Blog Dis
Rote memorization she wrote
2024-09-10
Familiarization is key, not memorizing text like an automaton, to then regurgitating it like a cat would cough up a hairball. Eww. Years back, and before the pandemic threw a wrench into pretty much every exhibition and festival in my fair City of Ottawa, we hosted an original exhibition called Sexapalooza, and it was a smashing success, attended by thousands. I was invited to speak, where I delivered a presentation called Dirty Talk in Five Easy Steps. The organizer felt my series of six Crimson novels, which delved into fantasy (vampire erotica), were a perfect match for their clientele. I was thrilled to be invited to speak and to experience this event.
So how did I prepare? I went to Las Vegas, of course, with a colleague, after winning a lottery to raise funds for the humane society. I won first prize and was stoked at the prospect of heading to Sin City. The symmetry couldn't have been timed to better perfection. I drank somewhat in Las Vegas, and made a slew of friends, inviting them up to our condo at the Flamingo for umpteen drinky-poos, and apparently meaningful conversation (wink, wink). While we explored and drank tequila for breakfast, staying up late and sleeping in late, like any normal visitor to Las Vegas, I allowed the idea for my presentation to congeal in my fermented brain, so to speak, after which I emailed my subject matter to the organizer w/o having actually written a single word. I felt the subject would uplift attendees and based on the final turnout, which ended up being a sell-out, my talk was a hit. The word 'dirty' in my presentations' title was an intentional acronym to utilize each letter as a springboard; this resulted in the presentation writing itself, like this...
Dirty equals:
D (for dialogue)
I (for imagination)
T (for timing) and
Y (for yearning; what many regard as anticipation).
At first, I tried to memorize portions of my notes until I realized it would defeat the purpose of connecting with an audience, which was my goal, to connect by way of ad-libbing. Rote memorization is for actors playing roles who are required to stick to the text of their script, if their director demands this level of discipline from them, rather than to let them run wild and improvise. But a writer of vampire erotica, getting up to present on dirty talk? Well, if I didn't know my own material then, when would I ever?
Besides, memorization can be stilted. There are exceptions of course, such as memorizing a beautiful poem, which I've done plenty. But memorizing my own speech? Nope. People come to hear you speak to hear your thoughts, rather than to watch you read from a page of text. Listeners want originality, to be flexible and to speak from the heart, which is precisely what I did. I spoke from the heart w/ only broad strokes of ideas, written out on a single sheet of paper, a small note, leaving the rest up to me, my nerves, and my shyness in sharing these deeply personal thoughts on the subject of talking dirty to your partner.
There is no magic potion for obliterating nerves, other than dying. 😅Billy Connolly, a Scottish comedian talked once in an interview about how he feels when he first takes stage; his heart is ready to cave in. Stage fright afflicts the best. Sir Laurence Olivier was amongst this group too and, if I'm honest, this is precisely how I feel when my name is first introduced before I sit in front of a microphone to read. I've read excerpts from my novels on radio, TV, during live readings at my book launch events, as well as to a select group of friends when I've given private readings, or when I've attended magazine launches where I've read one of my short stories. You have to give the impression of being as cool as a cucumber, while all the while you're a running river underneath.
Practice sometimes makes perfect. Read aloud to yourself. Record yourself reading to learn how to direct your voice to the microphone, which I know sounds weird, but it actually works. You'll find the right cadence, the confidence within yourself will begin to bubble up to the service, and it will feel more normal w/ every practice session. I've even read every chapter from my first novel, recording myself using a tripod, after which I'd upload these to my YouTube channel, but which I eventually took down owing to some of the weirdest stuff posted by guys. But don't let my experiences stop you from recording yourself as you read from your novels.
My long-term goal is to create an Audible Book for my seventh novel, POM, which will require focus and time, owing to the fact that POM is 770 pages long. Lordy! Though don't ask me how all the voices will be brought off, which means I may have to look to hiring actors to cover all the roles, or to teach myself how to modulate my voice to switch up tones. I like voices that have a measure of timber in them.
I have the utmost respect for actors, male and female, especially those who give live performances on stage in front of live audiences. You don't get to roll back the tape and re-do, or edit in the cutting room, looking for the best performance. Actors speak of the immediacy of acting on stage. But they are nonetheless spouting memorized text and it is because of this that I take my hat off to them. Recalling memorized text is brutally hard, especially if you're feeling exposed and nervous.
So for myself, and when it comes to holding my book launch event for POM (slated for October) I'm going to take a different approach this time around. There won't be a specific reading time. This will be about the pure celebration of having devoted nine years of my life to writing my seventh novel. I want to be able to let my hair down, and when the mood seems right, I'll get up to the microphone and read a chapter. I'd also like to invite a select number of Ottawa authors to my launch event and surprise one of them by asking them to make an impromptu reading, without forethought, without rote memorization, to wing it, to clutch a glass of wine, and to be imperfect while delivering words from their latest ditty.
Best advice really is to come prepared with a wee joke, which helps put your audience at ease and maybe yourself too... though this is where liquid courage works.
So how did I prepare? I went to Las Vegas, of course, with a colleague, after winning a lottery to raise funds for the humane society. I won first prize and was stoked at the prospect of heading to Sin City. The symmetry couldn't have been timed to better perfection. I drank somewhat in Las Vegas, and made a slew of friends, inviting them up to our condo at the Flamingo for umpteen drinky-poos, and apparently meaningful conversation (wink, wink). While we explored and drank tequila for breakfast, staying up late and sleeping in late, like any normal visitor to Las Vegas, I allowed the idea for my presentation to congeal in my fermented brain, so to speak, after which I emailed my subject matter to the organizer w/o having actually written a single word. I felt the subject would uplift attendees and based on the final turnout, which ended up being a sell-out, my talk was a hit. The word 'dirty' in my presentations' title was an intentional acronym to utilize each letter as a springboard; this resulted in the presentation writing itself, like this...
Dirty equals:
D (for dialogue)
I (for imagination)
T (for timing) and
Y (for yearning; what many regard as anticipation).
At first, I tried to memorize portions of my notes until I realized it would defeat the purpose of connecting with an audience, which was my goal, to connect by way of ad-libbing. Rote memorization is for actors playing roles who are required to stick to the text of their script, if their director demands this level of discipline from them, rather than to let them run wild and improvise. But a writer of vampire erotica, getting up to present on dirty talk? Well, if I didn't know my own material then, when would I ever?
Besides, memorization can be stilted. There are exceptions of course, such as memorizing a beautiful poem, which I've done plenty. But memorizing my own speech? Nope. People come to hear you speak to hear your thoughts, rather than to watch you read from a page of text. Listeners want originality, to be flexible and to speak from the heart, which is precisely what I did. I spoke from the heart w/ only broad strokes of ideas, written out on a single sheet of paper, a small note, leaving the rest up to me, my nerves, and my shyness in sharing these deeply personal thoughts on the subject of talking dirty to your partner.
There is no magic potion for obliterating nerves, other than dying. 😅Billy Connolly, a Scottish comedian talked once in an interview about how he feels when he first takes stage; his heart is ready to cave in. Stage fright afflicts the best. Sir Laurence Olivier was amongst this group too and, if I'm honest, this is precisely how I feel when my name is first introduced before I sit in front of a microphone to read. I've read excerpts from my novels on radio, TV, during live readings at my book launch events, as well as to a select group of friends when I've given private readings, or when I've attended magazine launches where I've read one of my short stories. You have to give the impression of being as cool as a cucumber, while all the while you're a running river underneath.
Practice sometimes makes perfect. Read aloud to yourself. Record yourself reading to learn how to direct your voice to the microphone, which I know sounds weird, but it actually works. You'll find the right cadence, the confidence within yourself will begin to bubble up to the service, and it will feel more normal w/ every practice session. I've even read every chapter from my first novel, recording myself using a tripod, after which I'd upload these to my YouTube channel, but which I eventually took down owing to some of the weirdest stuff posted by guys. But don't let my experiences stop you from recording yourself as you read from your novels.
My long-term goal is to create an Audible Book for my seventh novel, POM, which will require focus and time, owing to the fact that POM is 770 pages long. Lordy! Though don't ask me how all the voices will be brought off, which means I may have to look to hiring actors to cover all the roles, or to teach myself how to modulate my voice to switch up tones. I like voices that have a measure of timber in them.
I have the utmost respect for actors, male and female, especially those who give live performances on stage in front of live audiences. You don't get to roll back the tape and re-do, or edit in the cutting room, looking for the best performance. Actors speak of the immediacy of acting on stage. But they are nonetheless spouting memorized text and it is because of this that I take my hat off to them. Recalling memorized text is brutally hard, especially if you're feeling exposed and nervous.
So for myself, and when it comes to holding my book launch event for POM (slated for October) I'm going to take a different approach this time around. There won't be a specific reading time. This will be about the pure celebration of having devoted nine years of my life to writing my seventh novel. I want to be able to let my hair down, and when the mood seems right, I'll get up to the microphone and read a chapter. I'd also like to invite a select number of Ottawa authors to my launch event and surprise one of them by asking them to make an impromptu reading, without forethought, without rote memorization, to wing it, to clutch a glass of wine, and to be imperfect while delivering words from their latest ditty.
Best advice really is to come prepared with a wee joke, which helps put your audience at ease and maybe yourself too... though this is where liquid courage works.
