by Gail Lowe

Sometimes it drops into your mind complete with ribbon and bow.

Sometimes you get a picture, a few words, and your mind has to chase the story down one sentence at a time.

It doesn’t matter how it arrives.

It’s what you do with it.

I’m an expert daydreamer. I feel quite comfortable claiming the status because I’ve clocked way more than the recommended 10,000 hours that Malcolm Gladwell wrote about in Outliers. Apparently, experts are disputing the 10,000-hour-claim, but I have been watching Malcolm on Master Class, and I like his style, so I’m going with what Malcolm says*.

*See, Malcom and I are now on a first-name basis. Lean in… I’m whispering:

You can do that when the other person doesn’t know you exist.

Anyhoo, back to the topic at hand…oh yes, daydreaming. I think my muse has more access to me when I’m daydreaming or doing things that empty my mind and make room for extraordinary ideas to come through. I have this image of two muses sitting in a boat on a celestial lake with fishing rods. One muse pipes up and says to the other: “Got one!” I think some creative force is always out there fishing, waiting for us creative types to take a bite.

It’s what happens after we take that bite that separates the starters from the finishers. Ideas have to be developed. Daydreaming alone isn’t going to get the job done. I figured that out the hard way, and now I’m working towards my 10,000 hours as a finisher. My muse checks in every once in a while to see how I’m doing. I appreciate that immensely.

I have also discovered that there are amazing creative types here on earth, ready to help:

  • The Alexandra Writers Centre Society is where I started (www.alexandrawriters.org).
  • Libraries and librarians are master connectors.
  • MasterClass is amazing (www.masterclass.com).
  • Established authors such as Brandon Sanderson have resources available. He is one of many who offer online classes.
  • The Corner Lot Author Olyn Ozbick (@OlynOzbick) is working to connect writers in search of writing groups, online.
  • Wordfest (wordfest.com) and When Words Collide (WhenWordsCollide.org) are gatherings and more recently offer online resources and connections for aspiring authors. Here you can ask and approach agents, publishers, established authors, and fellow writers. (All of this is just a glimpse of what I have discovered so far.)

But first, it starts with an idea.

So, the next time your muse is out fishing, why not take a bite?