Supine. That’s the position I’ve been in for the past 72 hours. On a hard bed, in an Amritsari room filled with leafy plants, with a beautiful white dog for company - whose name is Ivy.
I tested positive for COVID-19 and have also developed throat ulcers due to all the coughing. To sum up, my eyes are bleary, my nose runny, my mind dizzy and I can’t speak - all of which render my usual means of catharsis (i.e. reading novels) a bit difficult.
So instead, I’ve been listening to audiobooks, specifically: The Forty Rules of Love by Elif Shafak and Snow Crash by Neal Stephenson. And in the calmer moments of recovery, I’ve been reflecting on the nature of audio and oral storytelling.
The medium is beautiful and filled with irony. For example, I mostly turn to audio when my body is in motion (e.g. during walks) or when I am physically immobile (e.g. right now!); and in the continuum of these extremes live so many other creative formats.
It’s also worth saying something about heightened presence. Because during illness, our senses become limited and we also consciously reduce our exposure to external stimuli, like social media, screens and sounds. This is not a romantic state to be in but I’ve found it does lend itself to a surreal kind of focus, especially when listening to audiobooks. Perhaps due to my inability to take in anything else, I feel like I’m absorbing every word, character and world that I’m being exposed to.
Additionally, when the mind is numb, it becomes difficult to hear that mysterious inner voice which narrates our books and whispers our silent truths. In such a state, I for one am grateful for an external narrator, reading stories to me in a voice that most certainly influences their resonance - sometimes for better, sometimes for worse. As audio technologies and artificial intelligence develop, I’m sure audiobook narration will become hyper-personalised, with listeners being able to customise voices based on mood, tone, accent and general speaking style… Again, an advancement probably for better and for worse.
So what else? I have no idea. I am not in the right frame of mind to think, let alone write. But here we are. If you have any audiobook recommendations (that are particularly escapist and transportive), I’d be grateful to hear them! Otherwise I’ll be back to publishing newsletters and podcasts next week.
The Substack app has audio now so you can listen to every newsletter here if you’d like! I’ve also taken to audiobooks for plays. I find them difficult to read, so listening to the dramatized version has enabled me to finally get to A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Peter Pan, etc. There are also two fiction podcast companies: Realm.fm and ursastory.com!
The Substack app has audio now so you can listen to every newsletter here if you’d like! I’ve also taken to audiobooks for plays. I find them difficult to read, so listening to the dramatized version has enabled me to finally get to A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Peter Pan, etc. There are also two fiction podcast companies: Realm.fm and ursastory.com!
Hope you feel better soon!