Comparing the views . . .

Part of the joy of reading for pleasure- for me- is imagining the various characters and everything about them and their storylines. I am talking about each and every detail about the characters- how they look, how they wear their hair, how they talk, their surroundings and even their vehicles. I have a complete movie of sorts running in my mind as I read. This is also true as I write.

My son is more of a music lover than a reader. In fact, he has written more than 100 songs. When he is not writing music he is listening to it. We were discussing music videos the other day- after watching a couple that only could be called bizarre! There are other music videos that are good overall, but depict a different meaning- or visual- of the song than one may visualize or imagine listening to it. We agreed that sometimes it is just better to listen to the music, letting ones imagination provide the visual! Unless, of course, it is Elvis in any of the videos from the '68 Comeback Special! Laughs!

There are also some avid readers who are reluctant to see a movie based on a well-read and well-loved novel. There are always some changes made when it goes from print to film. And, chances are the actors look or sound nothing like those in the mind's view of a reader. Of course, the reverse does occur- the movie versions lead readers to awesome books.

Working on the Secrets project has been interesting in this respect. Living with the characters for so long- in my mind, anyway- they have a certain look, personality, and even sound. My co-author and I have come up with a fantasy cast over time, but even at that I still have my own version tucked away in my mind.

This was really made evident to me as the audition team recently selected voice actors for the radio drama, Bloodline Confidential – Part One. How does one select the voice actors? For me, it was matter of trying to match the voices in my head for the specific characters! Laughs! Sometimes my choices matched the others on the audition team, and sometimes not. (As a side note, I might add that there were some awesome auditions!) In the end, we have an awesome cast of voice actors!

So, what do you think? Do you have the visions and voices in your mind as you read, or write? Do you prefer your music as you imagine it? Or do you enjoy another's interpretation of the art, be it writing or music?

Secrets One - The Series