Sing Your Fandom

Sometimes you love a fandom so much, you just want to sing about it. Marc Gunn (M) and Mikey Mason headed up the fun panel “Songwriting Your Fandom: How to write songs inspired by pop culture,” Saturday morning in Hyatt Hanover FG as part of the Filk Track.

Key ingredient: watch the shows. Sometimes, re-watching a show will spark that little something that makes you want to put an idea to paper. Once there, ask yourself: what kind of tune fits? Should it be dark or humorous? Long or short? You may just want to pick up your guitar (or instrument of choice) and play around with it. It’s fun knowing you have a unique way of sharing your passions.

Mikey Mason entertained us with a ballad or two for the participants to show what his songs sound like. He writes about one a month, a goal he set for himself last year. On his podcast, MIKEYtalks, he shares a weekly music item, whether it’s a new ballad or a video from one of his performances.

The workshop was unique and fun, leaving you wanting to create a piece of your own when you left.

Author of the article

Award-winning author Amanda Faith may have been raised in Dayton, but her heart and home is in the South. With a lifelong love of teaching and writing, she had plenty of encouragement from teachers and friends along the way. Loving a good puzzle has always been a fascination, and writing gives her the outlet to put all the pieces together. Being adventurous and loving to try new things, it wasn’t long before her characters found themselves in unusual situations. She loves to put people from two different worlds into new situations and to see how they interact, taking them on journeys they would never have normally experienced. Her current adventure working as a high school English professor turned Media Specialist, writing, and doing paranormal investigations doesn’t slow her down from having a great time with a plethora of hobbies. Her published credits include several short stories, poetry, several journal articles, her doctoral dissertation, and her award-winning book Strength of Spirit. With multiple degrees, she has a passion for learning and exploring new venues. She is a staff writer for The Daily Dragon at Dragon Con. Check out her new website (www.amandafaith.net) or on Instagram (@dramandafaith)