow The Thirteenth Hour’s Instagram pages: @the13thhr for your random postings on ninjas, martial arts, archery, flips, breakdancing, fantasy art and and @the13thhr.ost for more 80s music, movies, and songs from The Thirteenth Hour books and soundtrack.Listen to Long Ago Not So Far Away, the Thirteenth Hour soundtrack online at: https://joshuablum.bandcamp.com/ or Spotify. Join the mailing list for a digital free copy. You can also get it on CD or tape.Website: https://13thhr.wordpress.comBook trailer: http://bit.ly/1VhJhXYInterested in reading and reviewing The Thirteenth Hour for a free book? Just email me at [email protected] for more details!https://13thhr.wordpress.com/2019/03/11/the-thirteenth-hour-podcast-187-musical-interlude-making-memories-of-a-better-time-part-3/

Originally aired March 4, 2019.This week, I'm working on the last music track to accompany The Thirteenth Hour novella, Empty Hands, an introspective instrumental piece called "Memories of a Better Time," which harkens to the love theme we made back in episode #120. It fits in with a piece of the novella where the main character, Logan, is thinking back to his childhood friend, Aurora. It also has some similarities to the track "Empty Hands," also for the novella, which we did in episode 175 and the same descending note progression that we used there as well as in the song "There's a Wild Heart Beating." Today, we are making the backing track and attempting to add the flute section.The novella the song will be embedded in is basically done in terms of its initial skeleton, though I'm putting the final edits on the first draft. The second draft is typically where I send portions out to other people for critique, so if you'd like to be a part of that, I'll be sending out an email to the advance readers group on the mailing list (link below) soon. Much appreciated!∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞Speaking of music, if you haven't checked out "Arcade Days," the song and video Jeff Finley, Brent Simon, and I have been working on the past year, click on the link below to do so!https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w6MD6UCYeQ4You can find more pictures and preview clips of "Arcade Days" on IG as well as this podcast's FB page.Between Two Worlds, the synth EP follow up to Long Ago Not So Far Away is now out for streaming on Bandcamp. The bonus track, called "Flight of the Cloudrider" has a 80s movie mashup music video (see if you can identify all the movies!) which is available on youtube. This app was largely created with the iphone app Auxy.Stay tuned. Follow along on Spotify! There is also a growing extended Thirteenth Hour playlist on Spotify with a growing number of retro 80s songs.Check it out![spotify id="spotify:user:jsblum:playlist:0UEHg7euO45dtmZTbH1akD" width="300" height="380" /]As always, thanks for listening!∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞ Signup for the mailing list for a free special edition podcast, a demo copy of The Thirteenth Hour, and access to retro 80s soundtrack!Have this podcast conveniently delivered to you each week on Spotify, iTunes, Stitcher, Player FM, Tunein, and Googleplay Music.Follow The Thirteenth Hour’s Instagram pages: @the13thhr for your random postings on ninjas, martial arts, archery, flips, breakdancing, fantasy art and and @the13thhr.ost for more 80s music, movies, and songs from The Thirteenth Hour books and soundtrack.Listen to Long Ago Not So Far Away, the Thirteenth Hour soundtrack online at: https://joshuablum.bandcamp.com/ or Spotify. Join the mailing list for a digital free copy. You can also get it on CD or tape.Website: https://13thhr.wordpress.comBook trailer: http://bit.ly/1VhJhXYInterested in reading and reviewing The Thirteenth Hour for a free book? Just email me at [email protected] for more details!https://13thhr.wordpress.com/2019/03/04/the-thirteenth-hour-podcast-186-musical-interlude-making-memories-of-a-better-time-part-2/

Originally aired on February 25, 2019.This week, I'm working on the last music track to accompany The Thirteenth Hour novella, Empty Hands, an introspective instrumental piece called "Memories of a Better Time," which harkens to the love theme we made back in episode #120. It fits in with a piece of the novella where the main character, Logan, is thinking back to his childhood friend, Aurora. He isn't terribly happy at this point in his life, as he is a reluctant soldier at best, though his time in the military gives him a window into a life that, as an orphan from a sleepy hunting and farming town without any resources or land of his own would have access to. This coming of age angst and ambivalence is what I was hoping to capture in the theme.The novella the song will be embedded in is basically done in terms of its initial skeleton, though I'm putting the final edits on the first draft. The second draft is typically where I send portions out to other people for critique, so if you'd like to be a part of that, I'll be sending out an email to the advance readers group on the mailing list (link below) soon. Much appreciated!∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞Speaking of music, if you haven't checked out "Arcade Days," the song and video Jeff Finley, Brent Simon, and I have been working on the past year, click on the link below to do so!https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w6MD6UCYeQ4You can find more pictures and preview clips of "Arcade Days" on IG as well as this podcast's FB page.Between Two Worlds, the synth EP follow up to Long Ago Not So Far Away is now out for streaming on Bandcamp. The bonus track, called "Flight of the Cloudrider" has a 80s movie mashup music video (see if you can identify all the movies!) which is available on youtube. This app was largely created with the iphone app Auxy.Stay tuned. Follow along on Spotify! There is also a growing extended Thirteenth Hour playlist on Spotify with a growing number of retro 80s songs.Check it out![spotify id="spotify:user:jsblum:playlist:0UEHg7euO45dtmZTbH1akD" width="300" height="380" /]As always, thanks for listening!∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞ Signup for the mailing list for a free special edition podcast, a demo copy of The Thirteenth Hour, and access to retro 80s soundtrack!Have this podcast conveniently delivered to you each week on Spotify, iTunes, Stitcher, Player FM, Tunein, and Googleplay Music.Follow The Thirteenth Hour’s Instagram pages: @the13thhr for your random postings on ninjas, martial arts, archery, flips, breakdancing, fantasy art and and @the13thhr.ost for more 80s music, movies, and songs from The Thirteenth Hour books and soundtrack.Listen to Long Ago Not So Far Away, the Thirteenth Hour soundtrack online at: https://joshuablum.bandcamp.com/ or Spotify. Join the mailing list for a digital free copy. You can also get it on CD or tape.Website: https://13thhr.wordpress.comBook trailer: http://bit.ly/1VhJhXYInterested in reading and reviewing The Thirteenth Hour for a free book? Just email me at [email protected] for more details!

Originally aired on December 17, 2018.Way back in episode 130, I took one part of the main Thirteenth Hour theme and created a short electric guitar part to accompany an introspective part of the book, and two weeks ago, I took the first verse of the theme and made it a slow guitar part. The last 2 weeks (eps 173 and 174), I slowed down the tempo and eliminated notes to get at what we have this week. These two IG posts show a little of the progression:https://www.instagram.com/p/Bq7whyvFWWc/?utm_source=ig_web_button_share_sheethttps://www.instagram.com/p/BrRtk1YFiN8/?utm_source=ig_web_button_share_sheetI imagined this track will eventually fit a contemplative scene in one of The Thirteenth Hour stories, especially an upcoming short storycalled "Empty Hands" set during the time of The Thirteenth Hour, so much so that that's what I'm going to call this track. You can see little clips of past iterations on the soundtrack IG page as well as this podcast's FB page.∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞Between Two Worlds, the synth EP follow up to Long Ago Not So Far Away is now out for streaming on Bandcamp. The bonus track, called "Flight of the Cloudrider" has a 80s movie mashup music video (see if you can identify all the movies!) which is available on youtube. This app was largely created with the iphone app Auxy.Stay tuned. Follow along on Spotify! There is also a growing extended Thirteenth Hour playlist on Spotify with a growing number of retro 80s songs.Check it out![spotify id="spotify:user:jsblum:playlist:0UEHg7euO45dtmZTbH1akD" width="300" height="380" /]As always, thanks for listening!∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞ Signup for the mailing list for a free special edition podcast, a demo copy of The Thirteenth Hour, and access to retro 80s soundtrack!Have this podcast conveniently delivered to you each week on iTunes, Stitcher, Player FM, Tunein, and Googleplay Music.Follow The Thirteenth Hour’s Instagram pages: @the13thhr for your random postings on ninjas, martial arts, archery, flips, breakdancing, fantasy art and and @the13thhr.ost for more 80s music, movies, and songs from The Thirteenth Hour books and soundtrack.Listen to Long Ago Not So Far Away, the Thirteenth Hour soundtrack online at: https://joshuablum.bandcamp.com/ or Spotify. Join the mailing list for a digital free copy. You can also get it on CD or tape.Website: https://13thhr.wordpress.comBook trailer: http://bit.ly/1VhJhXYInterested in reading and reviewing The Thirteenth Hour for a free book? Just email me at [email protected] for more details!https://13thhr.wordpress.com/2018/12/17/the-thirteenth-hour-podcast-175-musical-interlude-the-thirteenth-hour-theme-in-piano-part-3/

Originally aired on December 10, 2018.Way back in episode 130, I took one part of the main Thirteenth Hour theme and created a short electric guitar part to accompany an introspective part of the book, and two weeks ago, I took the first verse of the theme and made it a slow guitar part. Last week was a variation on those episodes where I took the same theme and reworked it on the piano to be even slower. This week is very similar, though it's become kind of an exercise in minimalism - how many notes can I eliminate and still retain the essence of the theme's melody? In addition, I've been making the tempo slower and slower to fit better with the introspective mood I imagine this track will eventually fit (I'm picturing a contemplative scene in one of The Thirteenth Hour stories, where one of the main characters is lonely or contemplates something weighty, like the state of the world, their place in the universe, etc). You can see little clips on the soundtrack IG page as well as this podcast's FB page. Next week, I'll have a better idea what the final thing will look like, and we'll probably add the backing layer to give it more depth.In this episode, I include two excerpts from instrumental tracks I was using as inspiration: "A Private Showing" by Stephen Hague and John Musser (from Some Kind of Wonderful, discussed in episode 154), and "Tommib" by Squarepusher (from Lost in Translation).https://youtu.be/lYJQRnAFzJwhttps://youtu.be/03c9VfD7cggThe track entitled "A Private Showing" scores the art museum scene above. It is found at around 6:29 in the first clip.https://youtu.be/ec9jY9kPIp4"Tommib" plays during this scene in Lost in Translation where the lonely main character, a neglected young wife accompanying her husband on a working trip to Japan, contemplates the state of her life (I guess) while the track fills in the gaps. Check out this page for more information on how the track may have been created,∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞Between Two Worlds, the synth EP follow up to Long Ago Not So Far Away is now out for streaming on Bandcamp. The bonus track, called "Flight of the Cloudrider" has a 80s movie mashup music video (see if you can identify all the movies!) which is available on youtube. This app was largely created with the iphone app Auxy.Stay tuned. Follow along on Spotify! There is also a growing extended Thirteenth Hour playlist on Spotify with a growing number of retro 80s songs.Check it out![spotify id="spotify:user:jsblum:playlist:0UEHg7euO45dtmZTbH1akD" width="300" height="380" /]As always, thanks for listening!∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞ Signup for the mailing list for a free special edition podcast, a demo copy of The Thirteenth Hour, and access to retro 80s soundtrack!Have this podcast conveniently delivered to you each week on iTunes, Stitcher, Player FM, Tunein, and Googleplay Music.Follow The Thirteenth Hour’s Instagram pages: @the13thhr for your random postings on ninjas, martial arts, archery, flips, breakdancing, fantasy art and and @the13thhr.ost for more 80s music, movies, and songs from The Thirteenth Hour books and soundtrack.Listen to Long Ago Not So Far Away, the Thirteenth Hour soundtrack online at: https://joshuablum.bandcamp.com/ or Spotify. Join the mailing list for a digital free copy. You can also get it on CD or tape.Website: https://13thhr.wordpress.comBook trailer: http://bit.ly/1VhJhXYInterested in reading and reviewing The Thirteenth Hour for a free book? Just email me at [email protected] for more details!https://13thhr.wordpress.com/2018/12/10/the-thirteenth-hour-podcast-174-musical-interlude-the-thirteenth-hour-theme-in-piano-part-2/

Originally aired on December 3, 2018.Way back in episode 130, I took one part of the main Thirteenth Hour theme and created a short electric guitar part to accompany an introspective part of the book, and last week, I took the first verse of the theme and made it a slow guitar part. This week is very similar, though I'm using a piano for the same effect. You can see little clips on the soundtrack IG page as well as this podcast's FB page.∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞Between Two Worlds, the synth EP follow up to Long Ago Not So Far Away is now out for streaming on Bandcamp. The bonus track, called "Flight of the Cloudrider" has a 80s movie mashup music video (see if you can identify all the movies!) which is available on youtube. This app was largely created with the iphone app Auxy.Stay tuned. Follow along on Spotify! There is also a growing extended Thirteenth Hour playlist on Spotify with a growing number of retro 80s songs.Check it out![spotify id="spotify:user:jsblum:playlist:0UEHg7euO45dtmZTbH1akD" width="300" height="380" /]As always, thanks for listening!∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞ Signup for the mailing list for a free special edition podcast, a demo copy of The Thirteenth Hour, and access to retro 80s soundtrack!Have this podcast conveniently delivered to you each week on iTunes, Stitcher, Player FM, Tunein, and Googleplay Music.Follow The Thirteenth Hour’s Instagram pages: @the13thhr for your random postings on ninjas, martial arts, archery, flips, breakdancing, fantasy art and and @the13thhr.ost for more 80s music, movies, and songs from The Thirteenth Hour books and soundtrack.Listen to Long Ago Not So Far Away, the Thirteenth Hour soundtrack online at: https://joshuablum.bandcamp.com/ or Spotify. Join the mailing list for a digital free copy. You can also get it on CD or tape.Website: https://13thhr.wordpress.comBook trailer: http://bit.ly/1VhJhXYInterested in reading and reviewing The Thirteenth Hour for a free book? Just email me at [email protected] for more details!https://13thhr.wordpress.com/2018/12/03/the-thirteenth-hour-podcast-173-musical-interlude-the-thirteenth-hour-theme-in-piano/

Originally aired August 8, 2016.https://13thhr.wordpress.com/2016/08/08/the-thirteenth-hour-podcast-52-storytime-reading-of-st-george-and-the-dragon/This week, we're reading an illustrated adaptation of the first part of Edmund Spenser's Faerie Queen - the tale of St. George and the Dragon. The one we're reading from was illustrated by Trina Schart Hyman (check out a tribute and bio on this blog) and penned by Margaret Hodges. You can find a copy online at retailers like Amazon or you local library. There are a few pictures and excerpts includes below. I'd recommend any of the books written and illustrated by this duo if you enjoy fairy tales and/or fantasy art.The tale is an abridged version for children of the original, which was a lengthy poem. You can find a summary of the original Faerie Queen tale and a commentary here. It's more adult oriented than this version and has more overt allegorical/religious/moral overtones as opposed to this one, which reads more like a traditional fairy tale and mirrors the end of the original poem, a summary of which you can find here.Personally, I have always wondered why everyone had it in for the dragon, who also fought a good fight, and I kind of felt bad for him. Here he was minding his own business and ... well, I guess that kind of flips the story on its head, doesn't it. Maybe someone one day can rewrite the tale from the dragon's point of view.But that's neither here nor there. Anyhow, I posted a few pictures from the book on Instagram before from the book, which you can find here:https://instagram.com/p/BDx0pE7Mg4y/https://instagram.com/p/BDqIyd5sg7d/It's also in these pages that we learn that the name George means "Plow the Earth" and "Fight the Good Fight." Georges of the world, take note and take heart. You have a fine lineage.As always, thanks for listening!∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞ Signup for the mailing list for a free special edition podcast and a demo copy of The Thirteenth Hour! Follow The Thirteenth Hour’s instagram pages: @the13thhr and @the13thhr.ost for your daily weekday dose of ninjas, martial arts bits, archery, flips, breakdancing action figures, fantasy art, 80s music, movies, and occasional pictures or songs from The Thirteenth Hour books. Free online streaming of the growing Thirteenth Hoursoundtrack: https://joshuablum.bandcamp.com/ Website: https://13thhr.wordpress.com Book trailer: http://bit.ly/1VhJhXY Interested in reading and reviewing The Thirteenth Hour for a free book? Just email me at [email protected] for more details!

Originally aired on August 1, 2016.https://13thhr.wordpress.com/2016/08/01/the-thirteenth-hour-podcast-51-musical-interlude-piano-ballad/For this week's episode, I've included snippets from upcomingThirteenth Hour soundtrack tracks. I recently wrote an untitled piano theme that I was thinking would become an introspective musical track on the soundtrack. There's a preview of it in its infancy onInstagram. Then, about two weeks ago, I toyed with the idea of turning it into a ballad with words. Once I got to thinking about it, lyrics came to me in the span of a few minutes and became the song featured in this episode, which I finally titled, "Love, Grey Dresses, and Other Things." There's a a snippet of the final instrumental version and a live performance on the piano included as well.Still haven't transcribed the lyrics onto the computer. The most I had at the time when the muse hit were a few pieces of scrap paper, so that's what this "final" version is written on.The song is written from the perspective of Logan, the main character ofThe Thirteenth Hour, as he realizes that the friendship he with Aurora, his childhood friend, has changed for both him and her.Final versions of this song, both in instrumental and lyrical versions, can be found in the near future on theBandcamp soundtrack page.As always, thanks for listening!∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞ Signup for themailing list for a free special edition podcast and a demo copy of The Thirteenth Hour!FollowThe Thirteenth Hour’s instagram pages: @the13thhr [email protected] for your daily weekday dose of ninjas, martial arts bits, archery, flips, breakdancing action figures, fantasy art, 80s music, movies, and occasional pictures or songs fromThe Thirteenth Hour books.Free online streaming of the growingThirteenth Hoursoundtrack: https://joshuablum.bandcamp.com/Website: https://13thhr.wordpress.comBook trailer:http://bit.ly/1VhJhXYInterested in reading and reviewingThe Thirteenth Hourfor a free book? Just email me at [email protected] for more details!

Originally aired on July 25, 2016.https://13thhr.wordpress.com/2016/07/25/the-thirteenth-hour-podcast-50-reading-of-robert-brownings-poem-childe-roland-to-the-dark-tower-came/Last week, we read the Old English fairy tale, "Childe Roland." This week, I'm reading aloud the Robert Browning poem,"Childe Roland to the Dark Tower Came" which was the inspiration for Stephen King's Dark Tower series. It's quite different from the fairy tale and from King's books, though it shares the dark psychological bent he gave his longmagnus opus. I found it a difficult poem to read. Couldn't quite get into a good rhythm, so there are parts that seem more staccato than I would have liked. It seemed more like one of those works that tries to evoke a series of feelings and images rather than telling a narrative tale. It reminded me of the Coleridge poem, "Kubla Khan" (In Xanadu did Kubla Khan / A stately pleasure-dome decree ...). You can find an interpretation of Browning's poem onSparknotes. One of the takeaways of the poem is there is always sacrifice in the single minded devotion to a goal and sometimes that leads to some culture shock when others can't quite understand what the goal was all for. Logan fromThe Thirteenth Hour figures that at the end of his own long quest, as mentionedhere.Childe Roland to the Dark Tower Came,by Thomas Moran (clicking on the picture takes you to the Wikipedia entry to this poem).If you don't know the story of Roland a la Stephen King, I highly recommend reading them or listening to the audio books (which are excellent). The first novel,The Gunslinger, has a great opening line. Below are some pictures from the novels in the series.The beginning of The Gunslinger ...Susannah Dean takes aim with Roland's revolver, by Ned Dameron.Jake Chambers and Oy on the attack, by Michael Whelan.Jake and Roland at the clearing at the end of the path, by Michael Whelan.As always, thanks for listening!∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞ Signup for themailing list for a free special edition podcast and a demo copy of The Thirteenth Hour!FollowThe Thirteenth Hour’s instagram pages: @the13thhr [email protected] for your daily weekday dose of ninjas, martial arts bits, archery, flips, breakdancing action figures, fantasy art, 80s music, movies, and occasional pictures or songs fromThe Thirteenth Hour books.Website: https://13thhr.wordpress.comBook trailer:http://bit.ly/1VhJhXYInterested in reading and reviewingThe Thirteenth Hourfor a free book? Just email me at [email protected] for more details!

The episode originally aired on July 18, 2016.This week, we are reading a narrative form of the old English fairytale, "Childe Roland" as he quests after the Elf King in the Dark Tower from this illustrated book:Click on the picture above to be taken to an Amazon link (book now out of print, unfortunately).Pictures for this episode can be found on the original show notes page:https://13thhr.wordpress.com/2016/07/18/the-thirteenth-hour-podcast-49-fairytale-storytime-childe-roland/Illustrations byMoira Kemp that accompany the text:Childe Roland encounters Merlin.Childe Roland getting schooled by Merlin.Childe Roland on his quest.Childe Roland tempted by food as his sister, Burd Ellen, is unable to keep from giving it to him.The King of Elfland.Next week, we'll read the poem by Robert Browning,"Childe Roland to the Dark Tower Came."This story provided inspiration for Stephen Kin's epic fantasy, theDark Tower series. More on this in the future. Here are some illustrations byMichael Whelan of Stephen King's version of Childe Roland, Roland of Gilead, the Gunslinger:Roland and a young Jake Chambers, the real "childe" version of the adult Roland.Roland looking into a pond, probably contemplating all the sacrifices he's gone through on his quest for the Dark Tower.As always, thanks for listening!∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞ Signup for themailing list for a free special edition podcast and a demo copy of The Thirteenth Hour!FollowThe Thirteenth Hour’s instagram pages: @the13thhr [email protected] for your daily weekday dose of ninjas, martial arts bits, archery, flips, breakdancing action figures, fantasy art, 80s music, movies, and occasional pictures or songs fromThe Thirteenth Hour books.Website: https://13thhr.wordpress.comBook trailer:http://bit.ly/1VhJhXYInterested in reading and reviewingThe Thirteenth Hourfor a free book? Just email me at [email protected] for more details!

Originally aired on July 11, 2016.https://13thhr.wordpress.com/2016/07/11/the-thirteenth-hour-podcast-48-guest-conversation-with-justin-part-2/Last week (ep. #47), my friendJustin joined the show for a discussion on gymnastics, martial arts, and breakdancing. He returns this week for more fitness talk. Here's some of what we discuss this week:-Fad diets such as Whole 30,the Cookie Diet, and Paleo - how hard it is to eat out on these diets and the level of food envy/fixation that go with them-Aside:While this recipe is probably not kosher according to most of these diets, it is good and relatively carb free, mainly consisting of a spaghetti squash, cheese, onions, and a few other basic ingredients:1 cube vegetable bouillonblack pepper to taste1 (15 ounce) can black olives, chopped1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese1 cup shredded Parmesan cheesePreheat oven to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C). Spray a baking sheet with a thin layer of cooking spray. Place squash halves cut side down on the baking sheet.Bake squash 35 minutes in the preheated oven, or until a knife can be easily inserted. Remove from oven, and cool.Meanwhile, spray a non-stick saucepan with cooking spray. Over medium heat, saute the onion and garlic until golden brown. Stir in tomatoes, basil, bouillon cube, and black pepper. Cook for about 15 minutes, or until you have a medium thick sauce.Remove squash strands with a fork, reserving the shells. Layer each half with a spoonful of the sauce, a layer of spaghetti squash strands, olives, and mozzarella cheese. Repeat layers until shells are full, or until all of the ingredients are used. Top with Parmesan cheese.Bake for 20 minutes in the preheated oven, or until Parmesan cheese melts.-The Latte Factor-Fat, Sick, and Nearly Dead (definitely worth a watch, if just for some of the inspiration stories in the film)-Nomnompaleo- recommended by Justin for good Paleo recipes-Justin's long term plan - the blue food diet -why eat blue and purple foods?-A walk down memory lane - Justin,Sherwood,Tim, and I go down to protein shake avenue and leave with GI distress. In retrospect, I probably shouldn't have gone with the bootleg brand.-Bill Phillips and the Body for Life transformation experiment in college -my brotherloved listening to Bill Phillips' tape nightly for a time-Epic bars - an example of trendy, overpriced meat bars. Want a homebrew example? Learn how to make your ownpemican.-Justin's take-away message: keep learning; keep trying new things. It's never too late to reinvigorate an old hobby or pick up a new one. Fine words to end on.Check out Justin's blog (https://dietisa4letterwordblog.wordpress.com/) for a humorous and honest look at fad diets and other thoughts on health and fitness.As always, thanks for listening!∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞ Signup for themailing list for a free special edition podcast and a demo copy of The Thirteenth Hour!FollowThe Thirteenth Hour’s instagram pages: @the13thhr [email protected] for your daily weekday dose of ninjas, martial arts bits, archery, flips, breakdancing action figures, fantasy art, 80s music, movies, and occasional pictures or songs fromThe Thirteenth Hour books.Website: https://13thhr.wordpress.comBook trailer:http://bit.ly/1VhJhXYInterested in reading and reviewingThe Thirteenth Hourfor a free book? Just email me at [email protected] for more details!

Originally aired on July 4, 2016.https://13thhr.wordpress.com/2016/07/04/the-thirteenth-hour-podcast-47-guest-conversation-with-justin-part-1/Get ready for a massive interview spaced out over the next two weeks! One of my best friends from college joins me for a walk down memory lane as we reminiscence about the years we spent training in gymnastics, breakdancing, and martial arts. If you have any interest in those topics, you'll likely find something of interest in this week's episode. Some of the topics covered:-Trying to learn breakdancing by watching old, grainy VHS tapes of pioneer bboys likeCrumbs,Ivan, andStorm-There was only one or two digital video clips we had access to in the beginning (no Youtube). We watched this unnamed guy doing windmills in his garage countless times and must have dissected it hundreds more - whoever you are, late 90s windmill guy, we are grateful.-The bboy crew Justin and started with two other college friends,Sherwood andTim,Sympoh, is still around and continues to amaze us.-The freeform aspect of hip-hop/beaking vs. the emphasis on doing things a certain set way in gymnastics and many martial arts-How doing gymnastics is involved in learning your limits and conquering fear, applicable to other aspects of life (i.e. "there are no dumb gymnasts" per my high school coach)-How to reconcile the "stay tight in the air" philosophy of gymnastics with the "relax in the air" philosophy of martial arts (we don't actually resolve this, but it's an interesting contrast)-If you were two college kids who wanted to beninjas, what do you do?-How we found ninjitsu training-You can still buy thisgrappling hook online (though you may not want to)-Unlike in our childhoods, you can now easily findninjitsu books byStephen K. Hayes and his teacher,Dr. Masaaki Hatsumu, on Amazon. The man who taught Justin and I years ago, Jack Hoban, now hastraining videos, referenced here.-We spend a fair amount of time touching on the process of learning new skills, e.g.:-What's theDunning Kruger effect?-What's theFeldenkrais method? And how can slow, deliberate movements done with good form in optimal conditions counterintuitively help learn new skills faster?-We debate whether innovation can/should be taught from the get go or should fundamentals be stressed first-The beginner's journey - even as a "master," hopefully you are still continuing to learn (symbolized by the journey from white belt to black back to white again as the outer coloring of the belt gets frayed with time).-The importance of not giving up too early - fitting given the meaning of the characters forninja (忍者 - "one who endures" in Chinese)-We discuss how martial arts and these other skills have shaped us as people.There was a natural breaking point here, so I've split the interview into two parts for ease of listening. Justin will return next week with more discussion on fitness and healthy eating. In the meantime, check out his blog at https://dietisa4letterwordblog.wordpress.com/As always, thanks for listening∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞ Signup for themailing list for a free special edition podcast and a demo copy of The Thirteenth Hour!FollowThe Thirteenth Hour’s instagram pages: @the13thhr [email protected] for your daily weekday dose of ninjas, martial arts bits, archery, flips, breakdancing action figures, fantasy art, 80s music, movies, and occasional pictures or songs fromThe Thirteenth Hour books.Website: https://13thhr.wordpress.comBook trailer:http://bit.ly/1VhJhXYInterested in reading and reviewingThe Thirteenth Hourfor a free book? Just email me at [email protected] for more details!

Originally aired on June 27, 2016.On this week's episode, I recorded a story I read to my daughter,Prince Nautilus, written byLaura Krauss Melmed and illustrated byHenri Sorensen. We recently found it for sale in a small bookstore while traveling and decided to explore this modern fairy tale, which takes elements of classic tales and puts a few modern spins on them. You can't see the wonderful illustrations in the podcast, obviously, though I did attempt to describe them to my daughter (since that's what you do with toddlers). I'm not sure if the book is still in print, but you can find used copies on retailers likeAmazon orAbebooks.Like the storytime format? Let me know (see email address below), and I'll do more in the future.Next week, stay tuned for the start of a massive 2 part interview on martial arts, gymnastics, breakdancing, learning new skills, and more with one of mybest friends from college.As always, thanks for listening!∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞ Signup for themailing list for a free special edition podcast and a demo copy of The Thirteenth Hour!FollowThe Thirteenth Hour’s instagram pages: @the13thhr and @the13thhr.ost for your daily weekday dose of ninjas, martial arts bits, archery, flips, breakdancing action figures, fantasy art, 80s music, movies, and occasional pictures or songs fromThe Thirteenth Hour books.Website: https://13thhr.wordpress.comBook trailer:http://bit.ly/1VhJhXYInterested in reading and reviewingThe Thirteenth Hourfor a free book? Just email me at [email protected] for more details!https://13thhr.wordpress.com/2016/06/27/the-thirteenth-hour-podcast-46-storytime-prince-nautilus-reading/

Originally aired on June 20, 2016. https://13thhr.wordpress.com/wp-admin/post-new.php?post_type=post&jetpack-copy=5728 Marty McFly (Michael J. Fox) riding a hoverboard in Back to the Future 2. Clicking on the picture links back to its source page, which is about how Lexus is supposedly designing a real life hoverboard that we can only hope is a piece of valid journalism. Anything less would be a cruel joke, people! The Silver Surfer on his surfboard, courtesy of Marvel and this image's host site George Jetson's collapsible car The intro to Talespin, which had a character with a collapsible gliding jetski Lightning from The Thirteenth Hour An animated .gif of Lightning collapsing into a portable package. Logan riding on Lightning. Lightning's invisible airshield to protect her rider can be glimpsed here at her nose, where you can see the air currents. Lightning can expand to fit another passenger. As shown in the picture above and faintly here, when Lightning flies, a rainbow of exhaust is emitted. Lightning all folded up (#1 in this picture of Logan's everyday carry) ∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞ Starving Artist Section: where I talk about making a few bucks on the internets! This week’s app is Receipthog, which pays you (via Paypal or Amazon gift cards, albeit very slowly) to take pictures of your receipts, which generates points you can eventually cash in. Learn more here. ∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞ As always, thanks for listening! ∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞ Signup for the mailing list for a free special edition podcast and a demo copy of The Thirteenth Hour! Follow The Thirteenth Hour’s instagram pages: @the13thhr and @the13thhr.ost for your daily weekday dose of ninjas, martial arts bits, archery, flips, breakdancing action figures, fantasy art, 80s music, movies, and occasional pictures or songs from The Thirteenth Hour books. Website: https://13thhr.wordpress.com Book trailer: http://bit.ly/1VhJhXY Interested in reading and reviewing The Thirteenth Hour for a free book? Just email me at [email protected] for more details!

Originally aired on June 13, 2016. Today's podcast is all about Zen. Zen, a philosophy that carries much ado and marketing buzz, really can be summed up in one simple idea - being present right where you are now. It's obviously easier said than done, but certain activities naturally lend themselves to discovering this state of no-mind easier than others, martial arts being one such avenue. George Lucas incorporated these ideas into the character of Yoda (essentially a Zen master in a galaxy far, far away) in his teachings of the Force and the way of the Jedi to a young Luke Skywalker, so that's an easy way to think some of the ideas behind Zen if you're familiar with the films but not Zen. https://youtu.be/GITb6rzpTWM This synth Yoda-Zen montage clip is from a fellow bandcamper, melodysheep. You can listen to the full song here and check out the rest of his work at https://melodysheep.bandcamp.com/. But you don't have to travel far to find Zen and its applications in daily life. This episode focuses on a few segments from the book Zen in the Martial Arts by Joe Hyams: There's an excerpt on being present in the moment, accepting your limitations and using them to your advantage, and deep breathing, a gateway to meditative practices. For years, I've found aspects of tai chi practice helpful as a kind of moving mediation. I like this particular video since it's so easy to follow along with, as the movements are reversed for the viewer so you don't have to mentally adjust left and right in your mind to match what the instructor is saying (a common issue with learn by video): Click for an excerpt Aspects of Zen were behind this particular passage in The Thirteenth Hour, where Logan eventually does the counterintuitive and, after centering himself, relaxes instead of struggling to get out a magic spell that makes him immobile. No, I won't give up ... I summoned all my energy and with a shout that rang in my ears long after it had faded, I slowly scooped myself off the stone floor. I fell back immediately. I tried again and managed a short stumble to the wall. I clung to it for support. Tears and bad words. You didn't give up. Good. Now relax. Relax your muscles. They screamed in protest, as did I, with them. Boy, I must have been a sorry sight – sputtering and crying, unshaven and haggard, malodorous and malnourished – but in my own dystonic way, I managed to lurch along, bit by stumbling bit ... ... My arms and legs still seemed incredibly heavy, like lead. I could have made better ground running in quicksand. But by concentrating on relaxing my cramping muscles, I had broken the spell, and with every step I took, the life that I had almost given up flowed back into my veins. Now that you have a sense of what Zen is, how have you encountered it in your life? Leave your comments below, and we can discuss in a future episode. As always, thanks for listening! ∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞ Signup for the mailing list for a free special edition podcast and a demo copy of The Thirteenth Hour! Follow The Thirteenth Hour’s instagram pages: @the13thhr and @the13thhr.ost for your daily weekday dose of ninjas, martial arts bits, archery, flips, breakdancing action figures, fantasy art, 80s music, movies, and occasional pictures or songs from The Thirteenth Hour books. Website: https://13thhr.wordpress.com Book trailer: http://bit.ly/1VhJhXY Interested in reading and reviewing The Thirteenth Hour for a free book? Just email me at [email protected] for more details! https://13thhr.wordpress.com/wp-admin/post-new.php?post_type=post&jetpack-copy=5603

Originally released on June 6, 2016. In this week's episode, fantasy author Missy Sheldrake joins the show, so fairy tale fans, authors, and illustrators sit back, relax, and enjoy the one hour plus show! Missy is unique in that she's one of the few authors out there who also creates her own covers (see them below) and illustrates her novels. You'll find out more in the podcast, but early elements of the series actually came from the Game Dark Age of Camelot. (Missy definitely got her money's worth out of this game, since she got not only a book series from it but a husband and a job - who says playing video games doesn't pay??? :) Her creations aren't just 2D - some are sculptures. Check out her page for a gallery of hand-crafted fairies. Check out some of her books featuring the fairy world she created below - see the cover and many more pictures at https://13thhr.wordpress.com/wp-admin/post-new.php?post_type=post&jetpack-copy=5514 Thanks again, Missy, for coming on the show, and good luck with the new release! Learn more about her work below: Website: http://missysheldrake.com/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/missysheldrake Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/m_sheldrake/ Tumblr: http://etsyfairydawn.tumblr.com/ FB: https://www.facebook.com/MissySheldrake/and https://www.facebook.com/muralsbymissy GR: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/13672249.Missy_Sheldrake?from_search=true&search_version=service Amazon: www.amazon.com/dp/B00UVLQWGY As always, thanks for listening! ∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞ Signup for the mailing list for a free special edition podcast and a demo copy of The Thirteenth Hour! Follow The Thirteenth Hour’s instagram pages: @the13thhr and @the13thhr.ost for your daily weekday dose of ninjas, martial arts bits, archery, flips, breakdancing action figures, fantasy art, 80s music, movies, and occasional pictures or songs from The Thirteenth Hour books. Website: https://13thhr.wordpress.com Book trailer: http://bit.ly/1VhJhXY Interested in reading and reviewing The Thirteenth Hour for a free book? Just email me at [email protected] for more details!

Originally aired on May 30, 2016. Today's episode is about a song that I originally started started writing as a part of a chapter in The Thirteenth Hour. Finally got around to finishing it. It's a bit of a folk song. Here's the passage that talks about it: Then she looked up at me, through reddened eyes, and I struggled to say, “I thought I would never see you again ... I'm so glad I found you.” She nodded, and I wiped her tear–streaked ashen face with my sleeve, trying to maneuver around the burns and scabs. After a time, her eyelids began to fall, and then right when I thought she might be drifting off to sleep, she laughed a little. “Do you know, Logan, that since you've left I haven't sang or hummed any of the songs I used to like? I just thought of one now.” ... more of this except on the show original show notes here: https://13thhr.wordpress.com/wp-admin/post-new.php?post_type=post&jetpack-copy=5444 A pixelart dragon from the vaporware Thirteenth Hour game You can hear an acoustic guitar version on this week's podcast. The song will eventually become part of the soundtrack, which you can find here. Speaking of which, previews and discussion of music and movies that inspired the soundtrack is on Instagram under @the13thhr.ost. Since Instagram recently changed their videos to allow 60 seconds of footage, I'm considering making 1 min 80s-synth style versions of some of those favorite influential 80s songs. It's hard to distill the essence of a great song down to just 1 minute ... but it might be a fun exercise and different that the usual tribute. Look for those soon! Lastly, check Twitter for weekly and bi-weekly Amazon giveaways (look for #AmazonGiveaway on social media)- free to enter; you can enter each week until you win if you want. ∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞ More on the creative process next week with author Missy Sheldrake. Preview links below! Twitter: https://twitter.com/missysheldrake Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/m_sheldrake/ FB: https://www.facebook.com/MissySheldrake/ and https://www.facebook.com/muralsbymissy GR: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/13672249.Missy_Sheldrake?from_search=true&search_version=service Amazon: www.amazon.com/dp/B00UVLQWGY As always, thanks for listening! ∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞ Signup for the mailing list for a free special edition podcast and a demo copy of The Thirteenth Hour! Follow The Thirteenth Hour’s instagram pages: @the13thhr and @the13thhr.ost for your daily weekday dose of ninjas, martial arts bits, archery, flips, breakdancing action figures, fantasy art, 80s music, movies, and occasional pictures or songs from The Thirteenth Hour books. Website: https://13thhr.wordpress.com Book trailer: http://bit.ly/1VhJhXY Interested in reading and reviewing The Thirteenth Hour for a free book? Just email me at [email protected] for more details!