Meet Marcia Butler

 

We were lucky to catch up with Marcia Butler recently and have shared our conversation below.

Marcia, looking forward to learning from your journey. You’ve got an amazing story and before we dive into that, let’s start with an important building block. Where do you get your work ethic from?

I have always been a “worker” and attentive to the smallest of details. This is to say, I am a perfectionist and quite content to be one, because the careers I have worked in require nothing less. This began with my thirty year career as an oboist in New York City, a highly competitive environment. Performing in top shape every single day was a given. But I held myself to an imperative that is greater than that. Music itself was the driving factor. To represent the intentions of the composer to the best of my ability. To respect my colleagues on the concert stage as we approached that interpretation with nuance and sensitivity. And, the understanding that the listening audience deserves all that we can give, each and every time. Now as an author, I have transposed that discipline and those mandates directly to my writing. Searching for the precise word or phrase. Fleshing out a character that is so true, the reader will feel deeply invested. Telling a story that not only captures the vagaries of the human condition but also delights as a satisfying read. With each book I write, it is never finished until my publisher says to me, Marcia, we need to go to press.”

Thanks for sharing that. So, before we get any further into our conversation, can you tell our readers a bit about yourself and what you’re working on?

Creativity has always been an integral part of my life. Prior to becoming an author, I had several creative careers: professional musician, interior designer, and documentary filmmaker. During my thirty-year musical career, I performed as a principal oboist and soloist on the most renowned of New York and international stages, with many high-profile musicians and orchestras – including pianist Andre Watts and composer/pianist Keith Jarrett. The New York Times was kind enough to call me a “first rate artist”. My interior design work has been published in numerous shelter magazines and ranged up and down the East Coast, from Boston to NYC to Miami. The Creative Imperative, my documentary film exploring the essence of creativity, premiered at The New York Society Library in 2019 and is now available on YouTube. And I’ve published a music memoir and two novels. My fourth book, a novel—Dear Virginia, Wait For Me—is coming out in May 2025. With all of these careers I’ve always considered myself simply (or not so simply!) as a story teller who uses different lenses.After four decades in New York City, I now call New Mexico home.

There is so much advice out there about all the different skills and qualities folks need to develop in order to succeed in today’s highly competitive environment and often it can feel overwhelming. So, if we had to break it down to just the three that matter most, which three skills or qualities would you focus on?

My advice to anyone who aspires to a creative life, is to understand that waiting for inspiration in order to begin is a false premise. Inspiration and ideas, come from, and out of, the “doing”. Many times, in fact most of the time, the “doing” feels uncomfortable and unsatisfying. But this is to be expected. To live a satisfying creative life is, at times, like burrowing through a very dark tunnel to find the gold that is miles and miles away. You know it is there, but you inhale a lot of dust along the way. So, buckle up and put in the hours. You will learn just as much from feeling discouraged as feeling accomplished. And always stay humble to your art from. It is and always will be, so much bigger than any of us.

As we end our chat, is there a book you can leave people with that’s been meaningful to you and your development?

The best book I have read for inspiration regarding the creative act is The War Of Art by Steven Pressfield. A few quotes are:
“There’s no mystery to turning pro. It’s a decision brought about by an act of will.”
“Grandiose fantasies are a symptom of resistance. They’re a sign of an amateur.”
“As artists and professionals it is our obligation to enact our own internal revolution, a private insurrection inside our own skulls.”

Contact Info:

Image Credits

First Image – Head Shot: Matt Dine
All other Images: Marcia Butler

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