Carl was in Nashville last week to attend a songwriter's conference. This was something he had wanted for a long time but the road map just didn't seem to be there.

Carl explained, "I have lived in spots from Houston to Minneapolis and have always had the dream of writing and singing country music. Quite frankly a lot of my friends don't listen to country, but I've always had a passion for it. One day, while I was tired and frustrated, I looked up to the heavens and asked 'please show me somebody that can help me write. Show me the road I need to take.' I went on the Internet and began searching, entering a few key words and discovered there were a lot of other songwriters like myself; in Nashville and across the country." Carl knew he was on the right road, now.

One of Carl's first trips to Nashville was for a showcase at Cafe' Milano. He had no idea, at that point, what was in store for him in the city that, just months earlier, had seemed light years away. That trip just happened to be during one of the biggest events in country music; Fan Fair.

As the other singer/songwriters gathered in the rehearsal hall they began to exchange stories and struggles, and they realized they were not alone. Carl explained "They were singing songs penned by some of the top songwriters in town, and they were good. One thing they wanted to get across was that if the right song is matched up with the right person, and in the right setting, magic could happen. And it did."

That combination of elements is desired by singer/songwriter's everywhere. Carl continued to describe his first experience of being in a booth during fan fair. With a smile he said, "I signed autographs, sold CD's, posed for pictures and kissed babies. And the whole time I was thinking 'I can get used to this. This is cool. Yep, very cool.'"

Carl has taken many steps to assure that the road he is currently traveling will lead him to more fan fair appearances. He walked away from that particular Nashville trip with a new publicist, a new fan club and president, and the beginning of a website. When asked how he felt about taking such positive strides in his career, Carl flashed a big smile and replied, "I have the best darn publicist in the world. And have you seen my website?"

Participating in the writer's workshop is an event that Carl will not soon forget. The conference, organized by the BCMA and sponsored by Giant records, featured a panel of some of Nashville's senior writers. These talented veteran's spent two days giving their honest opinions and critiques to their younger colleagues. And, in case there was any doubt about whether a small workshop style symposium would actually prove helpful, Carl related that, "Sitting in that room with all those songwriters I wrote five or six songs, in my head, in about forty-five minutes. Just being in that creative environment gives you so many great ideas. This is an energy I don't get in Tulsa (his home)." This conference proved to be a success for Carl in other ways as well. He received more positive feedback and contacts than he had hoped for.

With all this talk of songwriting I had to ask Carl if he was shifting his focus away from singing. He was quick to answer, "No, I love to sing. But right now I want to focus on my songwriting. Today I was able to really see what makes a good song. How to make it flow, and how to evoke a certain emotion from the listener. Those are some of the things I need to work on." He continued, "I will always sing and perform but I also want to be a publisher. I want to know the 'business.' I believe you have to know the business to have longevity."

After a day of critiquing, the writers were off to the Bluebird Café to perform their songs for the public. The showcase was attended by a few of the veteran songwriters participating in the conference. And, although the purpose of the performance was to spotlight the songs and their contents rather than vocal ability, there certainly was no lack of that. I was extremely impressed with the overall quality of performances at the showcase and I'm glad I had the opportunity to view the next generation of country music talent.