As you've likely noticed, my Muse has set up her own blog. She doesn't update often, because she's always rather busy, but she exists, and is my best friend. She keeps me on track or gives me the final word on the subject of breaks. Shakes her head when I get off on some long winded, wild tangent and urges me on when I'm entirely in sync with the characters.

However, some of you may not believe in muses. I know Maureen Johnson hates the idea of them, and even wrote a blog about it, Death to Muses. Now, I feel I must better explain the existence of my Muse. Not to defend her, but to show you how I see her, how she exists to me. I fully understand Maureen's stance, the idea that a Muse is simply there to take credit for all the hard work the writer puts in. But I personally feel Muses are not like that, they are different to those who find they believe in them.

My Muse is Me.

Allow me to clarify. She is my twin sister, my mother, and my alter ego all rolled into one. Evie is the adult in me, the part of my mind that knows when I'm just trying to get out of working instead of actually being sick, the responsible part. She's like my twin in that she knows even when I don't that I'm hurting, or sad or way too hyper. She's like my mother in the way she pushes me to do better even when I think I've done the best I can. She's me, the other part of my brain that I argue with over silly things, the voice I converse with when I can't make a decision.

I don't know if I'm making sense. Let me put it this way - I have two basic personalities, and if you've seen me tweet, you know them both. There's the hyper teen who wants to have fun, and there's the wise adult who thinks deeply on human nature. For me it's a balancing act, what part should be more prevalent when I'm writing, all the while trying to get both personalities to coalesce into my narrative voice. In the beginning of this long journey of the craft, I had a hard time doing that, so I separated my personalities, and found them to be whole in and of themselves.

Evie is like a forty year old teenager, wise beyond her years and a dreamer in the stars. But she understands limits, and likes to have mindless fun when the occasion calls for it. I'm more of an eighteen year old adult - I so don't want to grow up. I'll say or do silly things, I have a stuffed animal I like to sleep with when my hubby isn't home, I want to buy things. Lots of things. But I know boundaries, and I respect them and get to work when I absolutely have to.

So no, my Muse is not there to take credit for my hard work, because in reality, she's just another part of me. I simply found it better to work with both halves of me when I separated them, treated them like two instead of one. Sounds crazy? I know. But it's the best way for me. It may be the best way for you - don't you argue with yourself on the best thing to do?  Yell at yourself for taking the wrong direction or cheer yourself on when you're close to the end of a chapter or novel? Perhaps separating the two major personalities in yourself may help - try it. If it doesn't work, then no worries, but if it does, then it could be magic.

I can't tell you how to do it, but I do know it needs to be both a conscious and subconscious decision. I started staring into space and the figure of who I thought was a combination of my twin, me, and my mom came up in my minds eye and told me what I needed to hear. That was when I made the choice, without really thinking about it. I argued about the point in the story with the new Muse that had popped up, and I ended up losing because I had to agree she was right. So try it. It doesn't hurt, trust me. It's the best thing I've done in years.