Q: Do you make art other than prose? What kind, and how is it different?
A: I hesitate to call it art, but over the last few years I’ve developed an unexpected interest in video editing and digital music composition. My wife is a food writer and cookbook author who occasionally has to create video content for various reasons, so over time I began shooting her videos and composing short music pieces to accompany them. Something about trying to create a visual narrative that makes sense, and editing cuts so that your brain finds a sequence palatable, is a fun challenge that is reminiscent of, but still very different from, breaking out a plot sequence. Similarly, I’m a novice musician, but the thing I’ve enjoyed most about composing short pieces to go with those videos is trying to evoke a particular atmosphere that enhances whatever it goes with, without drawing too much attention to itself. In that way, it feels a little similar to building themes in short fiction that bolster the story without hitting reader over the head. Again, these are food videos, so it’s not like I’m making a feature film or anything. But what can I say? I get a real kick out of it.
Thomas Ha’s story “Where the Old Neighbors Go”
in Metaphorosis Friday, 11 September 2020.
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