Odd epiphany

Thanks to a post on grammar_whores, I finally realized why writing comes so naturally to me: It's because of my music training.

Musical notation is set up such that the performer knows exactly what sound, color, speed, etc., the composer wants just by looking at a sheet of paper. Translating all those little black dots and strange abbreviations into beautiful sounds relies upon knowing what each of them means. Sforzando is not the same thing as an accent, for instance. Nor is a ritard the same thing as a rallantando.

The same is true for writing, especially when writing dialogue. The words themselves, like notes, are the core of the piece, but without proper structure, spelling, grammar and punctuation, the effect gets lost. This is why proper use of commas, semi-colons, dashes and such is essential. Colorful adverbs and adjectives are not enough.

When I read, I hear the words in my head as if someone were reading them aloud. I just reread "The Hobbit" for the first time since seeing LOTR and goodness if I didn't hear Serena's voice every time Gandalf said something. The beauty of Tolkien's writing is that one can hear those things, and the beauty of Serena's acting is that he can translate that writing into spoken music.

The two aren't that different, I suppose. It's just a different set of notation.