search for my elusive muse

Ahhh, this is a dilema I am very familiar with. The elusive muse is different for everyone. I find mine often comes to me in a dreamlike state, prompting me to write, tempting me with ideas, and snippets of words strung together. The one thing you can do is open your mind completly to accept your muse. Keep in mind it may not be in the form you are expecting, that is why you must be sincerely open to whatever your muse may be. Meditating, music, and poetry can also help bring out your muse. As for getting her to stay, that is something that you can only rely on your inner self to do. Follow her and she will not mislead you.

How about doing things to lure your Muse back? Try fun and silly things like dancing around your house and singing at the top of your lungs, drawing funny pictures with crayons, buying her beautiful flowers to brighten her day, sculpt naughty things with Playdo ;) , feed her chocolate and the occasional sweet? You may want to write a serious novel, but the creative side of us sometimes needs a jolt from the mundane, dull lives we sometimes lead. Don't be afraid to shake things up a little! ~Wyrdsister

Try becoming a child again and ask "why." Each answer should be followed with another question. You can and should try freewriting your answers and questions. Another idea is creating variations on fairy tales and folk tales. For example, what else could Goldilocks and the three bears be and what else could they be doing? How about Beauty and the Beast or Snow White? Another idea is just asking "what if?" What if a business man or woman decided to take a long distance ride on Amtrak instead of the usual commuter train? Why would he or she do this? What obstacles interfere with his or her attempts? Keep jotting notes down. Eventually, you will have the seeds of a great novel. Best of luck with your project!