(no subject)

[lady_karelia]

Authors frequently refer to their muse. Sometimes they give it a name, othertimes they simply refer to 'the muse'. It got me curious.

[Poll #752332]

Comments

[veradee.livejournal.com]

While I sometimes mention my or someone else's muse, I rather mean that as a joke. I'm not good in mythology but aren't muses always female?

[mundungus42.livejournal.com]

I always pictured my muse as female, which, as a feminist with a smidgen of art knowledge, is somewhat problematic in terms of the "male gaze." Mythologically, muses are female. Of course, historically, artists are male, so by all rights, my muse should be male. I guess my muse is female because she's rawther like me only more often clad in flowy garments a'la Alphonse Mucha (http://www.midnight-muse.com/1amspri.htm). She's a flighty wench, but I love her all the same. The closest thing to a muse that I've ever named would be my bicycle. My college bike was Muriel, and my current bike is Mrs. Danvers (we have a love-hate relationship). I'll work on a name for my muse... thanks for the food for thought!

[bambu345.livejournal.com]

I think I'm too prosaic to have a muse. I almost clicked on the ticky boxes though!

[ginny-weasley31.livejournal.com]

My muse doesn't have a name. Although I've never asked her.

I agree with verdee, btw... I was always under the impression that Muses are always female.

Now, early on when I started my first story I thanked my beta and 'Meredith my Muse"... well, Meredith was a real person, and she helped me tremendously flesh out my stories. So, in this sense, she wasn't a muse... just a good friend.

But now, I want my muse to have a name, dangit!

[bookbug87.livejournal.com]

One of the fanfic forums I frequent has a thread where people post conversations between themselves and their characters, when their characters have decided to rebel or otherwise take on a life of their own. However, for me it usually isn't a particular character that shows up in my head and starts talking to me - it's whole plots that show up and start asserting themselves in my brain. That's why I decided to name my muse, so I could start having a few little dialogs with her.

I wanted to name her Scriveness, but she insisted on changing it to Scrivena because she thought that sounded better. I added the “Malevolent Muse” part, which of course she immediately wanted to change to "Magnificent", but I refused to give in to that change. We've been fighting ever since. :P She has a fondness for bad puns and dreaming up grandiose epics that I have no time to write. *siiiigh*

[queenp71.livejournal.com]

Right now, I don't even write for fun--just for work...but I've got a muse...and she is very particular about when I write and where I write. It really sucks having a night owl muse when you are on a daytime schedule...She doesn't have a name although, on occasion, she gets referred to as G*# D@#$ B@#$& when she won't cooperate with a deadline and keeps me up all night. But that hasn't happened now in just over a year..(She just stuck her tongue out at me and asked if I ever wanted to finish the paper... cheeky wench she is.)