The Muse as a Muscle

Just some quick musings (HAHAHA! HILARIOUS!) on developing the Muse as a muscle.

Some people are of the school of thought that "The Muse" is an abstract, metaphysical thing that you can't tame, and can't control. I used to be guilty of this too. But lately I've been of the thought that you can learn to control your muse and with great control and discipline it will become something you can turn on and off like a light switch.




We all know what happens when you try to force inspiration, it can get really ugly.I'm not talking about that. I'm saying we can learn to turn on the faucets and let all that wonderful, magical, creative fairydust come gushing out of every orifice at a whim (yes even that orifice. *ahem)

I'm sure anyone who ever endeavored in the creative arts has experienced that creative rush that occurs from time to time that seems to take over our whole bodies, hi-jack our brains and let us create something amazing, surprising ourselves (I'm just coming down from one of those highs, except this time I kind of , sort of willed it to happen). And I can wager that most of us have been in a fight before. You know that feeling, that rush of adrenaline that makes you either stronger than you ever thought you were or lets you run faster and farther than you ever could before.

That short burst inspiration/adrenaline is awesome, but if you relied on that to write you probably wouldn't be as proficient as you wanted to be because most of the time you'd be waiting for the inspiration to strike.

I have a theory that the Muse is a muscle and can be trained, worked out to the point where you can "flex" it on command.

I'm still working this theory out. But it's a safe bet you'd be a far more effective fighter if you trained your muscles than if you just relied on adrenaline. Same goes for writing, the brain is a muscle after all. So here's to hitting the mental heavybag.