Read the following excerpt from the article "vision, voice and the power of creation: an author speaks out," by t. a. barron and answer the question that follows:

right now, i am spending a lot of time listening to the voice of a particularly compelling character: the young merlin. in the end, i finally heard the voice of merlin to a surprising source: the haunting, mysterious hooting of a great horned owl outside the window of my colorado home. as i listened to that owl's resonant [echoing] call in the pre-dawn hours one morning, something about it gave me a whole new cadence [rhythm], a whole new sound. and then, a whole new voice.

the author states, "i finally heard the voice of merlin to a surprising source: the haunting, mysterious hooting of a great horned owl outside the window of my colorado home." what is the author's implicit message in this statement?

the author realized merlin's voice should have the same qualities as the owl's voice.
the author thought merlin's voice should seem like it is hooting.
the author wished he had thought of merlin's voice sooner.
the author knew the owl would bring merlin's voice to life.