Left Brain – Right Brain

How to bake a book, The Big Bang Theory, and apple pie.

Before we begin, I want to know if you’re a left or right brained person and does that influence what you read?

This is the question we will explore. You are invited to comment on this post. One person who comments will be selected to receive an autographed paperback of one of my books—your choice—and some SWAG.

14055083_1075871055828417_1121114740106928900_nIn my growing up years, I am convinced I was right brained dominate. I avoided science the way a vampire runs from daylight. I took biology in high school and college—because I was forced to—yet managed to avoid chemistry, physics, or anything else the brainy nerds on The Big Bang Theory find fascinating. And yet, at the core of this TV program reflecting our modern culture, each character is searching for a heart connection—yes, even Sheldon Cooper wants love.

While in school, I was attracted to words, books captivated me. They became my best friend since I changed addresses frequently due to the Air Force posting my dad around the country and overseas. In the 6th grade, while living in Japan and attending a military school, I penned a romance. Ohhhh, the pain that produced!

My teacher, Mrs. Cohen from Boston with her too-tight panties (and if you’re out there reading this, yes, I really did think that about you) pulled my parents in for a conference. This was a baaadd thing. My Air Force father had to take off from work and was confronted with something he considered childish. “All of this over scribbles about two kids holding hands!” Needless to say, Mrs. Cohen kept a close eye on me after that, but also gave me a wide berth.

While my parents never encouraged my writing, it was my secret world. I had poetry published in a literary magazine during high school, and then while in college, I became a reporter for the newspaper. Words, I learned were powerful. And I wanted to be blanketed in them.

By now, you’re wondering how I’m connecting books, apple pie, and the science between left brain and right brain dominance. Stick with me and you’ll see.

I contend baking an apple pie successfully can reveal whether or not you are left-brain or right-brain dominate. I’ll lay out my premise for you to decide; however, you’ll actually have to work to prove me wrong. It’ll be fun, I promise.

All of us have two sides to our brain. The difference in the power of the left and right has to do with how we process information. The left side takes in information in a logical and sequential order. For intuitive and random information processing, the right side steps up. If we process with only one side of our brain, we can get lost in the world. Literally—like not being able to follow a map.

So, battle lines are drawn between the left and the right…I’m still talking about the brain here. The dominate side of our brain is often the side we rely on when learning new things. However, to get the most out of life, having a balance between the sides of our brains allows us to broaden our learning, thus our life experience.

This is where apple pie enters to take a bow. Baking is an art (just like writing a book.) The visual of the pie with a scalloped edge enhances the appeal of the dessert. We eat first with our eyes. Our taste buds tango when we see the golden brown steaming pie pulled from the oven. Yum! However, to get to that final mouth-watering experience, we start with the left brain—logical and sequential ordering. Baking, more so than other cooking, requires precision measuring of ingredients. Too much flour or too much fat and the crust isn’t flakey. Too much brown sugar or cinnamon masks the flavor of the apples. Accurate handling of the ingredients is needed to ensure a tummy-satisfying experience once our eyes signal for us to take a bite of pie.

Writing a book is very similar to making a pie. The cover might look great, but when you take a bite—the story—is it satisfying? Is there a balance between characters, tension, emotion, and the progression of the story?

As an author, I need both sides of my brain to bake a book. I need the right to sweep me away to the world of storytelling, but then, I need my left brain to handle all the details of getting the book to readers—the business side of books: galleys, cover art, formatting, and promoting, etc.

To bring my best work, I need to strengthen both sides of my brain. But does that influence what I read? Does your left-right brain percentage influence what you read?

It is my hypothesis that romance readers—like me—want books with a deep heart connection and a happy ending. It doesn’t really matter if we’re left or right brain dominate—it’s love that connects us. The cast of the brainy characters on The Big Bang Theory proves that.

If you want to determine if you’re left brain or right brain dominate, bake an apple pie. For those who avoid baking (like me), I’m including some websites with quizzes about brain-side dominance. I hope you’ll take one…or more and get your score, and then please comment about whether or not you believe your brain dominance influences what you enjoy reading.

Here are links to some short and entertaining quizzes:

Sommmer + Sommer Brain Test

pt psychtests

A Real Me

13659185_1086900461348773_2448616264926930897_nPlease be sure to leave a comment with this post and I also hope you’ll connect with me! I’m seeking a heart connection with other romance readers.

Website: http://www.linda-joyce.com

Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/LindaJoyceAuthor

Twitter: @LJWriter  https://twitter.com/LJWriter

Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/6950241.Linda_Joyce

Amazon author page:  http://www.amazon.com/Linda-Joyce/e/B00BODDROS/

Pinterest:  http://pinterest.com/LindaJoyceWorld/boards/

Happy Reading,
Linda Joyce

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95 thoughts on “Left Brain – Right Brain”

  1. Thank you for inviting me to be a guest here. And for the record, I am still slightly more right brained than left.
    Smiles,
    Linda Joyce

  2. Left Brained. Enjoyed the test.
    Do you think that is why when I dance it is said
    That I have two left feet?

    • Connie,
      (That’s my sister’s name, too.) Do you have a favorite genre? Do you recall your favorite book as a child?

      • I like many genres, but I guess mystery/suspense with romance mixed in is my very favorite. Right now I’m reading A Little Life by Hanya Yanagihara so that’s really different, and long, and good. When I was a little girl, The Little Train that Could was my favorite book. What about you, Linda.

      • I have my teaching degree – secondary education for Social Studies and did teach for awhile. For the last 7 years I have been an admin assistant at a dental office. I give myself the official job title of “Other Duties as Assigned”

  3. I’m 34% left – 66% right in the Sommer-Sommer test.
    I am 63% right brained as the pt psychtests indicates and
    right brain inclined 54% in the personality quiz.

    I’d say that’s about right. But, also, any given day, depending what else is going on, can be different.

    • PJ, lol, clearly you lean to the right–of the brain. I can’t speak for politics. 🙂 Thank you so much for having me as a guest. It was a lot of fun.
      All my best,
      Linda

  4. Every test of I took said I was almost even. Which I figured would be the result. I’m unsure it influences my reading, I just enjoy reading. I read everything from science journals to erotic romance. So maybe that’s why I like such a variety.

  5. I am strange i actually am 50% both i can back an apple pie and do the matmatical stuff to took test as a lark and it showed 50/50

  6. I’m right brained, although some of the questions may have been skewed because I’m blind in one eye. 😉

      • I knew I would be left brained but it is funny because I got different scores on all 3 tests I did. The thirds one put me closer to the middle too. I do prefer order and details and if there is a project I am great at working it out and solving it. I love language and math has always been a strong subject for me. Maybe it just depends on the day since I am a Gemini:)

  7. While not a math oriented person, I do follow baking instructions to the T. I get lots of compliments on my apple pie. I even make the crust from scratch too. But don’t you know that left handed people are right minded.
    Pat

  8. I am 54% – Just a little toward right brained. Basically stable. My daughter, that I raised on my own, would be totally right brained. I keep telling her to start writing! Her crafts and art show an imagination off the scale.

      • She makes everything. For birthday parties my four year old grand-daughter goes to, she makes the birthday girls princess dresses. Full blown with huge skirts! She also always brings gift baskets, makes her own candy and baked goods, which are included in gift packets for all the children attending a party her daughter is invited to. In HS she won awards for her artwork. If her daughters school needs to raise funds, she is always there and her concoctions always bring the most money in. So, a middle brained single mom raised a child, that when she was days away from having her own daughter, decided she was hot and stripped naked and took a dip in her child’s play pool on their back porch! Thankfully, they lived in the middle of nowhere Arizona desert….

  9. I found I was 70% left brain and 30% right brain.I like to cook,read,walk on beach.I have been married 32 years and have 2 grown children.I have had jobs in the food industry and worked as an analyst for The Nuclear Regulatory Commision.The food jobs were more creative.Thr NRC required doing things according to rules.I worked with states and Indian tribes detrrmining where to put a final disposal.No one wanted it ,but NRC and Department of Energy put in the desert of Nevada.Nothing there because it id still in litigation.I love a completed project like an apple pie,finishing a booketc.NRC was frustrating.

  10. I always test as 50% right brain & 50% left brain. I am not the greatest and math and science (just decent), but my left brain has given me great facility with languages and also grammar, while the right brain gives me a great imagination. Good balance for someone who wants to be a writer.
    Thanks for the great giveaway!

  11. I am definitely left brain, but on the average about 70%. I think that with some genres, it might affect it more than others, but I don’t think it does with romance.

  12. It’s been many years, but I can bake an apple pie. I always did well in math and science. I took all three tests, and 2 said I use both sides equally and the third said I was left dominant. I love romance, but I will read non-fiction on occasion. I suspect if I were all left brain, I’d like more non-fiction and less romance. Good thing I’m not more left brained. 😉

  13. PJ,
    Thank you again for inviting me to be a guest here. I think everyone enjoyed the mind teasers.
    I’ll be sending the book out ASAP to the winner.
    Happy Reading to all!
    Linda Joyce

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