Tag: muse

Writing May Surprise You

surprised by writing amazed-19214_960_720I’m not sure when my life became so encapsulated by writing that I began to put parameters around it. I don’t write horror. I don’t write erotica. I don’t write crime dramas. I never tell the same story twice, and I never, ever write sequels.

And yet we all know that writing can be a whimsical mistress. I’m not a planner; I don’t have my next three novels plotted out. Most of the time when I’m done with one book, I have absolutely no idea what I’m going to write next. Not the plot, not the characters, not even the genre. After I finish writing a book, I will allow myself to lounge in the fallow field of not-knowing, waiting for the muse to glance my way, crook a finger at me, and wink.

Well, never say never. Continue reading “Writing May Surprise You”

Muse Wrangling 201 – AWOL

We have a great deal to cover today so I’m going to jump straight in. First and foremost, an AWOL Muse cannot be wrangled. Neither whips nor carrots will work. An AWOL Muse must be wooed.

But how do you woo a Muse?

There is no simple answer to that question because each Muse is different. Nonetheless, there is a way to prevent your Muse from leaving in the first place, but it involves knowing and listening to your Muse.

Does your Muse have a strong work ethic? Or is it flighty and easily distracted?

If your Muse is easily distracted then it may have gone AWOL because it was bored. Yes, I know, that is an awful thing to say to an author, but sometimes we have to face facts – Muses get bored just like readers. If your Muse is bored with what it is doing then perhaps that is an indication that readers might find the prose boring too. If this is the case then a rethink is the only thing that will lure your Muse back into the fold. Continue reading “Muse Wrangling 201 – AWOL”

“Out There” Is In There

My posts here are generally informational, but I want to take up space with something of a more personal nature, though it might strike chord with some of you. Since we all know not to start with the weather, I’ll start with a dream.

This dream was decades ago, but I try to keep it in my thoughts. I was the MC or ringmaster for a show of some sort. And things weren’t going so good. Some underlings came to me saying that they needed special food and toys for one of the players. They hauled him in and it was this amazingly dorky little RainMan geek, not even verbal. He shambled out onto the stage and stood there, then let out this peculiar squawk. And the crowd went wild. This fat, pimply, four-eyed little gooner was what they came to see. I took it all in and told the handlers, “Look, we’re not exploiters here. Give him whatever he wants, keep him happy. Treat him good.” Continue reading ““Out There” Is In There”

Ed’s Casual Friday, no. 1

M. Edward McNally

Hi, everybody. This is to be my little neck of the woods here at Indies Unlimited, and I’m going to call the place “Casual Friday,” as I feel that will allow me to blather about the largest number of topics possible, sometimes until I’m halfway through a post. As a writer, I’m a “pantser,” see, so that’s pretty much “how I roll.” If anybody has anything they’d ever like me to opine upon, just say so, as I’ll probably be out of ideas by the end of this post. Like I say, “casual.”

So here’s how me and my muse spent the holidays. Continue reading “Ed’s Casual Friday, no. 1”