MY MUSE
D. Wallace Peach put out a call on her Myths of the Mirror blog site challenging authors to write about their muse. I wasn’t going to write anything and then this happened. 🙂 True story!
“Jan. Jan. Wake up.”
Someone taps on my shoulder.
I burrow deeper under the covers.
Louder this time. “Jan. Wake up.”
I groan and roll over with one eye open. “What do you want? I’m sleeping.”
“Yes, I know but wait until you hear this.”
I rub my eyes and yawn, then glance at the clock.
“It’s 4 am. I’m tired. I work hard and I need my rest. Can I just take some notes and get to it when the sun comes up?”
“No! If you do, you’ll lose it. Come on.” He reached out a hand and I took it, regretting that action.
Now on my feet, I shrug into a robe, slip on my fuzzy slippers and glance longingly back at my warm bed.
“Can I at least get a cup of coffee first?”
Deep sigh. “You humans. Yes, I suppose.”
I pad into the kitchen and flip on the light, blinking at the brightness. He taps his fingers impatiently on the kitchen counter while I set the magic elixir to brew.
I turn to face him. “Okay. Spill it. What is so damned important that you’ve dragged me out of bed away from my dreams?”
His face lights up. “Imagine this. A man has been cheating on his wife. She’s found out, and they’ve had a huge fight. Now, he’s left the house and driving around, angry and feeling a little remorseful. He spots a small rundown bar on the outskirts of town with a neon sign blinking off and on. He decides he needs a stiff drink. So, he goes in and some other stuff needs to happen, then he tries to leave only to find that the door opens one way – in. He’s trapped in a honky-tonk hell. What do you think?”
By now the coffee pot is beeping and I pour a big cup, then add a spash of cream. “It has potential, but it sounds like a horror story. I’ve never written anything in that genre.”
He’s practically jumping up and down. “I know. You can’t ever grow if you stay in your comfort zone. What do you have to lose?”
“A few more hours of sleep,” I reply grumpily.
“You do know that the hours between two and four a.m. are the most creative times in any twenty-four-hour cycle. Remember I told you that?”
I nod. “I remember.”
I settle in front of the computer and he paces behind me. My fingers fly across the keys.
I suddenly have the feeling of being alone. I turn to look and my muse is no longer in the room. I go in search of him and find him snuggled under a soft blanket on the sofa, snoring.
“Fine,” I say, and stomp back to the computer with a second cup of coffee.
Guess I’ll be writing a horror story after all, thanks to my persistent muse.
Love it!
Jan, I love your muse … gently insistent, feeding you the start of a story and in a new to your genre! Haha! What a cheek though, the muse off to take a nap as soon as you’re on your creative way! 😀😀 Happy Writing … xx
Lol! Thanks, Annika. Yes, just my luck. He gets me going, then disappears. 🙂 I’m happy you stopped by!
Now, THAT’s the kind of muse to have!
Lol! Thanks, Liz!
You’re welcome, Jan!
Your muse is good, Jan. He knew he was good and that was the reason he didn’t go away until you paid attention to him. Now you must hold him accountable. 🙂
Good point, Miriam!! Love your comment!
Haha, he got the job for life, Jan!!
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Love it! Must share… <3
Thank you, Bette!! I’m happy you stopped by!
You have a fun if persistent muse Jan. Thanks for the fun and clever musings.
Thank you for stopping by, Writing To Freedom! I’m glad you enjoyed it!
My pleasure.
Reblogged this on Myths of the Mirror and commented:
I think a lot of us can relate to muses that wake us up in the middle of the night… like Jan’s muse. Enjoy.
Thanks for the reblog, Diana! This was a fun prompt!
Thanks for playing, Jan. And my pleasure. Your post cracked me up. 🙂
Hi,
I’m laughing because I know the feeling. Only its my characters that are talking and disrupting me w3hen they don’t think that I am doing it the way they want it to be written. They usually wait in my office and watch the clock. If I’m late,, I get it from both sides but especially from the more dominant one that is sitting in my chair as if it belongs to him. 🙂 I don’t know whether they’re my muses,(I say muses because my characters come alive while I am writing) but they definitely make me stretch in every direction and enhance my growth by forcing me to face myself, and I consider that a good thing.
Shalom aleichem
Pat
I love that, Pat. Your muse is always changing and that’s really cool! Thank you for stopping by and sharing and keep those guys out of your chair and in line!! 🙂
Those early morning creative wake ups are so bad for a good nights sleep. My last one I didnt have a pen and paper next to me and I forgot everything. Your voodoo story crept into horror and I can’t wait to read what you come up with:)
That’s true, Denise. I dabbled in the horror genre with that one. 🙂 This one will be full-on horror. Thank you so much for stopping by! Keep that pencil and paper handy!
LOL! That’s awesome, Jan. I look forward to reading it. 🙂
It is definitely out of my comfort zone, Yvette! Thanks for stopping by!
Wonderful. I haven’t written about my Muse for a long time. She sent me so many ideas I think she’s backing off until I catch up. I should have her make another blog appearance.
Yes, you should, Craig. I always love it when she visits you. It’s entertaining!
I guess there are worse places to get trapped 🙂
Glad your muse gave you the kick in the butt you needed- even if it was the middle of the night, lol
Lol! Yeah, but I really did want to sleep. 🙂 We’ll see if the story grows into anything. Thanks for stopping by!
Thoughtfully cute, Jan! 🙂
Thanks, John. I’m happy you stopped by!
Bravo, Jan. It happens to the best of us.
Yes, it does, Robbie! Thanks for stopping by!
That’s my kind of story!
Why do they always bug us at the worst times of day (or night)? And stubbornly refuse to give us that stuff in the middle?
Loved the post, Jan.
Thank you, Staci. I’m glad you enjoyed the post, but I agree, why do they always bug us at the most inopportune times? 🙂
Lols! The new story idea sounds exciting! Good luck, Jan. I hope Mr Muse let’s you sleep soon! 😁
Thanks, Harmony. I slept like a rock last night, so I’m good. 🙂 Thanks for stopping by.
I guess those hours are his most creative as well.
Apparently, Dan. 🙂 Thanks for stopping by!
😄😄 But he inspired you… lol. And he took you out of your comfort zone in many ways to reach new spheres… haha.
Yep! As he said, if I don’t get out of my comfort zone, I don’t grow. We all know that to be the truth, right? Thanks for stopping by, Erika!
Absolutely!! Have a nice rest of your Sunday, Jan!
I have been told that I sleep like the dead, so nothing wakes me. I wonder if my muse has ever tried?
Hmmm, he might have to shake you a little harder, Anita. 🙂 Thanks for stopping by!
LOL. I love it that he wakes you up and then goes back to bed. And I totally believe that it’s a read story. Lol. I think a lot of us have been there, done that! 🙂 Thanks so much for the contribution!
Yep. I know I’m not the only one, Diana. 🙂 Oh, the business of writing. 🙂
Love the story ~ love your muse-man, Jan!
Lol, Parris. Well, he can certainly be annoying at 4 am. 🙂 Thanks for stopping by!