Saturday, September 29, 2012

abandoning the plan

Not my strongest ability.
I must confess this record process has been, and still is, quite a journey. This week began with the plan to release at a live show on Oct 6 - less than 2 weeks away at the time. sure there was a lot to do, but I could make it work. i know how to get things done. i work well under a deadline. overworked is not in my vocabulary. i could totally make this happen in the midst of a week with 20 lessons, 2 mornings at gap, prepping for choir and a Sunday where Vin would be gone...again.

wrong.
SO WRONG.

after 48 hours of frustrating hurry up and wait and an emotional breakdown, the idea was presented to me to delay the release a few weeks. this would mean it would take place AFTER my brother had left for MN. but the whole vision from the very beginning was to make a record, then have a release show, and have him there to share about his upcoming ventures and to sell cds and raise money for him. that was the plan. for almost a year this has been the plan. why would i change it now?

i felt like the world was against me.
it seemed like 2 out of every 3 people had told me they couldn't make it to the Oct 6 show. the replication company was going to charge $80/box to ship my discs so they would arrive on time. my online fundraising campaign kept getting rejected and would therefore have to be shortened in order to be finished in time. on top of all this, i was having the worst time maintaining an internet connection at my house. just the icing on the cake. i had the option to delay, but at the cost of my brother not being present - a major change of plans.

i slammed the computer shut and shuffled off to bed. heart racing and on the brink of tears. blood pressure no doubt through the roof.
Ross knocked on my door and hugged me and said it was okay with him if i moved the date.
i said i'd sleep on it.
i was reminded of God's timing not always being my timing.

figures.

so i came up with a plan B. and every stride i took to make that happen ran into another roadblock. so now i am at plan E or F or G...i've lost track. however the decision has been made to delay until november. and i am at peace. i am thankful for the chance to not rush my planning and to really do a nice job with this event.

and just for a little accountability...and self validation, i've posted my to-do list below and crossed out the things that are already done. just fyi - the final stages of making a record are way more intense than the beginning-mid stages. didn't really think of that when i decided to release at the beginning of fall :)

- wait for audio to be done and then approve it 
- submit audio for replication
- wait for artwork to be done and then approve it
- submit artwork for replication
- submit legal paperwork and payment info for replication
- fill out and submit online fundraising campaign page for approval
- resubmit multiple times for required edits
- record video for fundraising page
- re-record video for fundraising page due to change of details - tomorrow!
- prepare what i'm going to say for video recordings - getting there...
- launch fundraising page/promote on social media - waiting for completed video
- launch FB artist page
- recruit band for release show
- gather and send practice materials to band
- schedule band rehearsals
- recruit sound person for release show/rehearsals
- record video of ross' presentation for release show - tomorrow!
- ensure ross' literature/promo materials are ready before he leaves - there's a nice display board completed(!), but we're still waiting for literture to arrive
- record video promoting record and release show - tomorrow!
- print promo posters for release show and distribute
- launch FB event for release show
- prepare song stories for release show
- confirm reservation on release show venue
- recruit decoration/setup team for release show
- get lights from ed
- figure out how to hang lights
- find an outfit for release show
- recruit photographer/videographer for release show
- decide on refreshments for release show
- register to sell record online - waiting for updated artwork waiting for correctly formatted audio
- create/launch website - pretty much done - waiting for some coding info to be emailed back to me
- register as a writer and publisher with ASCAP - have to be approved
- submit record for copyright - have to be approved

1 comment:

karen said...

Later will work for me...so I am happy.