We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Abby Carver. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Abby below.

Abby, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Do you wish you had started sooner?

I wish I had really started being more proactive earlier. When I was younger, all I wanted was to be a musician and singer in a band. I went to college for two years for acting but after dropping out right before the third year, I felt burnt out and uninspired for awhile and really just focused on getting by as a nanny. It was hard for me to get back into a creative or inspired head space. It took about 4 years for me to get really focused on doing the things I love and building a career or even a name for myself in the arts, starting with getting into film and TV production, which led me to making my first short film.

Abby, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

I grew up in Florida and was always interested in music. My older brother was always in bands my whole life so I think I got that bug from him. When I was in high school, I wanted to be a doctor for awhile, but that dream was crushed when I didn’t do well in math and science. Right around that time I got a laptop and started really getting into watching movies. I was a loner so I would come home after school and watch four movies in a row. Essentially giving myself an introductory film course of mostly American films. So I got super into the idea of being either in front of or behind a camera, story telling. I didn’t really get into my industry though, until I was in my mid twenties. That’s when I started working in film and TV production in some capacity and also making short films with the team I was a part of. I also started playing music live around this time. I had been writing on and off since high school and that passion never died but it would wax and wane. In the last year and a half I’ve switched my focus over to making ASMR videos on youtube. It’s been something that gives me a creative outlet that is literally free. I can just press record on my phone and the world opens up for me. I think it’s the thing I’m most proud of simply because I haven’t given up on it yet and I’ve been so consistent. Also it’s been the one thing I’ve done where I can actually see the reach I’ve had, even if it’s still small. I have a little community of people who watch my videos and give me positive feedback or constructive criticism and it pushes me to do better and reach as many people as possible.

What do you think is the goal or mission that drives your creative journey?

I have a few different goals. I would like to write, direct, and produce a feature film one day. I also have a goal of putting out a record. I recorded one a couple years ago but I wasn’t happy with it so it’s never seen the light of day. But I want to start over again and this time I would like to have the proper language to be able to communicate what I want things to sound like, which is what I struggled with the first time around. For my ASMR channel, a huge goal would be to hit 100k subscribers. It seems so out of reach now but I would be lying if I said it wasn’t something I strive for. Those goals keep me motivated to keep going, for sure.

For you, what’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative?

It sounds super vain, but for me, it’s having other people recognize you as legitimate as an artist. Any time I’ve had a producer give me specific compliments or validation I hold onto those moments so tightly and never let them go. I haven’t done it in a while now, but playing live music is extremely rewarding, even if it’s only two people listening, and one of them is the bartender. There’s just a high you get from performing.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://linktr.ee/abbyjcarver
• Instagram: instagram.com/abbycarver20
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCbRGWSmtvi4omX_EG3I36dw
• Other: https://soundcloud.com/ajeanc1997

Image Credits
Meg Buenaflor Moore Jeremiah Rivas