That Which Does Not Kill Us May Make Us Stronger, But It Can Also Crush The Writer’s Muse

Today, I get a letter in my mailbox at work that will tell me whether or not I have a job here next year. Unfortunately, many are in this situation with the economy the way it is. That kind of pressure weighs heavily on a person and it got me to thinking about how such instances affect writing. The truth of the matter is that sometimes when life gets tough, I tend to emotionally shut down, which leaves little energy for writing. When I first got into reading poetry I read about the lives of some of the poets and it seemed that when their lives were in the proverbial crapper, they turned to writing for solace or to release emotions. Look at Charles Bukowski’s Barfly and you will see what I mean. That doesn’t seem to happen for this writer. The last thing I want to do when I am feeling angst is pick up a pen or sit in front of a computer (usually my expressions are more physical in nature…elbows to the medulla oblongata and such). So I guess I am writing this blog in defiance at the moment, a mere twenty minutes before I will obtain the letter that holds the answer to my future. Do other writers out there struggle to find inspiration or their creative voice during times of trouble? Or are those the times when they produce their best, their most honest work?

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