Finding Your Muse

Editor: byronwinward

Finding and utilizing sources of creativity and inspiration is an age-old struggle. A clearer mind and healthy body can be a good starting point.

Hearing a melody form in my mind while the hot water of the shower massages my scalp, I dry myself off hastily, throw on a robe and sit down at my workstation, ready to bridge the gap between idea and fingers. After thirty oblivious minutes of guitar, strings and a fretted bass line, sequenced together to form the crude outline of a song, a shiver of goose bumps reminds me I'm half naked and late for work. Ten hours later, when I return to the keyboard, fully clothed and clouded with the stink of the day, my brow furrows as I close my eyes, listen to my snippet and attempt to follow a trail of bread crumbs back to where I intended to be. Such is the nature of my struggle to balance inspiration with the interruption of life.

In the race against time to make our personal mark on the world while simultaneously earning a living, some of us are fortunate enough to arrange a marriage of inspiration and employment, doing what we love for money. For the rest of us, inspiration for personal gain is unwittingly ignored until a time at which it conveniently fits our schedule. While inspiration is a catalyst for the creation of art, it could be argued that the act of calling upon inspiration is an art form in itself. The true source of inspiration has been long debated and theorized. Whether subconscious or spiritual, uniquely our own or channeled via a higher power, inspiration happens no matter where our beliefs may lie. It happens in times of great happiness and great sorrow, in the best of times and the worst.

Having developed an appreciation for music in films from as far back as I can remember, I’ve dabbled in self taught, intuitive music composition for several years. Because I am unable to read music, I play by ear and rely completely on inspiration, coupled with technology, to streamline my efforts. I don’t understand how my mind knows where to take the notes next or where to mesh certain instruments together, it just does. Whether the result is of commercial quality is yet to be seen, but the personal satisfaction it brings me is unmatched. The word music is derived from mousa, the Greek word for muse. In Greek mythology, the god Zeus had nine daughters, the muses who inspired creativity in mere mortals. Poetry, astrology and music were among their specialties. When these gifted, divine women weren't supposedly occupying their time on Mount Helicon dancing, taking rides on Pegasus, and envying each other's latest designer Hermes handbags, their duty was to ensure that those who tried earnestly, were able to succeed in bridging that gap between idea and creation. Ideas or thoughts that originate in our minds and are then manifested through us in the form of creation/art, are symbolized by the muses.

Thousands of years ago, with few resources available for the documentation of ideas, it’s easy to imagine how the consistent influence of a personal muse would've come in handy, especially considering the muses were daughters of Mnemosyne, the goddess of memory. Budding poets and musicians would have relied heavily on their memories to keep their ideas in rotation. Fast forward to 2007, where 13 year olds carry electronic devices in their pockets, holding theirs and hundreds of others' creations available at their fingertips, whether lounging at home, riding the mass transit system, or enjoying the latest "hit" during class with their iPod discreetly tucked away in their designer Hermes handbag. The fruits of our labor are now easily born, documented and shared electronically for the world to see. In such a world, saturated with birthed ideas, have the muses been working overtime to ensure everyone their fifteen minutes of fame, or have they been forced to streamline their efforts, breathing new life through fresh interpretations of the same material that has circulated throughout the ages? Either way, talent, whether endearingly humble or monumentally culture changing, now has the potential for being found, seen and heard by the pop-life masses of sheep, or the niche minorities of indie aficionados. While the potential for being seen increases, so does the amount of documented content to be found, leaving the game of artistic expression competitive as ever. What will ultimately set each of us apart from the rest is our ability to be found and the quality of our results in channeling our inspiration.

Eating massive amounts of chocolate on a treadmill, in the shower, listening to Prokofiev.

In lieu of placing our faith in a beautiful and talented mythological goddess, how do we go about unleashing the inner muse? What's more, how do we call on our muse at will, when it best suits our schedule? Over time, we adapt and learn ways of capturing and retaining brilliant thoughts as they occur on the fly, but when a time slot becomes available and our schedule is cleared, we expect our muse to be ready when we are. Sometimes she begins to whisper immediately as if she’d been there the whole time, waiting to be called onstage. Other times we sit, wince and fidget, wondering if she's too busy to help. Everyone has their own strategies for channeling their muse. I believe that a clear and engaged mind is the ideal place to start when courting her. There's no telling how many great ideas have been sabotaged by distraction, doubt and fear. It is likely that major talent is carried to the grave of many, having failed to recognize, trust or utilize inspiration when it came knocking at their proverbial door. During the creative process, I feel it's important for me to have small leaps of faith, no matter how trifling the ideas may be as they materialize. I must trust my instincts and run, run, run with an idea as if I just burgled it. Going back to the hot shower, I'm avid to find the connection between the soothing water on my scalp and the resulting influx of good ideas. Am I simply more relaxed when in my private, natural state, or is the act of stimulating millions of nerve endings on the scalp with hot water aiding my brain in releasing chemicals that clear the clog of doubt and distraction, leaving me open to my own suggestions?

One infamous summer in Switzerland, 1816, Lord Byron, Mary and Percy Shelley, John Polidori and Mary’s half-sister Claire, shared a villa near Lake Geneva. They reportedly indulged in various opiates, debated over religion, science and philosophy and scared each other senseless with an exchange of their favorite ghost stories. Byron challenged each of them to pen their own terrifying tale during their stay. Mary credited certain events of their tryst, including an opium induced waking dream, as inspiration for her gothic masterpiece, Frankenstein. Polidori’s The Vampyre was also given immortal life from these events. Perhaps the side effects of doped imaginations sparked by tales of the macabre, stimulated a fast track to inspiration so many of us would like to experience. Mind altering drugs have been credited as aid in the inspiration of several authors and artists, from the timeless realm of Xanadu in Samuel Taylor Coleridge’s Kubla Khan, to Shelley’s monster, to Lewis Carrols hallucinatory images of Alice in Wonderland. For those of us in modern society who prefer to avoid possible addiction and prison time, there are ways we can “tap in” to our body’s production of chemicals which produce a natural high. Endorphins are the body's version of a biochemical superhero, with the primary function of swooping in during times of high stress or pain, to relieve us and bestow a feeling of general well-being or even euphoria. With a chemical structure similar to heroin, morphine and opium, endorphins could conceivably aid in encouraging inspiration and drive by imparting a sense of clarity, confidence and invincibility.

Some scientists have noted that yoga, massage therapy and eating foods such as chocolate and chili peppers may all be effective ways of releasing of endorphins. Yoga will undoubtedly lead to a clearer mind and stronger foundation, but it is unclear how much chocolate one would have to enjoy in a sitting to produce measurable effects. When testing this theory, devouring a full bag of Lindt truffles in an hour undoubtedly left me happy, though it was probably just my rationalization of being gluttonous for the sake of science. Once the empty-caloried high wore off, I feared developing a cocoa dope habit may render me creative but tubby, and decided to stick with a guilt-free approach to harnessing the power of endorphins. The most efficient and lasting catalyst for their release may be high intensity exercise. There is mounting evidence to suggest that they are responsible for what’s referred to as the “runner’s high”. Continuous, vigorous exercise such as jogging, swimming, basketball, etc., places stress on the body, which in turn compensates by releasing the “feel good” chemicals for a period during and after the exercise session.

Scottish philosopher Hugh Blair (1718 – 1800) said “Exercise is the chief source of improvement in our faculties.” I can personally identify with his belief. Having hit a slump in my mid twenties, I was in desperate need of reinvention, redemption and renewed interest in my personal passions. When faced with the likelihood of making anti-depressants a long-term supplement to my comeback, I feared they might inhibit my creativity or rob me of emotional highs in their mood-leveling behavior. I sought alternatives. A friend of mine who has always been stable and optimistic is also a self professed fitness addict. For him, stairs are an opportunity to get his blood pumping; a mountain is simply a hurdle for which he needs a running head-start. At the time, I found his gung-ho attitude to be more obnoxious than influential. While he saw the glass as half full, I agreed that it was half full.....of poison. After much cajoling, I reluctantly packed my gym bag and went on a guilt trip with him to the fitness center. He challenged me to endure 4-5 days a week and quit if I didn’t feel a marked improvement after a month. Eight years and six pairs of Nikes later, I become anxious and irritable if I miss a week of vigorous exercise. Blissfully brainwashed by my body’s chemical reaction to the stress of pushing my performance further, I’m addicted to the natural high, have a clearer mind and the ability to remain calm in tense situations. I sleep better and benefit from the newfound optimism I had previously found to be annoying while in my cynical rut. Most importantly, I’m able to enjoy the highs and bounce back quickly from the lows. Exercise inspires me to feel confident, capable, resilient - all of which are helpful qualities when courting creativity.

Like our bodies, our minds require a fitness routine of their own in order to progress and retain our culture and education. Along with physical and mental exercise, Blair spoke of improving one’s tastes through exposure to art. He believed that our tastes, like our bodies, respond to exercise as well, and that we can improve our tastes by being an audience to great works of art. I believe an artist’s calling is not only to offer a glimpse of their imagination to others, but to inspire others to use their own imaginations as well. If you take a tuning fork of a given frequency, strike it, and place it near another tuning fork of the same frequency, the second fork will begin to vibrate and sound on its own, without being struck. This is referred to as entrainment. We’ve all experienced a work of creativity that resonated in us as if we were tuned to the same frequency. Like the tuning fork, we can entrain in a sense by surrounding ourselves with other creations that inspire us to act. One of my earliest memories of this is listening to Peter and the Wolf, by Sergei Prokofiev, in an elementary school class. Written in just four days as a commission piece for a children’s theatre in Moscow, Prokofiev uses a specific musical instrument (or instrument family) to represent each character of the story. At the time I didn’t fully understand the concept of music as an underscore, nor realize how exactly I was being manipulated. I only knew that the sound of swelling brass conjured so vividly in my mind the image of a ferocious wolf who was sure to eat someone if I didn’t hear the timpani drums of the hunters soon. Upon hearing the piece a few times through, it was no longer necessary to hear the vocal narration with the music in order to recap the whole story in my mind; the instruments did that for me.

Inspired by the power of a tale told through music, I began to sound out my own melodies for characters in my head, on the piano and through any other instruments I could get my hands on. My fascination with music and visuals grew, attending as many films as my measly lawn-mowing allowance would afford me. My "nerd niche" was born. The frenetic violins and five note theme for the aliens of Spielberg’s Close Encounters of the Third Kind; the blood pumping horns of “Gonna Fly Now” as Rocky Balboa runs up the steps of the Philadelphia Museum of Art; the somber "Adagio for Strings" juxtaposed with the bloody chaos of war in Platoon. These are but a few examples of times in my youth when I felt strongly inspired by music and visuals which filled me with the ambition to create my own. As an adult, my mind has become more saturated with the experience of others’ ideas. As I mature and become more jaded, it may not be as easy to find material to be inspired by, but the aggregate experience helps me to improve my tastes. The act of enveloping my senses with that which inspires me is still the most powerful motivator of all.

If you can’t see the forest for the trees, seek higher ground.

Once I’ve surrounded myself with enough stimuli to leave me drooling like one of Pavlov’s dogs, I must be careful not to become too caught up in the details of my process, thereby interrupting the natural flow that occurs without effort. Inspiration is dynamic; it can be either coaxed or simply recognized. I use supplements like creatine to aid in the growth and strength of my muscles when I train. Since my body already manufactures creatine on its own, I must cycle on and off of it, so that I will not cease to produce it naturally. Likewise, my muscle growth will plateau if I continue to do the same exercises in the same way, week after week. To encourage new growth and ideas, I must:

1. Step back for an objective view, allowing me to recognize the inspiration that occurs organically around me at any time.
2. Change it up. Routine can assist in stability, but can also kill desire if I let it become boring and mechanical.

A photographer is caught in the shadow of three buildings casting an asymmetrical pattern on the pavement while walking back to the office from lunch; a mother watches her peaceful infant slumber, anxious with the worry of providing everything possible for it to stay warm, healthy and happy; an ecologist surveys a riparian streambed, realizing exactly what kind of native vegetation is needed to restore dynamic equilibrium. Whether intended or not, we surround ourselves with the means of inspiration on a daily basis. When we “stop and smell the roses”, what we’re really doing is taking time to recognize again, those things around us that give us natural, unsolicited inspiration. We need only be aware.

A revolution has more to teach us than the war it may have started or ended. Inspiration causes change; change causes inspiration. I find that when I step outside myself for a different point of view, considering the other side of a debate or an approach to a problem I’d not usually ruminate, I often spark new ideas that can lead to life changes. Like routine, becoming set in our ways can reinforce our beliefs and character but can also isolate us if we let stubbornness hinder our growth and progress. When we’re 13, we scoff at our parents’ taste in music, dismissing them as oblivious to what’s current and cool. From there, we either keep up and progress with the culture changes, or we find ourselves being ridiculed by our own children 20 years later, having held a nostalgic grip on what we considered to be hip “way back when“. When I was in junior high and high school, 80’s synthpop was king of the charts. Rap, alternative rock and arena rock would remain on the fringe until their rise in the following decade. After high school, I watched as my friends split into different groups. Some of them abandoned their carefree Flock of Seagulls and bleached bangs as college challenged their minds further, seeking reinvention in their beliefs with the subversive sound of Nirvana underscoring their paths. With their minds ever fresh and questioning, they gladly relinquished their Walkmans to try the latest gadget when the opportunity arose, and transitioned easily and excitedly into the age of the World Wide Web. The other group settled almost immediately into a life that was expected of them, without experiencing much in the way of independent pathfinding, carrying on a happy existence of simple traditions and modest expectations. As their cassette tapes finally wore out, they were forced to seek out “Best of the 80‘s” compilation cd’s and enter the digital age grudgingly, holding on to the carefree memories of their innocent years while the world raced ahead of them.

My path has been more random, full of starts, stops and widespread epiphanies. I’ve struggled to keep up with the latest trends and push my learning further, while keeping all of my old loves catalogued for future reference. From my current standpoint, I can find reasons to envy either group of friends. There’s comfort in settling in, and satisfaction from pushing forward. Nostalgia still holds a wealth inspiration for me, though I tend to actively seek more in new discoveries. The pseudo-classical music of films that shaped me as a child is still recognized and called upon, but at the same time I try to follow the evolution and fusion of today's "everything goes" approach to film scoring. I'm still content in my nerd niche, but willing to venture outside of it for the sake of curbing naiveté. I don’t have an appreciation for the manufactured pop of American Idol, but I do have an appreciation for understanding how pop culture progresses and affects change. Everyone without exception is affected by others' inpsiration and creations, whether we appreciate them or not. Inspiration and creativity keep us from devolving as a race, and are the fountain of youth for the psyche when the body fails to keep up. I try to remain fresh and open by simply recognizing what’s happening around me and putting it to use in new ways. By exercising my mind, varying my routine and keeping up with the changes around me, I keep my muse young, accessible and full of new ideas. I find her in the most obvious and least likely of places and times, whether relaxed or crazed, and with a little luck and an open mind, sometimes she finds me.

Byron Winward, January 25th, 2007

What about you? How do you find your muse?

Categories: Help Wanted | Self-Help | Motivation | Creativity