An interview with moi!

/ Barbara Caridad Ferrer / Leave a comment

Lovely Librarian Sarah (as she will forever be known in my mind, had asked, in the wake of reading Stars, if she could conduct an interview with me. I told her to have her people talk to my people… not. Come on, anyone who could believe I’m that addle-brained must have me confused with some other diva. Actually, I love interviews. Maybe it’s because I haven’t done all that many of them, by and large. Maybe it’s because it’s been a while since my last release, so it all feels fun and new again, especially since I’m talking about a project near and dear to my heart. At any rate, I was more than happy to answer her questions (at length, even!) and now you can read the finished result. Along with see one of the recent shots I’ve taken in pursuit of my new photography hobby.

If you’d like a peek at what I see through the lens of a camera…

New Review! (Or, in which Barb announces that she’s likely to be a pain for the next three months)

/ Barbara Caridad Ferrer / 2 Comments

So, what should my bleary eyes fall upon this morning before the coffee had even had a chance to kick in? This absolutely lovely review of Stars by equally lovely YA librarian Sarah.

Your heart always winds up somewhere in the vicinity of your throat when faced with any review, but when it’s first thing in the morning? But I shouldn’t have worried, because Lovely Librarian Sarah really and truly-o got it. She got the nuances I was going for, she got the parallels, she loved what I loved about the characters and felt their pain. In other words, she basically told me that I got it.

Absolute favorite line (among many, many favorites): “Caridad Ferrer does an absolutely exquisite job of interpreting Carmen for a YA crowd. “

I mean, YAY! How awesome is that, right?

Another big sigh of relief came when I read this:

“Also, I really enjoyed the drum and bugle corps. I really learned quite a bit in this book, without it being information dumping at all. Ferrer obviously knows her stuff when it comes to the corps and it shows as Soledad and Jonathan face the pressure of performances and training. Honestly, sometimes I felt like I was sweating with Soledad as she worked on her routine yet again, trying to find that perfect balance for the very top deck of the bleachers to understand her passion for Don Jose.”

Because, as always, since I’m writing with such passion about something with which I’m so familiar, I worry that I’m just being a big ol’ dork and infodumping all over the place. It’s nice to know I really hit the right balance, because the last thing I’d want to do is shortchange the activity for which I have such love and respect.

So… thank you so much Lovely Librarian Sarah—you totally made my Thursday.

And for the rest of you, let this serve as warning: I’m in all likelihood going to be a twitching, neurotic, crazy mess for the next few months. *glares at those of you with the “and this is different how” expressions* (Y’all know who you are…)

Oh, and the gender bias post is still percolating. With added Oprah goodness. I mean, really, O? A guy, again? I suppose we should just be grateful this one’s still alive.

My ever-evolving dorkiness

/ Barbara Caridad Ferrer / 3 Comments

You know, I was working up a good head of steam for a righteous post about the whole gender-bias in publishing thing that Will Not Die (nor should it, really) but found I just couldn’t summon the energy, so perhaps it’s best saved for another day. (Just so you know, it had to do with whether writers with advanced degrees in writing are taken more seriously than those of us who slog along, blissfully oblivious.)

Instead, I’m going to natter about a new discovery. While I was piddling about the ‘net yesterday, I came across a stunningly beautiful version of “Gravity” by the UCLA Awaken a cappella group with then-member Sara Bareilles singing lead on her composition. How cool is that, really? Well, it’s cool to me. I love a cappella groups (remember—unabashed GLEE groupie and show choir geek). I’ve always had a huge soft spot for groups like The Manhattan Transfer and The Nylons—groups who can create an almost orchestral sound using nothing but their voices as instruments.

But I digress. “Gravity” was probably my favorite song off Sara’s “Little Voice” CD and was an integral part of the soundtrack I used in writing STARS and this version is just sublime. Ethereal, with the vocals swelling and receding like ocean waves. Here, take a listen. UCLA Awaken A Cappella \"Gravity\"

And in the process of poking around, discovering that there are actual CDs comprised of collegiate a cappella groups, I also discovered that the University of Buffalo’s all-male a cappella group (The Buffalo Chips- how awesome is that?) recorded Coldplays Viva la Vida. I now have some idea of what it would sound like, were GLEE to take it on. (Yes, I also found a recording of University of North Carolina performing “Don’t Stop Believing” from 2008 that had some similarities, so I suspect I’m not the only one listening to these recordings, capisce?)

Hey, at least I own my dorkitude. I live it, baby.

I’ma go off to sing some more, kthnxbai.

The music that inspired Stars

/ Barbara Caridad Ferrer / 1 Comment

No, not that music. Although, yes, I did listen to the orchestral score for Carmen quite a bit as well, but what I’m talking about is the custom-created playlists without which I cannot start any project. By the time I come to the end of a project, I can have as many as three or four playlists wandering around, but I always start with one and it’s my old faithful, as it were. That doesn’t mean it’s a static thing. Nope, my playlists are ever-evolving as I come across new music or old favorites that all of a sudden seem like they’re absolutely perfect for a scene or emotion I’m trying to evoke.

So, with that in mind, here’s the primary playlist for Stars.

Heat Wave- Joan Osborne
She’s a Beauty- The Tubes
Amor Gitano- Alejandro Fernández & Beyoncé
It’s Amazing- Jem
Breathe In Breathe Out- Matt Kearney
You Give Me Something- James Morrison
Extraordinary Girl- Green Day
Believe- Lenny Kravitz
Eres- Alejandro Fernández
Come me mira- Fonseca
El Tango de Roxanne- Moulin Rouge Soundtrack (NOTE: This was probably the single most important song on the soundtrack. Everything stemmed from this one piece of music.)
Hazy Shade of Winter- The Bangles
Please Don’t Leave Me- Pink
Hide and Seek- Imogen Heap
Love is a Losing Game- Amy Winehouse
Cinderella Beautiful- Peter Cincotti
Time is a Healer- Eva Cassidy
Quiéreme- Alejandro Fernández
Gravity- Sara Bareilles
Wishing on Another Lucky Star- J.D. Souther
I’ll Be Waiting- Lenny Kravitz
Paso a Paso (Alternate Version)- Luis Fonsi
By the Boab Tree- Ophelia of the Spirits
Sueños- Nelly Furtado & Alejandro Fernández
When the Stars Go Blue- The Corrs feat. Bono
My Heart Was Home Again- Josh Groban

So there you have it. Eclectic, kind of all over the place, because that’s just sort of how I roll. Any questions on any of the songs and why I chose them, fire away. And as always, if you have any suggestions for me, feel free to shout out—I’m always on the lookout for new music.