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Brian Miller, Mother's Day, the absent muse, the fickle muse, the muse as excuse, write it down even if you don't feel like writing, writer's block
atop the stack stone rock wall, little red mites run stone to stone, pass each other, crawl over each other always in motion. my son & I crouch in the grass watching til my knees burn & we’ve crossed the span of his attention.
“do you think they ever stop and talk?”
helicopter seeds gather under the tree & we collect handfuls, take them to the back deck of my aunt’s house and spin them in the breeze howling down off the mountain. they spin, spin…some up up, some down—there is no rhyme or reason to the direction.
two kids down the road throw a half full water bottle in the air, sun twinkling on the liquid mirror interior, then swing baseball bats knocking it high, a shower erupting from the small mouth.
“you ready to go back in?”
“not yet.”
I understand, its hard seeing my grandmother, his great, in this shape, so we sit on the metal porch chairs, bounce gently on springs & watch the world move.
~~~~~
Yesterday was Mother’s Day. We went to my hometown and saw my mom and grandmother. Three generations of mothers in one place. It was pretty cool. Hopefully you honored the mothers in your life-no matter the relationship. it’s important.
I want to talk a bit about inspiration. Let me warn you I am about to be blasphemous.
I don’t believe in Writer’s Block.
Which means I don’t believe my writing is dependent on a Muse for inspiration.
(Gasp!)
I think there are times I don’t feel like writing and the Muse is a convenient excuse. I think there are times I don’t feel particularly inspired and the Muse becomes a convenient excuse.
Writing is a discipline, like exercise…and there are days you don’t want to, but then you do…and it feels good. Writing is like that…on days you don’t want to. You may not write anything mind blowing, but you may, when you go back and edit, take one really good phrase. The discipline though, it honors the Muse and is often rewarded, even if it is just an idea that comes in the writing.
There is probably someone out there right now still trying to figure out what they will write about for tomorrow—so let’s help them out—what inspires you? Is it external? Internal? Be specific. Have fun with this.
See you back here tomorrow…OLN…opens at 3 pm EST.
Peace.
~Brian
dVerse 
Over the last year, or so, since I have gotten to know you better and marvel at your writing output, I tend to agree with you. A Muse, a prompt can be a kicking off point, but circumstances, events, emotions tend to color my writing more than that. One thing that does bug me, when reviewing my written poems for open mic evenings, or curiosity, I start to see many stylistic, phrase, and pet word repetitions. But then I remind myself that if we manage one great phase, or stanza now & again, we have done well.
that is interesting glenn…looking at your poems over a period and seeing the trends in it….i need to look at that…there are subject matter trends i am aware of but would be interesting to see phraseology….
yes, I find the words I’m fond of repeating… it bugs me, and yet, it is how I am currently speaking 🙂
I completely agree with you. This is a thing that I too keep on doing.
I’m so glad you had a nice Mother’s Day with your family, Brian (and I hope everyone else did, too). Mine was wonderful… I feel so spoiled.
I’ve always heard to write through those tough times… no matter what, keep on writing. I guess we all have good days and bad days, even in writing. That’s life. We must keep moving forward, keep writing. Thanks for the kick in the butt (no, actually I’ve been working real hard on something).
its good to feel spoiled every once in a while…smiles…
we do have good and bad periods….you wont hit a homerun every day…different people will respond differently to different things as well…funny some days i am sure i dont get it someone leaves a comment that reminds me —hey that is why i wrote it….
yeah, what you been working on?
I just signed a contract for my first full-length poetry book, due out next March!!
That’s great! Congratulations!
woot…that is awesome laurie!
Thank you!
..aww… congratz Laurie… & good luck! 🙂
Thanks.
Congrats Laurie ~
Thanks, Grace.
wonderful laurie! congrats!!
Congrats Laurie. Awesome news.
three generation of mothers under one roof, this is pretty cool… and rgd. writer’s block and the muse…i have to think about it for a bit…will be back…smiles
its pretty cool as long as you are on good behavior…haha….
look forward to your thoughts…smiles
good rest of your trip?
When I think about my grandchildren I get inspired. Not because of some airy notion of love but because I feel compelled to put into words (writing) what I’ve learned, who their ancestors are that they never knew, what our history has really been (not just the wars), something that may be inspiring to them because they’re our future and we need awake, alert men and women being present to that future. I hope that each elder sees the necessity of this, this writing our wisdom to give context, strength and direction to these Dear Ones.
nice…history is a great source of material…family history…when i first started story telling…and mostly still…i write things i want my boys to read one day and understand the world as i see it…things i learn i want them to know…
I’m surprised to say that I agree with you, Brian. I have never missed a deadline, never failed to complete an assignment, even if my output was not what I thought my best. If I must, I can always write. But the writing serves me, not I it, and sometimes writing is not what I most need. I can put it aside and return when I simply must… like staying underwater for a long time and then finally bursting through surface tension with a gasp. On that note… I think I shall write a book entitled ‘Breathing Under Water.’ 😉
ha. i want a copy.
so why are you surprised you agree with me? smiles.
i hear you as well on putting the pen down at times….my recent time away reminded me of the importance of those fallow times…
smiles… i think i can always write when i must as well..it’s a bit like cooking… someone says: let’s cook something – and i take what i got and mostly it’s eatable…not always french cuisine though….smiles
true…it is not always mouthwatering and what you could eat until the plate is clean…i think at times we put pressure on ourselves that is has to be our best….
and there are days nothing good comes out…but you wrote…and you may take just that one phrase later and build an amazing poem….
i would say mine is a blend of internal and external motivation to write…often it starts external…i see something, or a scene plays out around me…and then i imbue it with how it makes me feel…or explore how it might make others feel….
other times it is the other way around…i have a feeling and that begins to color the scene around me…
yes…that sounds familiar as well…sometimes i also like to defragment what i see and feel a bit… and sometimes i just see a scene and like to look at it through different filters as well..
i think i gather…impressions…emotions…scenes…often unconsciously…and put them somewhere..mentally, not physically….and then it needs just a small spark to get me writing…
i only write when i want to
i don’t write every day
if i start staring at a blank page, i go out for a walk
that’s it….smiles
ah i agree on the gathering…i always keep my notebook in my back pocket but i dont always gather all the stories….sometimes i remember something much later…and will jot it down…or it just becomes a poem….
Most of the time when I claim my muse is MIA it’s because I’m too busy to sit my butt in a chair with my poetry notebook and a pencil. We do like to have someone to blame, don’t we?. And when I’m starved for an idea, I like to take the dictionary, pick those random words which tend to reflect my sources of inspirations, and get jump-started.
i like the jump started victoria…prompts often get me jump started…
nice honest response victoria….ha…there are days i will claim too lazy to write…lol…
cool tip on the dictionary as well….one thing i will do at times it look at something i have written and take a dictionary or thesaurus to it and change up a few words to affect flow or just get creative with the words….
In Praise Of Frustration (Limerick)
By Madeleine Begun Kane
My muse is unleashed by frustration
And foiled by excessive elation.
When I’m irked or irate
I’m more prone to create,
While repose sends my muse on vacation.
ha….i hear you there mad…
when i get my ire up…i can def sling some words…lol….
brilliant..love that!
Thanks Brian and Geraldine!
Hi Brian… first I have to say I love the narrative at the beginning of your post, I can see you and your son and it draws me in… it reads like a poem to me 🙂 So honest and real is your writing.
As far as what you have said… well, I think inspiration and willingness are very closely intertwined for me. I don’t write because (remember this childish phrase) “I don’t feel like it” :). When I’m being more writerly (and this takes will power) I see through those bright tinted writer glasses and pretty much EVERYTHING becomes fodder for a poem right then and there. Or a future poem, or a line of a poem… and so on. Inspiration comes in conversation, experience, environment, relationship, nature, thoughts, dreams, other writers works, crazy hair brained ideas… absolutely everything can lead me to the beginning of poem.
I’ve never quite understood what ‘the muse’ is… not ever having one myself???… unless you can call a certain place and a certain chair and a certain quiet hush to the house and time set aside and everything aligning to bring me to the place of actually sitting down and opening the laptop and a new document and THEN… stepping into a flooded river of flowing thoughts that have me bobbing along trying to stay afloat and before you know it there are lines on the page and some of them aren’t half bad.
Oh my… I need to go write something. Thank you for your inspiration to do so 🙂
smiles…i hear you…i think there can be inspiration in everything…
and i would be tempted to see how people defined muse…is it just a personification of inspiration?
i love it when the writing takes me away like that as well…when i just start writing and it starts to flow and fall into place….
p.s. I bought a Victorian spelling book about 4 months ago… thought it would be inspiration for poetry with language less used… but I haven’t read it yet. Lazy me.
interesting…you will have to find a few of those words and share them with us…i am intrigued…
again, you inspire me to get to work! Thanks, Brian, I will share for sure!
I have to push myself to write when I don’t want to, but I still need to–article/blog deadlines. I find inspiration in everything/anything, but I tap more into emotions, the news and nature. Then I shake it up, spin it around, add my view and spew it forth to you guys. Nothing special I suppose. I don’t have any major writing techniques to get me going. If I don’t feel like writing poetry, I don’t.
Nature is def a source for me…
and news…that is a great place…and plenty of emotions around what goes on there for sure…lol…
Hi Brian, good discussion topic. I never blame my muse for writing or not writing. I do find that I have times where I am uninspired though, times when I just can’t come up with ideas. Prompts DO help, however. Especially those that I consider I HAVE to do. I sit down, cut myself no slack, and come up with something. It may not be my best poem ever, but it is something. Sometimes I will not allow myself to sleep (for example) until I write. I cut myself no slack.
I will admit that I am greatly influenced by weather. If we go through a long period of dull weather, I have a hard time writing. I might have a bit of SAD (seasonal affective depression).
I read “Grandmother Mary’s” comments, in which she talked about writing to preserve things for the next generation. I agree with that. I do hope that all of my written words will be available for those who follow me. I wish, for example, my mother / father / grandparents had blogged. What a wonderful treat that would be for me to have that kind of insight into their thoughts. That is another reason why I will continue to produce books once a year…..for those that follow.
I appreciate the blogosphere, especially those who realize that everything a person writes is NOT a masterpiece, but is from the heart nonetheless….
Last thought is….the muse is ME. If I am productive or unproductive, it is only me who can be given credit or blame!
it would have been really cool if the previous generation had blogged…its cool to find old journals…my grandmother on my mothers side was a traveller and she had travel journals which were pretty amazing….
love your closing thought there as well…i think we play a big part in it…there have been several that said i poem if i want to..and that is key…you have to want to when you do…or you will give up fairly easily…
…there are a lot to be inspired about… almost everything around… and i tend to write ’em all when the time is right… when the moment is right… in short i write when it feels right…. unfortunately most of my days are not like that…. i have a lot of issues — personal, emotional, physical, etc… from there i tend to make excuses… i know making excuses can ne’er be an option for not able to write… yet i tend to patronize…. you said writing is a discipline… yes it. is & i believe…. i am always fragile but i am embracing it as firm as possible i could… smiles…
…i am learning.. forever hungry…. and i will never be full enough to wear the words: ‘i’m done!’
smiles…that is the attitude…and its hard….i have been thinking about you brother and all that you are facing right now…that last sentence of your first comment…i am fragile but embracing it as firm aas possible…i feel that duality man…you are a good guy kelvin…
I think writers block does exist but it’s not why people think it is. For example today, I am hoping to write something but I can literally think of nothing to write. Sometimes we have to go find inspiration if it doesn’t find us though…so that’s my goal tonight
ah, i like that…sometimes we do have to go find inspiration if it doesnt find us…that is true for sure…
I am happy to read you had a lovely Mother’s Day celebration Brian ~ I skype my mom yesterday and we had a lovely chat about anything & everything ~
When I don’t have a clue of what to write, I turn to reading the posts of other writers, poets and bloggers to give me inspiration. Sometimes a phrase or a line jumps out for me and I “respond” by writing my own thoughts. I have learned to be more observant of things around me, the people, the seasonal changes – as they all now serve as inputs to my writing. The challenge for me is how to capture them in verses and what voice to use (since I have two blogs) ~ Sometimes the words come quickly, sometimes I need to sleep over them and in the morning, I get a fresh approach for them.
I agree with you that writing is a discipline that must be done on a “regular” basis – for me this means, after work and during weekends. I envy those people who have all the time to write. But you know what, knowing that I only have this much time, compels me to think & write quickly (like my OLN for tomorrow) ~
Have a good night to all ~
I also wanted to add that since my work is totally different from the world of art and poetry, that I “lose” my voice & writing inspiration during and after work. That is why it is important for me to read back my own writing and that of others too, so I “remember” again my other self, and in the process, I am able to recapture that voice inside me.
it is interesting…time to write…most of mine happens in small bits through out the day instead of a truly dedicated time to write…if i can i try to sit down for an hour in the evening but often i am responding to comments and stuff…i have a rather quick little verse for tomorrow as well…
interesting as well on having to refind your voice…the re-reading others and your own is a pretty cool thought as well grace…hmmm…
I wish I can write small bits through the day, sometimes I do when the workload is light ~ And you know what is the funny thing, I read my work sometimes and I say, did I really write that (like I was another person) ~ But right now, I am enjoying the work of other writers, past and present ~ As you always say, poetry is around us everyday ~
Enjoyed this pub talk Brian ~
i hear you…i get five minutes between classes and 25 minutes for lunch…so my snippets are short…and maybe a few notes in the margin of my teaching notes…ha…when i look back at some of my old stuff i have a similar reaction at times…did i really write that…ha…
In place of a muse, honestly, I have manic depression. I am fed with words that fly about my head, are whispered in the silence… memories always on tap (except where I left my keys!). Also, singing in the praise band brings up the musical side of my writing. I guess if I went to the mall and bought myself a Muse (or did a time share), I might feel more qualified, and perhaps write sonnets and such! But my mental disorder really does serve as my inspiration… also, my bizarro Black Irish mom and her family. No muse here, only amusement.
music def plays an inspiration to me…i write with music on, i know many dont but the music i choose usually influences the pace and rhythm of the poems i write…and i can def see where your disorder plays into your words amy…we take what we got and its good to use it versus let it define you…
Good to see you had a day with three wonderful ladies Brian! I wonder who was pampered?? 🙂
The muse, ah well, I did allow it to hibernate for long and used it as an excuse then, inadvertently though! But now, well, I agree with you. Its an excuse. I write when I feel like and when I am not, mainly due to time that runs at the beck and call of my three year old, well, I don’t. I do punish myself though by squeezing in something and must admit it is very satisfying and relaxing! As if I have to / had to write lest I am charged guilty! 😀
i let my lay dormant many a year as well so i feel you there akila….freshly married and kids…i put the pen away for a long time…it was only after i came back that i found poetry…
A Muse? When In Love, my Love has been my Muse. These days, that is me, and this feels very positive. You can see/feel that in snippets of poems and in notes to others. And I often respond to prompts and the poems of others as well as to the moments I am experiencing.
When I cannot write what I want–like during the last few weeks–I have avoided all the jump starts that I know work–like opening the pages I am writing. I don’t know why. Maybe I really don’t want to write? That would make sense to me if I wanted to do something else more. But I don’t. And no one else has written about the things that concern me as an aging feminist who was there when so much happened. And I like my book. But it is still under 50 pages long. And I know, Brian–tomorrow I will rewrite and update the outline. It is time and I am feeling good and I am facing 3 whole days without doctors!
Thank you for these weekly conversations. They refresh my soul.
yay on 3 days without doctors…and sounds like you have a good plan forward susan…smiles…i hear a bit of your burden as well..that no one else is writing about what you are concerned with…all the more reason for you to do it….
i think we don’t spend enough time just talking…about writing…i think of the groups that went on to be some of the most influential writers that would get together over meals and in pubs to talk you know…
Susan, I think if you would write about some of those things that are concerning you as an aging feminist you might be surprised how many others could identify and perhaps even begin to follow suit. Don’t hesitate to share what is in your mind or heart.
I’m not just sucking up to you guys, but I find the prompts and reading other people’s poetry here at dVerse Poets Pub inspires me no end… except that I am still much slower than others and by the time I finally respond to a prompt, the time for linking it is over! Still, it can only be a good thing for my writing, even if I don’t often get a chance to share it. I think a certain level of discomfort, of experimentation, of trying something new without knowing if you will succeed or not, without being sure of the final result: this is what helps me to grow and so inspires me.
smiles…bring it to OLN if you ever miss a prompt…i agree that the discomfort of trying new things and experimenting will def help you grow as well….and reading others def inspires…i will look at how they spin words and it encourages me as well to try new things…
It either comes or it doesn’t, and after I fell on my head in January, it didn’t. Not for almost four months. There was absolutely nothing there. I tried to ‘make do’ and that shows.
‘IT’ is gradually trickling back, but in much shorter supply.
I recommend you write as much as you can, before you too fall on your head . I’m not joking.
My inspiration is my garden and the images I make or take of it.
Prompts are the icing on the cake, or the froth on the Guinness if that’s your poison.
They give a feeling of togetherness on line, but for me they are not essential for the actual writing.
I always forget about these interesting Monday nights. Just as well it stays here to be read by us stragglers.
ooo i will take froth on my guinness…smiles…
i hear you on the changes after your fall…that had to be pretty frustrating as well…knowing you could before and struggling with in in the after….good on you though pushing through it and continuing to write though…i would hope i would do the same…
Some days I write, some days I don’t. There is apparently almost no rhyme or reason to it. However, there are 3 things I have noticed:
i) If I have nothing to write about it is an almost sure sign that I haven’t been living enough. When that happens, instead of trying to write, I go and do something completely different; an hour or two in the garden, coffee with a friend … that type of thing.
ii) Sometimes when I can’t write, I find my creativity is demanding to be released in other ways. Rather than fight it, I am learning to go with the flow.
iii) Sometimes when I can’t write, it is simply because I have given so much of myself in other ways that there is little or nothing left to put onto paper/screen. Those are the times when it’s time for me to stop writing and read for a while.
def some wise words in all three of those brother…
I as well suffer the opposite of writer’s block. I find inspiration in nearly everything.
I do find there are certain pieces that carry the strength of a ‘musing’ more than others, but generally I just look at things with a writing eye. I find one of the best sources of inspiration in reading the beauty others write. I often find words spark words. Poetry in particular.
Nice to hear about your life as always. Hope your week goes well Brian.
You talking to me? – Maybe I needed the reminder (read -‘ kick in the butt’) Have been thinking about writing instead of writing – need to get back to it ——-thanks Brian – smiles K
smiles…any time….