The secret drawer

Long before this era of senseless over-sharing, there was an intriguing piece of furniture called a rolltop desk, where our ancestors used to sit and write. It had secret drawers to keep handwritten letters and faded portraits of their loved ones. These secret drawers were kept locked, and the key to open them was hidden. Sometimes, the women wore the key sewn into their garments. I've just opened this Substack with the same intention as those women of the past -- that is, to keep these inklings hidden, unreachable -- unless you’re a subscriber, which means you have the key to open them. And thanks to the new tech, my voice will not fade away. Sound waves are as unique as handwritten letters. I've never understood why an actor must impersonate the narrative voice of the author and his characters, like on a radio soap opera. It’s like listening to a foreign movie. I don’t buy it. Of course, an actor might have a perfect pitch and better delivery than many authors, especially those authors that smoked too many cigarettes -- and consequently had no pipes at all. Or those that drank themselves into a stupor, slurring all the words while reading. But if I were forced to choose between…, the Welsh poet Dylan Thomas and a legion of wannabes, I would select that chain smoker and holy drinker, whose recordings on the BBC are still the best I have ever listened to. Hear me out, writing is not only about telling a story or presenting facts in an orderly fashion. For that, you can turn to some historian or dedicated journalist. Writing a poem, a poem in prose, or a fine novel is the adventure of a solitary soul to reach out through the inherent beauty of words. And mostly spoken words. That pleasing sonorous quality that scholars call euphony traces back to the Greek adjective eúphōnos, meaning sweet-voiced. So, join me in this new adventure. Perhaps, you would hear birds tweeting in the background or the bell tolling from the close Franciscan convent. And yet, I love to record on my desk while writing. I swiftly catch a new idea and the dynamic spontaneity that makes fun such a lonely craft. Indeed, a recording studio is paramount while performing any song for the many instruments and all the voices. On the contrary, this is me. The one who dares to think out loud and then write it down. Get full access to Don't You Dare To Think Out Loud! at javiertruben.substack.com/subscribe