A Writer’s Life: When the Muse Takes a Break

I have been deep into writing the first book of my trilogy since Camp NaNoWriMo last July(2020).  Not every day, but every week at the very least, and sometimes, more hours in the day than I care to admit to anyone.

Sometimes my Muse takes a break.  I like to imagine she goes to the beach to relax and recharge herself. I am a demanding taskmaster when I am writing, so I figure she deserves it. It makes me anxious when she first goes. What if she never comes back? What do I do with this mountain of research and sticky notes and paper?

But I have faith that she will return. And she always does. At least so far.

What do I do while she is gone?

As I have mentioned elsewhere, I do have other creative pursuits.  I make cold-process soap. I used to make candles but have since gotten rid of my equipment for that, as it does not “spark joy” for me anymore.  I bake. I make candy.

Lately, though, none of these have suited me.  I have two containers of soap from last year. We are “dieting” in the house right now, so baking and candy-making are out.

The Muse was gone for about two months last fall. She was gone for so long that I started to wonder if she was ever coming back.

During her absence, I read some craft books. I kept my notebook (I have a problem with spiral bound journaling notebooks.  I may need a twelve-step program for it) with me every day, and if something occurred to me, I wrote it down. I started making notes about books two and three. I spent some time working on my ‘writing room’.  I bought some boxes and got organized. I bought a planner and started keep track of my time and schedule.

But I did not write.

And by the time she came back rested, and ready to go back to work, so was I.

And then, I wrote.

Muses are great.

Until they go, and do not leave a forwarding address.

I finished my first draft of the book in late winter, and immediately went into edits. My first draft topped out at 214,000 words, and I did not want to think about publishing a book that long as my first. By the time I finished my fifth edit a few weeks ago, I was down to a workable 155,000 words.

I gave the Muse a few weeks off. She earned it. I started shopping for a developmental editor.  The Muse came back just in time for me to start planning and outlining book two, which is where I am now. The first few chapters are outlined, and today I wrote about 400 words in the initial scene.

She is going to fly the coop again.  And that’s okay. I have another craft book sitting on my desk, waiting to be read. I can focus on the editors and this website.  I can start thinking about cover art and post to Instagram and chat with other writers in one of the Discord servers I belong to.

And of course, there is always gaming. Reading. Spending time with our cat, Grace, my partner, Ben, or my friends. There are literally hundreds of You-Tube videos about self-publishing, editing, outlining.

There are always other things to do.

And when she returns, we will get back to the business of writing the words.  Because it is my happy place, and as exhausted as my Muse gets, its hers, too.