When your Muse works against you

Yes, having a muse can be a fantastic experience.  You garner terrific ideas and amazing plot lines and unforgettable characters.  You really cannot belittle this mysterious benefit.

There are those times, however, where as amazing as your muse may be, you want nothing but to shut it out, turn it off and throw it out the closed window.

For example, say I'm working on a story set in Atlanta, Georgia in the sweltering summertime between a sexy woman named Lolita and a burning hot man named Joe.  I have everything mentally in place to begin work.  I sit down before the evil necessity called a computer and tippty-tap away to my heart's content. 

Tap, tap, tap.  Tippty-tap.  Story, story, story.  Yadda, yadda, yo.  I'm going good, here.  Time passes unnoticed while I'm lost inside the places and the minds of what I've created.   

Then I need a break.  Maybe a run to the bathroom or a refill on the coffee.  Doesn't matter.  I return to the keyboard and my fingers poise excitedly over the letters and ... stall!

Did I forget my story?  Did the color of my heroine's hair color elude me?  Ha.  I wish.  No, my freakin' muse snuck in while I had a breather, and it chooses now to clear its throat politely before telling me a story between Sara and Jeff set in Alaska during an ever-long winter, chasing a forgotten buried treasure, is THE story I need to tell. 

Decisions.  My muse hasn't often failed me, and this new thought might have some merit.  I don't want to lose the story I'm in, but I like the new idea.  I quickly open a file and jot down notes to go through when I finish my current wip. 

Whew.  Got that out of the way.  Now back to the Atlanta story.

Stall.

What the heck does the mighty muse want now?!

Oh, just to let me know that no, no.  Sara and Jeff and Alaska wouldn't work.  I really need to set a story about Olivia and Connor and, and, let's sweeten the pot here:  Buck (where does my muse come up with these names - ha!).  The trio have met on some cruise and ... the muse goes on from here.  Once again, my mind gets caught up in this idea so I open another file to jot more notes.

And so my writing day goes on.

In truth, is it really my muse?  Nah, we all know this.  But will you catch me blaming a stalled out story on myself?  Never!

The Muse is Always to Blame!