A friend of mine is having a hard time. His no love, no job, no idea what to do with myself state is getting to him. Hope is on the horizon. I'm absolutely sure of this for him. Why, because he's my friend and my love does wonders. In the meantime…Blah, blah, blah. Survival is tough mentally. 

My advice to him: Write. 

He’s talented. It is a side thing for him, I know. However, writing is in him--if you know what I mean. He has imagery, fluidity, depth, insight and one of the most impressive vocabularies I've ever run across. Besides that, he rhymes well (I'm rolling my eyes right here). What more could you ask for in a poet?

His response: But I need a Muse for that.

What the hell!

I’ve had this love hate relationship with the concept of the “Muse” and how artists (and writers are artists) feel like she is an absolute must in order to be creative. I've known writers to wait on their Muse to bless them with her presence before they will lift a pen or put finger to the keyboard. They are lost without her, having fallen into that deep pit where writers go to mourn success. I for one do not trust that b****. She ain’t loyal! No, I'm not talking about the people that depend on their Muse but the actual Muse herself.

I have a quote that I love, but I can’t remember where I picked it up. “You can’t trust inspiration. If you turn your back on that b****, she will steal s*** from your house and run off. She won't even leave a note on your bedside table." Replace inspiration with “THE MUSE”. Now, multiply that times ten. Seriously, believe me when I say that she does not care about you. You are the sorry side of a one sided relationship

Here’s my response to my friend:

The problem with needing a Muse is that it has made you forget that you are your best asset, your best thing. What you need most, you have to give to yourself. No one has to feed you thought in order for you to think, touch in order for you to feel, love in order for you to be able to love. You don’t need a Muse to whisper life in your ear. You’ll spend more time waiting than living if that is what you need. You are already alive. You already have what you need. So, write. It will help you through this moment--any moment. Your friends that are not creative will not understand what I am saying, but you do. You already knew it. If writing is in you, if talent is somewhere deep inside of you crying to escape, why have you placed a qualifier on it.

Write.

Having said that, it doesn’t mean that I don’t believe in the Muse or the value of the gift that she brings when she finally shows her behind up. I respect her. I’m scared of her. She can be vicious. So, I really have no intentions of pissing her off. I really wish she would pay me a visit. We can hang out, trade a few lines. I have fun when we do. I may even miss her when she's gone. I'm just not waiting her fickle butt. She's a tease. I don’t recommend that you rely on her either. Most likely, you are feeling her. She is not feeling you. If she isn’t there, forget about her and write anyway. Cry over her later.
Being a writer means that you write. It's just that simple. You write when you are in a good mood or a bad mood, happy or sad, crying or with a dry eye. Be ambivalent, there is glory in the irony of that. But for Gawd's sake, don't wait on that whore. She ain't loyal.

*******

Note: You can put he where I have chosen she and apply the advice appropriately.