Five Ways to KIck Start Your Muse

I woke up at 4:30 a.m. with the answer to a story problem. For a couple weeks I'd been trying to find an answer to a structural flaw, then suddenly at 4:30 a.m., YURIKA, there it was!

Some people tell me they come up with their good ideas in the car or in the shower. The underlying theme seems to be that our muses need us to be quiet so they can present the answer.

If you're not quite ready to just wait around for your muse to jump in, I do have a few tips to speed it along:

1. Feed the Muse

Sometimes the muse is just hungry. Depending on what problem you're trying to solve, you might consider cooking a new meal, listening to music, taking a long walk. Muses aren't completely cerebral (at least mine isn't), and sometimes they're are moved by new tastes, sounds and experiences.

2. Relax & Trust Your Muse

A stressed muse, being told to perform on command, is a silent muse. Have confidence your muse is at work on your story, even while you're eating, sleeping or doing your taxes. Muses require a little faith.

3. Make a Date with Your Muse

My muse likes structure. I'll work on a story in the evening until I run into a problem that isn't easily solved. I let my muse know that it's quitting time and that we'll pick it back up at the same time tomorrow, when he has an answer. So far, he's never let me down.

4. Talk it Out with Friends

This kind of falls under "feeding the muse", but I like to bring up issues at my writer's group. They will discuss all kinds of options, and although none of them may be avenues I will take, it does provide new ideas for my muse. He often takes off running with one of them.

5. Be Open to Anything

If you're only looking in one spot for an answer, you're limiting your muse. Open your mind. I have an "10 Different Options" exercise I sometimes use. I write down 10 different solutions to my problem to get the juices flowing again. They can be completely insane ideas — again the purpose is to get outside your self made box.

For example, if I were having a problem with the scene where one character is trying to kill another on an tropical island (where there are no guns) by drowning them, I would think up 10 other ways to kill them — hitting them on the head with a rock, throwing them off a cliff, poisoning their coconut milk, finding a poisonous snake, running them over with my jeep, paying a native to off them, etc.

I probably won't use any of these, but the different options will spark your muse.

New Breakthroughs

Hopefully these will get you mused off an running. If you want more ideas, just let me know. I LOVE breakthrough moments, and so does my muse.

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