IWSG Muse Chat #2: Writer’s Block

Welcome to the Insecure Writers Support Group, a blog hop hosted by Alex J. Cavanaugh. Click here to find out more about the group and to see a full list of participating blogs.

For last month’s IWSG, I turned the floor over to my muse, that ethereal being who nags me when I skip writing sessions. For this month’s IWSG, I’ve asked my muse to explain where, precisely, she goes when I have writer’s block.

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Hi. I’m James’s muse, and that means it’s my job to make sure James does his writing. This job can be… challenging. Sometimes, my writer has other obligations, so I must try to be patient. Other times, my writer gets lazy, at which point he needs a stern lecture concerning his writerly responsibilities.

But there are also occasions when my writer is pumped up, eager to write, positively bubbling with enthusiasm… but I’m not ready. So he just sits there, pen in hand, blank papers arrayed in front of him, waiting for me to tell him what to do.

He starts to worry. He wonders where I’ve gone. He wonders if I’ve left him. Am I ever coming back? He’ll start calling my name, asking what he’s done wrong and begging me to forgive him for various imagined misdeeds.

What writers don’t understand is that sometimes we muses need time. It’s delicate work, weaving together the tiny threads of the subconscious into a coherent story idea. When a muse is in the midst of this sort of work, she MUST NOT BE DISTURBED!

My fellow muses, if your writer starts to panic (symptoms include persistent pacing, weeping, or hyperventilating), calmly suggest reading a book, going for a walk, or maybe taking a nap. Try to reassure your writer that so-called writer’s block is just a “do not disturb” sign from his or her muse, and that some brilliant idea is in development.

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If you or your muse found today’s post helpful, please let us know in the comments below. I’m thinking these Muse Chats will become a regular feature here on Planet Pailly. Next month, my muse will be talking about her “law of writerly motion,” whatever that is.