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Micro muses are all around us

Fiction writing (making art too!) opens the world to endless possibilities. There is so much to draw from, where do you start? Here is what I do when I’m working on my stories, books and art collages. I look for what I call micro muses. I take pictures of random things I come across throughout the day. (Another thing I owe to my lovely iPhone) These work excellent for character development, a MacGuffin, and/or plot devices.

For example, I came across this flocked Mary and Jesus set of banks. My first thought was to buy them and further embellish their holy-yet-fuzzy bodies. Aw, too predictable!

Instead I decided to find a way to adapt them in a story. There are so many possibilities! Maybe there is a character who buys one, takes it home, drops it and finds a mysterious “help me! I’ve just been kidnapped!” note that someone slipped inside. Maybe she is an uptight Pottery Barn slave and her best friend/maid of honor chooses these as bridal shower centerpieces – thus creating a rift in their friendship. Maybe a girl plans to tell her boyfriend she is cheating on him, but then looks up, sees Mary and Joseph watching her, so she decides to give the relationship a serious second chance.
Sure Mary and Jesus flocked banks make for an easy spin-off, but this exercise works with just about ANYTHING.

Open your mind and take a second look at the things you normally don’t notice. Street signs, window displays, the backpack of the person standing in front of you at the coffeehouse, a sugar packet, a car broken down on the side of the road, a velvet bow on on a little girl’s head, etc.
Pull out that camera and snap away! And save the picture because you can use it in an art collage downthe road 😉

Remember – creativity is in the eye of the beholder!

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