Hearing a good story seems to do my heart and mind a lot of good. With the isolation, I have found the voices of the readers to be good company, and through them, I have gotten to know writing styles, met amazing characters, and taken myself to new worlds with every story. Even before C-19, I made a habit of listening to good stories--downloading them from my public library. As a resident of New York, I am fortunate to have access to the Monroe County Library System as well as the New York Public Library. Between the two, I can usually find a good book to listen to at any time. With the online system, the library is always open.
As my daily artistic life moves from creating musical scores (both classical and theatrical) into the realm of the visual arts (drawing and illustrating), I often put on an audiobook while I am working. It seems to go well with the activity. Because of the audiobooks, it is interesting to observe the differences between the two creative disciplines.
When creating music, I actively listen to something from another realm. I create that sound, and then make choices about the way it should be notated for its future re-creation. The movements of my body and mind are working together with my hearing (both internal and external) and sight. This process takes my full attention and I try to avoid any distraction that would take away that focus.
With the visual arts, my mind is engaged in a completely different way. My mind directs the hand as my eyes take in the information of what the hand creates. Once a mark is made, my mind judges it and directs the process. Like music, there is no outside auditory stimulation in its process, but still I am listening and hearing my inner thoughts.
Visual arts require patience. Often, I must make repeated brush strokes and layer color,. The repetition takes time and my mind must wait for the strokes to happen; it is ahead of what my body can do. While I am making marks, this leaves time for other thoughts to enter as I am working. When this happens, one thought may wander into circles of thought, and if those circles of thought are positive ones, all is well. If destructive, then I do myself harm.
Audiobooks seem to solve the problem, and listening to stories seems to help me focus even more on the physical work at hand. I find it's double the enjoyment--making beautiful art and listening to stories. Over the months of listening, I also notice that my listening skills have improved. I seem to pay more attention to what others are saying in real life, and it is easier to remember names and details.
What amazes me even more is of the marvelous and varied talents of the great readers.
Some of my favorite stories of late have been from Young Adult series. I love the Phillip Pullman, Sally Lockhart mysteries. Oh my goodness!! The reader, Anton Lesser, is absolutely amazing! I have never felt such fear as he takes on the voices of the evil characters, and I always wonder if Sally will survive. It's great!
Alan Bradley's Flavia de Luce series, read by Jayne Entwistle, is also excellent. She recounts the inner thoughts and tales of a young English girl enamored with chemistry and solving mysteries. The character is delightful and Entwistle is brilliant.
I also just finished and loved the Enola Holmes series by Nancy Springer. Netflix made a recent movie of this character, but the story Netflix tells doesn't even come close to the wonderful stories of the books. The books are intriguing and so smart, and anyone who liked the movie will probably enjoy the books even more.
All in all, audiobooks are wonderful. My life is better because of them. It makes me so glad I have my library card and this time to listen.
