I know just how odd a duck my muse is, but I am still surprised by it sometimes. Take this weekend, for example. I had basically 20 days to finish Beastologist III and turn it in, yet my muse was OBSESSED with cleaning out every closet in the house. Now normally, one could look at this as an avoidance strategy, except my muse doesn't normally operate that way. Plus, trust me, there are a lot of things I would pick over de-cluttering as a means of procrastinating.
I did try to write. I got a measly few hundred words done and gave up because my mind was totally focused on all the junk sitting in our collective closets. It was calling to me. So I gave in and spent three days de-cluttering, muttering the entire time, "My muse better know what she is doing."
And of course she did. I woke up Monday and began writing and pretty much haven't stopped since, knowing exactly what has to happen and dribbling little additional bursts of inspiration in the margins as I go. Very cool.
The thing is, sometimes I think what our muse needs is exactly a good house cleaning or closet thinning or gardening binge. Some activity our active mind can focus on and give the subconscious some privacy to work out stuff. It can also act as a mental feng shui kind of thing, cleaning out the corners to let all sorts of new energy in. Either way, it worked for me as a most excellent mental pump priming. And I got clean closets out of it, to boot!
7 comments:
Your Muse is on track! De-cluttering is huge. When I feel overwhelmed with cr*p, it really hangs on me. Which has to make an impact on the writing!
Somehow, it's clearing out your head along with the closets, yes? Great muse. Nice muse. Buy the muse chocolate! :)
Hey PJ! Welcome back from your vacation! And yes, my muse clearly knew what she was doing. Frankly, I could become addicted to de-cluttering. OCD, here I come!
Yes Becky, that is exactly it. Your head gets cleared as well! And you're right, my muse clearly deserves a thank you treat. Hmm...a research trip to France, perhaps? ::le sigh:: If only I could afford it. (I'm trying to wean her off chocolate.)
I've been on a cleaning binge the last two days. I hope I have the same results when I sit down to write!
Maybe it's something in the air, Sherrie!
Our Muses' must be in sync. I spent the week re-organizing my boys Legos. That doesn't sound too time-consuming unless you realize they have thousands of the things. We've got 7 rolling drawer cabinets to keep them organized and they've been a mess for a long time. Why this week, when I had plenty of time to write, did I feel compelled to take on THAT project?
Okay, now I'm convinced it's something in the air. And Dave, I totally think organizing Legos is impressive. We used to have BINS and BINS of the things. Gawd.
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