My Inconvenient Muse

I looked at the clock and groaned. 3.30am. Instead of being blissfully asleep I was wide awake with yet another idea for a story. I'm sure I'm not the only one who seems to be inspired at the most inconvenient times.

I have a notebook by my bed so that I can jot random ideas and thoughts down in the hope that my mind will release them and allow me to fall back to sleep. This time, it didn't work. Instead, my brain seemed to take this as permission to embellish and explore possibilities. I tried to tell myself that I would remember all the extra details and that I didn't need to do anything more, but my head had other ideas. By 4.30am I had had enough and got up to write it all down. My sleep was over for another night.

I am fortunate that I am not in paid employment, so if I find myself tiring during the day I can rest, take a walk or even have a nap. Many aspiring authors, however, don't have such luxury and it can have an adverse effect on their day-to-day life, especially if they are in the grip of a new project. Apparently, it is all due to the frontal cortex shutting down or taking a break when you are not focused on what is happening around you. The rest of the brain then takes the opportunity to fire up, including the creative parts. Hence the inconvenient muse.

She will appear when you are in the shower, driving, about to fall asleep, or even on the loo. Often, those are also the times when you don't have access to a notebook to jot down those perfect thoughts. It's a good idea to have something nearby so that when you are done, you can get it written down before it is lost.

In essence, if you need a flash of inspiration, put yourself in a boring situation. Let your mind roam free, making random connections and forging down unexplored paths in the dark recesses of your consciousness. Just make sure your boss doesn't catch you planning your new bestseller instead of taking notes on his video presentation!