Might As Well Face It, You’re Addicted to Music…
by M.A. George
One of the things I’ve learned about myself—one of the biggest reasons writing suits me so well—is that I can gab about practically anything for as long as you’ll let me. Ask me to put pen to paper with the subject matter being my other greatest love—music—and I’m off to the races. So…Brace yourself. I might get a little wordy. And random. And most definitely quirky. But hopefully we’ll wind up with a post worth reading!
I realize there are plenty of authors out there who prefer to write in peace and quiet, but I’m not one of them. Silence gives me the heebie-jeebies. Give me two seconds of quiet time, and I feel compelled to fill it with music. I’m hopelessly addicted to tunes. So needless to say, music is an important part of the writing experience for me.
It was apparently Plato who said the following (I didn’t exactly pull this one directly from the horse’s mouth):
“Music gives a soul to the universe, wings to the mind, flight to the imagination and life to everything.”
Writing is all about the imagination taking wing, so it makes total sense to me that music would set it aloft. Apparently it made sense to Plato too. (Who knew he and I had so much in common?) Music and creativity just go hand in hand. I know my mind is always in a more creative mood when I feed it a steady stream of music. Without a healthy helping of melodies, my creativity grinds to a screeching halt.
It has been said that music activates more parts of the brain than any other human activity. It stimulates our right brain as well as left brain. Not to mention the emotional response music inspires. It’s no wonder my brain is hooked on the stuff like it might as well be heroin.
There are certain modern amenities without which my writing would be severely impaired…
1.) The laptop — Imagine if I had to actually sit at a desk instead of in my cushy chair. Ugh.
2.) The internet — What would I do without Google?
3.) Spellcheck — I’m a self-professed stickler for proper spelling, but typing in a hurry brings out the moron in me sometimes.
4.) iTunes —This one goes without saying, given the subject of this post.
Jane Austen is one of my favorite authors of all time. I would never endeavor to compare myself to the great Jane. However, I have at times wondered if I would have found the writer within myself had I lived in her time. Would I have been just as productive with nothing but my pen and paper, minus all the fancy modern tools at my disposal? I think I could live without the laptop…I could manage to drag my lazy butt to a desk and actually sit fully upright. I’ve even been known to jot ideas in my notebook with real, physical ink…I’m sure I could extrapolate that to penning a novel the good old-fashioned way.
Living without Google might be a greater challenge, but I think I’m up to the task. I might really enjoy some time doing research at the local library. While I like to include accurate geographical references and scientific facts in my writing, they’re not necessarily mandatory in the realm of fiction. I could even make do without the library if I had to.
Spellcheck is awesome, but it’s not a requirement…If I’m writing by hand, there would hopefully be less opportunity to get in a rush and turn “humiliate” into “humilitarian”. (Don’t ask me where I got that example…Couldn’t possibly be from personal experience.)
But then we get to the iTunes (or any comparable means of pumping endless hours of musical wonderfulness into my eager ears). Would I really be able to write—to create a world worthy of your time in reading about it—in the void of silence? Okay, maybe Jane Austen had the occasional sound of a pianoforte clinking pleasantly in the background. Somehow I doubt she had the arsenal of tunes at her disposal that I am currently hoarding on my playlist. Would my writing be quite the same without the inspiration that music brings? Would I be able to survive the withdrawal of my favorite drug? The answer, I’m afraid, is an irrefutable, categorical “No”.
You can force me to sit in a creaky, uncomfortable wooden chair until my butt falls asleep—to scrawl, hunched over the pages by candlelight, until the pen is permanently imbedded in my cramping hand. You can even make me edit my own work for content and grammar. You can cut off my nose and withhold all of my caffeine (preferably the former before the latter). But don’t you dare take my tunes…
Title: Proximity
Proximity Series: Book #1
By: M.A. George
Published on October 3, 2012
Proximity Series: Book #1
By: M.A. George
Published on October 3, 2012
Book Blurb
Dr. Palta Capal would be a typical American career woman…if only she were human.
She has found her calling in this world as a physician. It’s an ideal outlet for her compassionate spirit...and unearthly healing powers.
Palta may spend her nights rereading Jane Austen novels, but she deliberately avoids pursuing her own love story. Human men — attractive as they may be — inevitably grow old and wither, leaving her to grieve in solitude. Frankly, no one has seemed worth the torment.
Enter Eric Moran, the intensely attractive and enigmatic new coworker on the scene. With his quiet confidence and warm smile, he manages to draw Palta’s attention. Little does she know that he, too, holds a secret…one that will propel them both into an escalating collision of two worlds.
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Title: Relativity
Proximity Series Book #2
Proximity Series Book #2
By M.A. George
Publication Date: January 9, 2013
Publication Date: January 9, 2013
Book Blurb
No matter the planet, Palta Capal is an alien.
She’s lived a lifetime where she never belonged…but relocating to the “home world” she’s never seen has her feeling more like an outsider than ever.
Teetering between the thrill of newfound love and the despair of family loss—not to mention the looming threat of global war—Palta doesn’t need any more excitement in her life.
But what she needs and what she gets are two entirely different things.
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About the AuthorM. A. George is part proud mother of two adorable children, part super top secret agent…Oops, probably just lost that job.
Writing is what keeps her up into the wee hours of the night. Fortunately, she has a lot of energy (Read: caffeine is her friend). She has a bit of an obsession with music (It does a fantastic job of tuning out rambunctious children while she attempts to focus).
She sincerely hopes people out there enjoy reading her work as much as she enjoys writing it. And if anyone hears of work for a super top secret agent, she’s now available (Discretion guaranteed…).
Get news and updates on her latest work (including the continuation of the Proximity series) by visiting her blog or the Proximity Facebook Page.
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