Writing Inspirations

Sure, the questions above get associated with the craft of writing, but what about the 'muse' of writing? In my writing life, I've found that 'muse' chick to be most vexing. She wanders about wherever and whenever she pleases, popping up at inopportune times and flitting away in critical moments.

I've found the only way to live with her is on her terms. When the muse calls, you follow. Fortune smiles upon you when she invites you to walk arm in arm. You cannot grapple or grasp the writing muse, you must acquiesce to what she gives.

Wherethe muse beckons from determines where you meet her. Remember, she names the terms. You own no prerogative. If the muse calls from the outdoors during a thunderstorm, you find a place to meet her and write. Your comfort takes a back seat to her whim.

What you write often follows her lead, which lends the mysticism to writing well. You step away from your efforts and marvel that the words written actually came from your hand - her gift.

Howyou write that which she gives so freely (once you stop grappling with her) stems from what instruments avail themselves to you. The muse cares not for excuses, so pen and paper at a bare minimum must always stand at arms length. Whether in the car, a store, the bathroom or anywhere else your body may travel, preparedness rules the day, lest you rue the day. The must waits on no one.

Ok, with the poetic muse musings aside, let's address writing inspiration in practical terms. Anything and everything is a potential inspiration. Too often we pass up great opportunities to write because we think them too mundane. How we write them can be mundane - or not. This choice lands squarely on our fingertips.

One of the keys to great writing is to take something mundane and go over-the-top with it. What I mean by that is you must challenge yourself and your readers. Writing nice flowery pieces of prose is great for poetry, but if you aren't pissing someone off or getting a "hell yeah" from readers (usually both will be true), no one is going to pay attention.

Is this good or bad? There are many arguments on both sides of that equation. My response? It is - meaning, that's the way it is, either acknowledge it and write your passion, or continue on in obscurity. I speak from experience.

I write a blog (which I haven't posted to for months) on fatherhood. I have a book out called Fatherhood 101: Bonding Tips for Building Loving Relationships. I am even an 'expert' online at www.allexperts.comwhere I answer fatherhood related questions. My book is about the positive things dads can do to build strong, lasting bonds with their children beginning pre-birth through 18 months. In my blog, I attempted to continue along that vein.

The feedback I received blog-wise was indifference. The feedback I received at www.allexperts.com was that the extremes of this life are where the action is. All the questions thrown at me had to do with broken relationships, not everyday tips to bond with the children.

Remember my question a couple paragraphs ago? Do I think this is right or good? I've learned that what I think here is inconsequential. I feel almost like a 'Dear Abby' or referee at times on All Experts. I wanted to impact new fathers by showing them HOW to bond with their children in the earliest moments of their life. What I found, again, was indifference to that.

Can I eventually reach an audience on that positive level? My hope is yes. The immediate and pressing need comes from those in turmoil. Many fathers have no role models on how to be a solid, well-bonded father. The problem comes in at the fact that most don't realize their situation until things fall apart, so I'm learning to address the extremes.

This is how I learned that you MUST TAKE A STAND. Your inspiration and passion will awaken. One sure-fire way to get the muse out of her domineering role and become a major ally is to awaken your passion. You cannot get there sitting on the fence in the middle of the highway.

You will step on toes. There will be people who cast verbal and written stones at you. The other side is there as well. You will be embraced by like-minded folk. Writing your passion and 'true' position on life's topics takes maturity and guts. You must be willing to take what comes your way.

I choose to write it, do a quick edit, and send it out knowing I've 'put myself out there'. I also know going into the writing that simply because I see something passionately from a certain viewpoint today does not preclude a good argument from swaying my opinion. At fifty-one years old and oodles of experience, that does not happen as often as it once did.

The point I wish to make is you must be brave with your words. You must strike a chord if you desire to further your writing career. Writing namby pamby cutesy little manuscripts in the twenty-first century is a sure way to derail your writing career. I have a friend who writes a motherhood blog and her book - Motherhood is Easy (As Long as You Have Nothing to do for the Next Fifty Years) - both challenge norms and language associated with motherhood. She takes an age-old position of life and turns it literarily on its head. She's funny, irreverent, poignant and engaging. If you've had children, you will identify with some of the hard places you get to as a mother. She couldn't connect with her audience so well if she didn't push the envelope.

Your inspiration, to be successful, must root in your passionate stance on life in whatever topic you write. Be willing to piss people off. You'll be surprised at how many will rally to you. Answer the questions in the subtitle above when you write, but also be willing to meet your muse in those same questions. The topper here is, when you meet that muse, don't try to drag her to your passion, show it to her and you both will attack those questions in ways that will win you readers. Writing is not for cowards these days. Put yourself out there. The time is now.