Saturday, June 13, 2009

Wooing the Muse


Congrats to the Surly Writer on visiting with her muse. She took the photo caption/story starter contest and followed through with her initial entry idea to craft a full blown story. Being the honest and good person Michelle is, she asked for her entry to be removed from comments on the original post so I wouldn't think she was trying to butter me up for the win.

Check out Michelle's story and let it inspire you to reach for your own creative goals.

How do you commune with your "muse" in order to be more productive?

24 comments:

Jessica Nelson said...

Go Michelle! :-)

I don't think I commune with a muse. It's fun to talk to about a muse, but mostly I daydream or sit down and write.

Culture Served Raw said...

Interesting subject, I will definately take a look at Michele's work.

Valerie

Kathryn Magendie said...

I didn't think I had a muse - but yesterday I went to the li-berry to work since GMR was cooking for company coming - so, on the way home, I put on "Virginia Kate's Song" (Angels of Venice has this celtic song that is so bluegrass in nature - that's part where bluegrass comes from--annnyyywayyy...) I was listening to VK's song and suddenly something came clear! what I should do about this one part of the novel that just wasn't working for me -- Taadaa! and I think it's the song - that special instrument only song...

Liz Wilkey (a.k.a. A Mom on Spin) said...

Muse??? I thought it was divine inspiration!

Angie Ledbetter said...

Jessica, daydreaming is a good and powerful "muse." :)

Thanks for dropping in, Valerie. Coming over there shortly.

Kat, music is and always will be a powerful "muse" and transporter. I remember listening to that tune in your Boop-mobile!

A muse by whatever name is a good thing, as long as it inspires you on the journey, liz. :)

Amy Sue Nathan said...

I honestly don't understand the concept of a muse, which probably means I don't have one. Ah, but perhaps I DO have a blog post. ;-)

Angie Ledbetter said...

LOL, Amy. A "muse" to me is simply whatever inspires you in your chosen area of creativity -- writing, art, music, dance, etc. You most certainly do have at least one! :)

Debbie said...

I enjoyed reading about Kat's music muse! Fun stuff.

Carol Murdock said...

My muse "comes forth" when I view pictures that bring back place, or visit a setting of place or recall memories of a person who inspired a character.........:)

Donna M. Kohlstrom said...

My muse likes to arrive just as I nod off for a nap or bedtime or when I've just stepped into the shower or am driving 70 mph on the turnpike! But the best times is when I sit, undisturbed, looking out a the nature that surrounds my home or trips. Things become clearer, problems become solutions and inspiration fills me. I'm going to start taking my voice activated tape recorder every where I go ("cept the shower but will set it just outside the door!) and dictate whatever comes to mind.

Eric said...

I also enjoyed Michelle's story. I don't think "commune" is the right word for what I do with my muse. Wrestle, cajole, argue, entice...these are probably more accurate. Well, there is the occasional time when my muse decides to work in harmony with my fingers, but that's unfortunately not as often as I'd like.

Carrie Wilson Link said...

I nap, of course!

B.J. Anderson said...

Go Michelle! And my muse is definitely music. :)

Michelle H. said...

Ah, shucks! I'm blushing (really, I am - you just can't tell). Truthfully, Angie, I never even heard of writers visiting their muses until I started reading blogs. Hmm... so this explains who that weird woman is hiding in my closet. I thought she was just a very cheap housemaid. ;-)

Anonymous said...

I am not allowed to visit with my muse in public. Her story was great. You are both very talented ladies. We have to get her to LA to catch some of her own.
Oren

Marguerite said...

I go out and dance to some great Cajun music and then the ideas just flow. Getting my Cajun blood pumping is my muse. Great story, Michelle!

Mouthy Housewife said...

My muse has been on strike, demanding better work conditions. She is offended by my pounding on the keyboard and cursing at the blank screen. Really, in this economic environment, you'd think she'd work harder.

Angie Ledbetter said...

Debbie, I bet that old southern twang twang or mountain music gets your creativity cooking too!

Your muse lives within your mind, hunh Carol? (Makes for easy access.) :)

Donna, those "mindless activities" work for me too, when I'm fresh and not draggin' my hiney. The V.A. recorder is a great idea. (Better than trying to scribble in the dark while the mind's still asleep.)

Hear ya, Eric. I've been known to cry, whine, beg and bribe. :) Thanks for dropping by!

Angie Ledbetter said...

Oh, yeah, Carrie. Nappage is a great time to plan with the muse.

B.J., it's nice to know you can just turn on the music and have the ideas flow!

LOL, Michelle. If your muse cleans (even a little bit), is she for rent?

Oren, you are sooo bad! I keep saying the same thing...if we ever hog tie and kidnap Michelle and drag her down here for a while, we'll fill her full of crawfish and other delicacies that she'd never wanna go back to stinky ol' PA. LOL

Marguerite, dat Cajun muse you got down dere, sha...she's a good 'un! (Love your blog. You must LIVE at a festival every day wit all dat joie de vivre! :)

Hey, Mouthy. Glad you came by! You might need to get a new muse. Hehe.

Angie Ledbetter said...

PS to Mouthy Housewife...I tried to comment at your blog and got this snarky message:

"Your comment has been blocked because the blog owner has set their spam filter to not allow comments from users behind proxies."

Whut's up wit dat? :)

Jenni James said...

Man, i have a muse alright. It's one loud obnoxious muse too. once it starts talking I type and never sleep again until the book is finished! LOL! That's so cool about Michelle. Jenni

Angie Ledbetter said...

Jenni, I think most writers would LOVE to have that muse, even if she's demanding. :)

Deb Shucka said...

I walk, preferably by water. My muse loves water and movement.

Jeanette Levellie said...

Angie:
I pray; that brings him on the scene fastest. Friday I prayed for a measely twenty minutes around 6:30 a.m. and that night I wrote over 2,500 words! They flew out my heart onto the keys; it was lovely!

Then, when I'm trying to nap, particularly if I'm so exhausted I forgot my name, my muse loves to share his BEST ideas, demanding that I fish myself off the couch to get them down. Sometimes I tell him to come back later, but he's a stubborn fellow. He likes to be in charge.

Thanks for asking!
Jen

Labels (Posts, not Peoples)

Powered By Blogger