Ah yes. My muse loves to tell me what to do!! Sometimes though, she’s very silent and I need to trigger her so I can write.
The internet gave me this cute little how to jump-start your muse list. The website it came from promotes a hypnotic writing wizard software – apparently, with a few hypnotic tricks, your mind will open like a flower and you can write a book at the speed of light.
Alright, I laugh at the idea. I mean come on. First, let’s look at this list. I don’t play the guitar but I do talk to myself all the time, and play with my cats every day. Pretend you are rich…nice one. Write nonsense. Take slow breaths. Mmmmmmmmm. Take a break? Shut up!!!
If there’s one thing I know, my muse doesn’t come over if I scratch my cat’s belly or if I believe my bank account balance is over one million dollars. For the hypnotic tricks, I don’t know about you, but I think hypnosis works great when you want to quit smoking, give birth, or travel back in time so you can get inspired. Maybe that’s what this software is about. Inspiration. And a great way to make money off gullible people who think they can write a book in three days without doing any research.
I’m gonna save my money because I don’t believe in shortcuts when it comes to writing. If you’re dedicated to writing, you’ll spend the necessary time to craft a great story.
To jump-start my muse, I do the following:
– I meditate
– I eat chocolate
– I play video games – or watch walkthroughs on YouTube
– I read ANYTHING
– I watch a movie
– I take a walk
– I go to work
– I talk to people
– I listen to people
And this list could go on and on and on…We all have different methods. My muse gets particularly cranky when I don’t give her the attention she deserves and leaves me dry, and I can’t write anything. Being a writer isn’t supposed to be a one-trick pony. I’d love to press a button and my muse would purr like a Ferrari engine. Maybe in another life.
How do you jump-start your muse?
The Manicheans 