Guitar | Life In 12 Keys

Guitarist & Teacher

I started playing guitar in 1988 after hearing an Eddie Van Halen solo. I was hooked immediately and never had any doubt about what I’d be doing with the rest of my life.

After a few years playing with Rock and Metal bands, I took a deep dive into a variety of other guitar styles including Classical Guitar, Jazz Fusion, Blues, Latin, and Finger-style Acoustic Guitar.

I grew up in Canton, Ohio, home of the Football Hall of Fame, but just too cold. I moved to the Orlando, Florida area in 1999 with my wife (now of 27 years!) Celeste.

I started playing in professional bands and also teaching guitar lessons in 1990. By the late 1990s, I had played over 2000 live shows and had a roster of 70 guitar students per week. I’m still playing 3-5 gigs per week around Central Florida. These days my teaching is limited but I will take a few dedicated guitar students as time allows.

Guitar Blogger

In 2018 I got into blogging and www.Lifein12Keys.com was born! At first I wasn’t sure what I wanted to do, but quickly realized it was best to stick with my strengths – Guitar Content. I confirmed what I always suspected, that I love to write.

Soon after the blog got going, I published 4 guitar instructional books including the best selling ‘The 7 Day Practice Routine for Guitarists’. My books and lesson materials are available on LifeIn12Keys.com . Published physical books are also available from amzn.

Writing Guitar Books

My first book was “The 7 Day Practice Routine for Guitarists” in late 2018. My best-selling guitar practice guide book with exercises, guitar music theory, chords, scales, and arpeggio studies. I’m proud to say I’ve never had a bad review yet!

My Next book was the “Beginner’s Chord Guide” in 2019. I had many requests from guitarists on my email list to do a more beginner focused guide, so here it is!
The shorter book covers how guitar chords work, and how they are created. I also take a deep dive into guitar chord theory and how to make your own guitar chords from scratch.

During the COVID 2020 epidemic, I wrote 2 more full-length books. In one year!
My Modal Scale Workout is just that. A technical workout book using Modal Scales on the guitar.

“What started as a simple hand-out to my guitar students exploded into a full-sized book”. Modal scales, scale theory, the circle of keys, and a very simple way to approach modes and get them under your fingers. Also includes both of my popular modal scale workouts from 2018 and 2020.

Classical Guitar – A Practical Guide Vol. 1

I’ve always wanted to convey my passion of playing Classical Guitar into print. This book is an epic introduction to classical guitar music, guitar history, composers, art, and more. Includes 25 beautiful classical guitar pieces and accompanying lessons.
I also include Mauro Guiliani’s 120 Right-Hand Studies from the 17th Century! Timeless technical work that will be useful for years to come.

Nerd/Gamer

My nerd side started around the same time as my interest in music; the early 1980’s. My first computer was a Texas Instruments TI-99 4A. I loved writing my own Role Playing Games in Basic and then saving them onto cassette tapes to share with friends. I guess I’m really showing my age there! I still enjoy a table-top D&D game from time to time.

What started as a fun computer hobby turned into a lifelong passion for tech, art, and web development. I truly enjoy all aspects of running my websites, even the technical stuff like hosting my own web server instances and software installs, graphics and more… which I do all myself.

It’s almost as much fun as creating the guitar content itself! Well, maybe not….

These days my wife Celeste and I like to hang out with our Chihuahuas; Rosita, Abigail, and Princess Leia at our home in Sanford, Florida. I still like playing video games, skateboarding, writing, going to the beach, and of course~ Playing Guitar.

After taking a bit of a break from writing and blogging, it feels good to be back creating web content and helping other guitarists around the world.

Craig W. Smith
Guitarist & Author
@lifein12keys

Guitar Practice Books and Lessons