What is the fascination with muses? I mean, does a writer have to have one?
Muse:
- (n) In ancient Greek mythology any of 9 daughters of Zeus and Mnemosyne; protector of an art or science
muse:
- (n) The source of an artist’s inspiration [“Euterpe was his muse”]
(v) Reflect deeply on a subject
No, I can’t even say Mnemosyne’s name so why would I want one of her daughters sitting on my shoulder, pointing me in the right direction? (I hate backseat writers, don’t you?)
Source of an artist’s inspiration….hmm, now, how can an artist or writer have a single muse? I suppose some artists could, since some seem to really get into melting clocks.
Reflect deeply on a subject. So, a muse is a personified pontification??
I know some writers who treat their muse as if it were a real person. I have noticed that usually the muse is the writer’s alter ego. Their muse is usually to blame when something goes wrong and sometimes even when something goes right. Does this type of muse act as a source of inspiration or frustration?
Oh, and that is myooz not moos which is how to pronounce mousse.
mousse: (n)
- A rich, frothy, creamy dessert made with whipped egg whites and heavy cream;
- A light creamy dish made from fish or meat and set with gelatin;
- Toiletry consisting of an aerosol foam used in hair styling
(definition source: WordWeb software)
I won’t subject you to my writer/muse rant again, but I do think that objects, words, images, sounds, pretty much anything, can suggest a mood, a setting or even a whole story sometimes. When that happens, I focus on the ‘muse’ in question and it helps me write. It is different for each story, though – there isn’t any one thing that always inspires me.
I can see that a person, (or object, word, etc.) imaginary or not, could become a trigger for a writing (or painting, designing…) session. One could think of muses as things that put you in the right frame of mind to work: a particular model, for a fashion designer, or a mug of coffee and my computer, for me.
Rant away! If you can’t do it here, where else? 😀
I agree with you. A muse can change with each paragraph, each painting, each drawing. I think that is where you and I agree.
What I have the biggest problem is when a muse stays around and is personified. I feel that is where it stops being a trigger and starts being…psychotic is the word, I suppose.