Inspiring the Muse

Caution: Un-writerly types BEWARE.
This blog is about Muse. It may lead you think I am completely insane or cause your head to explode. I take no responsibility for either outcome. You have been warned.

Muse. What is it?
My answer to this question is that Muse is the inspiration and the magic that transforms an image, or a song, an idea or a word ... an anything into a concrete something else. Ie: a story plot, scene, character.

According to the online dictionary a Muse is: the spirit that is thought to inspire a poet or other artist; source of genius or inspiration.

Some people say their Muse has a form, a personality. They look to animals or mythical creatures - the unicorn seems to be especially popular - to bring their Muse to life. I don't know if I'd ever want to confine my Muse in that way, its like putting it in a box. Perhaps it's because it seems to me that my Muse changes or alters somewhat depending on the story it brings me.

What about you? Does your Muse have a form? A personality?

I find myself intrigued by the different ways a Muse can be inspired. Not every Muse finds inspiration in the same places or in the same way. Some people find music especially inspiring. Others are visually stimulated. Some find it in the things that happen around them, in what people do and say.

I'm very much a visual person when it comes to finding inspiration for my stories. Art. Photos. Movies. I find inspiration in all these things, especially in pictures.

Sometimes I'll see something and it'll just hit me. An experience not unlike being shot by Cupid's arrow. Other times, I might be writing about a forest or a wood and need some inspiration, so I'll troll though hundreds of pictures to find the one that captures the kind mood I want to invoke in my reader. (I love google!)

When I find it the Muse kicks in. I can see and smell and hear and feel that place. I'm there. It's real. And that's just what I need to insure I take my reader there too.

This is one that inspired one of my forest scenes:


I find this method especially helpful when building characters. I know who they are in my head and what they look like, more or less, but I'm not an artist by any stretch of the imagination. I cannot give my characters shape apart from the words I use to conjure them and yet I can find something of them in the art of others.

This also works well when I've been away from my work for a while and I need to get in touch with my characters again, fast. A picture can pull me out of reality and back into that other place and time in a snap.

What about you? What gets your Muse going? Where do you find your inspiration?

Spending time with Jamie Fraser

Well, school holidays are over: school is back.
So is the muse.

I don 't know about you writers out there who have children, but I found having my kids home, as nice as it was, totally cramped my style. I couldn't write or edit for more than a few moments with out them interrupting me to ask a question. So between kids and work I found I wasn't really managing to achieve anything much when it came to my writing.

I did manage to read quite a few good books though, plowing my was very happily though the first four of Diana Gabaldon's books, with a few others thrown in for good measure.

I have really enjoyed reading Diana's books, her characters and their stories are very compelling. I love Jamie. Somehow, she has managed to capture the essence of the dream man - loyal, honest, dangerous, sexy - and he is so human. He makes mistakes, he's by no means perfect, and he scratches his butt. He is so charming and endearing and let's face it, the kilt and the Scottish accent .... swoon.

A while ago the editor Nathan Bransford (I think this is right) asked his blog readers who their all time favourite literary hero was. The over whelming favourites were Diana Gabaldon's Jamie and Jane Austen's Mr Darcy, but no one seemed able to pin point why these two men are so popular. What is it about these guys that gets our blood going?

At the time I hadn't read Diana's books and was intrigued by Jamie Fraser's popularity. Having now read half of them I'm pretty certain it's Jamie humanity that wins the heart of the reader. Too many times in novels writers try to make their heroes perfect, they almost seem like demi-gods. But in my humble opinion, it's a man's imperfections that tug at our heartstrings and make us fall in love with them.

Note: Diana Gabaldon's books are R16 (they contain coarse language, violence and sexual scenes)

How's it going over there?

I'm still editing!

I've been picking away at my MS and I'm making slow but steady progress.

I think I've finally managed to get over my frustration at how long the editing process takes. Now I'm simply trying to knuckle down, do it and enjoy the journey.

I've discovered I still have the odd small scene that needs to go in around page 120, to help the flow of the story and flesh out some of the characters that get introduced at this point. But I'm okay with that - now that I've got my head around how those scenes should look.

Today was my first day off work, after a three day straight stint, since I was admitted to hospital. It really did me in. I'm pretty worn out and a little uncomfortable.

So I gave myself permission to take it easy today. I sent my kids off to school and went back to bed for the rest of the morning!! Terribly lazy, I know, but I'm feeling much better for the rest.

This afternoon I curled up on the couch with a copy of the first half of my friend's manuscript. I promised her I'd read it though completely before I attack it with my red pen - I do love a good paper and pen edit! So other than the odd note here and there, I've keep my word.

I finished reading it just before I had to get up to make tea and will begin red-pen edits on it tomorrow. It is a great read. The story is strong and flows well and had me in tears a few times, which is a good thing. I'm looking forward to reading the rest of it when she has finished part two.

So how's it going in your neck of the woods? Where are you at with your WIP?

A Picture of Inspiration

I'm feeling inspired. Yay! I've have had a few weeks off and enjoyed a much needed break, but we are back into the edits and the creative juices are flowing once more.

The Evolution of Calpurnia Tate

While I've been resting up after my stint in hospital I've been doing a fair bit of reading. I generally read a lot, but it has been a while since I've felt compelled to share my excitement about a new find.

Yesterday I started reading (and finished this afternoon) Jacqueline Kelly's debut novel The Evolution of Calpurnia Tate. A physician and a lawyer (and a writer! - where does she find the time?) Kelly was born in New Zealand and raised in Canada. She now lives in Texas - no doubt this inspired the setting of her novel which is set in Texas at the turn of the century (1899).

The Evolution of Calpurnia Tate is an YA historical novel, written in the first person and narrated by Calpurnia herself. I loved this book!

I was instantly drawn to this quirky and delightful "almost twelve-year-old" girl with her avid curiosity and her fascination in the natural world. There are many episodes in this story that brought a smile to my face and a few that had me laughing out loud.

One of my favourite episodes involves a grand moment of truth ... with hilarious results.
It is time to sample Granddaddy's attempt to distill alcohol from pecans:

"Ah." he said, "here comes the the real test." He saluted me with the glass and said, "To your good health, Calpurnia, my companion in sailing uncharted waters." He took a good mouthful.
I still remember the look on his face as if it were yesterday. The spasm of surprise. Followed by a long, contemplative gaze fixed somewhere in the middle distance. Then, a slow smile.
"Well," he said at last. "I have done an amazing thing."
"What, Granddaddy, what?" I breathed.
"I doubt that any other man alive can make this claim."
"Oh, what?" I wailed.
Calmly, Granddaddy said, "I have managed to take perfectly good pecans and ferment them into something approximating cat piss."
...
"Should I write it in the log?" I said. "Cat piss, I mean."
He chortled. "A good idea. We must be honest in our observations. Take up the pen and kindly do the honors, my girl."

As Callie (Calpurnia) explores the world around her, she develops a close relationship with her notoriously cantankerous grandfather, an avid naturalist, navigates the dangers of living with six brothers, and learns just what it means to be a girl at the turn of the century.

This is a truly delightful story about a girl on the verge of becoming a woman in turn of the century Texas. I highly recommend it. 5 Stars from me!

Silence

Dear Dragons Pen Readers,

It has been pretty quiet here for a wee while.

I have not been well and had a short stint in hospital. Thankfully I'm home now, but I'm taking things relatively easy at present.

I'm taking a couple of weeks off work and off writing - shock horror! In the mean time I'm enjoying putting my feet up and catching up with some reading.

Keep an eye on the blog. I hope to be posting as normal in a week or so.

Cheers
Pen

Calling Fantasy Writers

Do you write fantasy, especially YA fantasy?

Do you live in New Zealand or Australia?

Are you interested in connecting with other writers in your genre?

If you're a writer of fantasy (published or unpublished) living in Australasia, or have your roots here, and would like to connect with writers writing in the same genre I'd love to hear from you.

At present we seem to be few and far between, especially in NZ.

So, if your keen drop us a line in the comments or email me at penelope dot griffin dot books at gmail dot com. We would love to hear what you're up to, how you're going and what you're writing.

P.S.
If you're from another part of the world you're also welcome to drop us a line, I'd hate you to feel left out. It's nothing personal really. ;)

Luv
Pen