Taking a moment to write about a nonfiction book because I want to apply some of the lessons from my singing to my writing.
First. I've been doing daily vocal warmups and a bit of time practicing songs for... has it been three years now? At least two; and I've had a minimum of two breakthroughs with my voice: volume (the lid is off) and ease -- effortless extension of my range in both directions by several notes. I'll never be a solo concert singer, but ... well, I can relax and actually open my jaw now; I've got at least an extra half-inch gap between my teeth when I sing, though it *feels* like two inches (LOL), and what sounds to ME like a room's worth of volume. M. can hear me singing clearly through two closed doors while the shower is running. People can hear me when I speak in crowded places because I can support my voice now.
All that from weekly half-hour lessons and 15 minutes a day.
What kind of breakthrough could I have in my writing from applying the same approach? I've long tried the 15-minute practices Eric Witchey recommends, but getting myself to commit to that disciplined practice *daily,* with regular check-ins has been ... problematic. And such improvements in writing are harder to quantify, although "I'm not making the same mistakes in my short stories" would be a great first step.
Singing is easy because I can do my daily 15 minutes while in the shower, and my weekly lesson is scheduled. Perhaps if I link my writing sessions to my second cup of coffee (or to *earn* my second cup of coffee)... I shall try this beginning Monday. And I could take a half-hour on Wednesdays to think and read about craft.
At any rate. I just finished reading The Performer's Companion (subtitle: A Guide to Conquering Performance Anxiety). I'm reading it for my voice instructor, who got four books on performance in at the same time.
Like Performance Power for Singers, which I read two years ago, I felt very much that I was brushing against concepts I'd read about many times before, or touched on in different ways: meditation, relaxation, visualization for success: discipline (although in this version, I'd say that last word came up the least; she emphasizes play rather than discipline, but to the same end). She also incorporates the Alexander Technique, which I'll shorthand as body awareness and good balance as contrasted to "good posture."
Author Sharon Stohrer spends some time reassuring the reader that performance anxiety is normal, and a certain amount of tension is essential to a good performance. Then she spends chapters on mental preparation, intentional rehearsal, performance prep, physical prep, nurturing your inner artist, tips for backstage and getting in the performance mindset, the value of investing in oneself (including the value of music to society) and a bit about the Alexander Technique.
She has checklists of suggestions in almost every chapter and strongly encourages the reader to try some or all, and to track what does or does not work in a journal, so one learns what works for oneself, because everyone's needs are different. She does make it clear that all of this is work, or at least an investment of time, and that it is a worthwhile investment one should take seriously -- and that it is of serious value to re-instill a certain amount of play into one's discipline.
And she makes the point that if you try all she suggests and nothing works, therapy is a valid and excellent next step. She or other singers have tried the things she suggests, and she uses many of them, and she still needed therapy, worked out her issues and was able to return to the stage. That in itself is a supportive and honest message I appreciate. All that practical, experiential background gives this book, which spends a certain amount of time on the emotional/performance balancing act and her own professional experience, a heft it might not otherwise have. Stohrer is helping her readers overcome anxiety and stage fright, so her focus on such emotional support is entirely appropriate.
Other than a sample log, it lacks worksheets, although it is rich in suggested practices and exercises. It has a reasonable resource section. It does not push the Alexander Technique (the author is a practitioner), and does not get into that until the last chapter.
I have difficulty not comparing TPC to PPforS; the latter I remember as feeling slightly disjointed, and written as if the authors thought students would be encountering these skills (meditation, visualization) for the first time in their lives, but also broad and rich in ideas. It also felt... dated, somehow. Stohrer's book, with its references to 9-11 and might feel the same away in another decade.
