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Website is finished! Check it out, guys! Copy and paste the link in your browser. Play with it, see how it navigates, scroll down on Home page to see what else pops up ;) The links on the site are all live, however, the paperback and hardcover copies are not yet available on Amazon until we order them ourselves and do our final proofs. You can purchase the eBook, though, if that's how you roll! If you do, remember to write a review on Amazon as that helps mucho!! http://www.riokoviak.com/ Check out all these platforms: website, hardcopy, and eBook on iPad & phone! So pretty ;) Waiting for the paperback now...  I decided to be an indie publisher (as after discussing my project with a few traditional publishing houses, they told me I was at the point where I've done all the "heavy lifting" already, and there was not much more they could do for me that I haven't already done myself).
I feel so official! Got my business name registered today! What is my personal indie publishing name, you ask? Well, it's got everything to do with my littles' middle names (Lucia & Madix)...squish them together and you get: Lumadix Press Like it?     Whoop, here it is! Final cover for the audio version of Hoagie & Katie (created by Martina Klinger)!! Now if I could find time to get in the studio maybe I'll record something!  I thought I was done editing, but after reading the book for the trillionth time, found more to edit (clean up, add, clarify, etc)-I think I'm finally done (editing is one thing that is seemingly never done)!  We were having some fun with voices the other day...what do you guys think of this flamingo voice? I had to figure out a way to voice all my 6 characters, so: • I took voice over lessons from two amazing voice over coaches (and wonderful women too!) Lesley Bailey http://www.voiceovergurus.com/ and Leslie Kronish http://www.insidevoice.biz/ • I am currently taking an "actor's instrument" class focusing on voice and movement at Portland Actors Conservatory http://pac.edu/ • I'm practicing in my home studio (it's hard to read even a normal sentence without screwing up something, much less change character voices every minute!) • When I feel like I'm ready, I found an awesome recording engineer Marc J. Rose http://www.fuseaudiodesign.com/ to professionally record the audio for Hoagie & Katie
Once the manuscript was finished (six chapters), it was time to Edit, edit, edit! Last but not least, a professional editor took it over. I then chose all the scenes that would be illustrated. I found the perfect illustrator whom I deeply respect. I love Martina Klinger’s work and thought her style of animated design would serve my project very well. Palecoral Art We decided that Tina would do the cover for my audio book for now, and my husband Ian Koviak would continue to create the book's design using many different mediums (such as photographic images mixed with graphic landscapes) http://bookdesigners.com/ This would be come our first generation version of Hoagie & Katie!   It was finally time to leave my peaceful oasis at the sea and return home. I was worried I wouldn’t be able to duplicate my creative vibe with domestic distractions and no legitimate place to work…so…I kicked the kids out of the playroom, and made it my office! I put up my vision board for the story… and I began to work on my “recording studio”-which is a small closet in my office. (Don’t worry, Ladies, I still have a closet in my bedroom!!) http://www.thefoamfactory.com/ Learning recording software: First this...http://www.apple.com/mac/garageband/ Then this…http://www.audacityteam.org/ And finally this…https://felttip.com/ss/ Once I finished a chapter, I recorded it, and attempted to send it to my peeps back home (who were missing me and wanting a story)
After having the salt on my skin, I’d come inside and commit to writing for at least 3 hours, then another strong primal need emerged…to savor an ice cold beer! My noon beer is still a ritual, because, let’s face it, we all deserve a little reward for even all the mundane things we do each day!
Some are asking why a capybara for my first story? And I ask, "Why not?" I gotta be honest, when I met my first capy, I fell in love (so much so, I almost wanted to move back to California so that I could own one!) The least I could do was write a story about her!!  I have written many short stories, and parts of fictional books in the past, but being a busy mom, I could never find the time, patience, or energy to see a project come to fruition. I was in the throes of trying to figure out a way to practice recording audio for my husband’s book design business http://bookdesigners.com/, and I figured, I should try to write something and record it myself and see what happens. This is what happened… I found I was struggling for some quality time for myself…alone. Not being a mother, wife, friend, daughter…just me. To the rescue: The Gordon’s idyllic Newport beach cottage https://airbnb.com/rooms/2857719?s=8. I highly recommend it! Thus began my intensive healing journey. The landscape inspired me and fueled my creativity, and allowed the growth that had been stymied for far too long. I’d wake up in my own time, to the sound of the rushing waves, then would stretch, Drum, Dance, and feel the rhythms of my body and the Music… Walk barefoot to feel the earth on my soles…to sooth my soul...Take in deep healing oceanic breaths…and Marvel at the awesomeness of nature… |
Rio…Hi! I'm Rio—Welcome to the blog! You'll find assorted musings here as well as a detailed flow of my journey writing my first book, Hoagie & Katie. Enjoy! Archives
May 2021
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