Mslexia

From the Mslexia Workshops Collection

August's Workshop

Devised by Lizzie Whyman

Seven ways to seduce your Muse

1. Get her in the mood

Feed her well and replenish your store of tools. Choose a group of nouns or concepts you’ve been meaning to swot up on: types of birds, trees, even weeds have their place in literature. Maybe there are themed words you like – those to do with dancing, fishing, metalwork or woodwork for example. Find as many as you can each day and use them. Play music when you meet, and note the effects of different styles of music on your writing.

2. Go on a date

Take a real walk as one of your characters. Go on a typical journey they might take. What words do they use for their thoughts? What do they think about the people and things they encounter? Note down your findings. Repeat the exercise taking them somewhere you would least expect them to go.

3. Keep regular contact

Your muse will only turn up if she knows when and where to find you. Try for regular bursts of ten minutes of flow-writing so that you look forward to your next date together. Think of the damage a no-show might have at the beginning of a potential courtship.

4. Know when to get physical

Take her for regular walks, runs or swims, anything to get you active. Writers like Julia Cameron swear by regular walks of at least 20 minutes to nudge us out of habitual thinking and access our intuition. While you’re at it, show your muse your local surroundings. Impress her with all the names for things you know (see 1) and interesting facts (see 5).

5. Don’t underestimate chemistry

If you’ve followed the rules of seduction this far you’ll be noticing more and more the condition in which the imagination sits up and listens more keenly. Chemistry is what’s needed to keep your muse interested; sustained passion will see a project through. If you've lost some of that, re-kindle lost passion by finding out several new things everyday, not stopping until you find at least one that perks your interest enough to explore through writing. Find inspirational quotes about writing, or your genre specifically, and stick them above your desk to remind you of what makes you write.

6. Compliment her often

Don’t be too hard on yourself, or critical of her. Nobody expects a masterpiece in one day. Take things one step at a time without thinking too much about the future, and learn to be proud of what you achieve. Graham Greene published around 30 novels by writing no more than 500 words a day. If all you see of your muse is your ten-minute morning pages, be happy with that. Be kind to yourself.

7. Keep her keen

Variety is the key to ensuring the relationship doesn’t go stale. Give her different projects to work on and submit your work for publication, sharing the successes and not allowing disappointments to distract you from your romance. Your relationship will survive as long as there is joy in what you do together.
 

LIZZIE WHYMAN is a writing tutor and poet who has been widely published in literary magazines and anthologies. Her collection Touchpiece is available on Amazon. She writes regularly for Mslexia, The Big Issue and Culture Magazine and works as an Outreach Journalist with Headliners, a charity providing a learning-through-journalism personal development programme for young people.