A Fistful of Universe

Is there such a thing as too much muse?

I've got more and more friends with blogs. RSS feeds to watch. Experts generously willing to expound on weapons and poisons and forensics. Way too many forums and digests...every one a must-read for a mystery writer.

And the wikis! The newsfeeds! The videos! The trivia! I've got speed-reader envy.

Month after month, while ramping up my reading, I considered all the fodder a grand gift, none of it to be spurned lest the muse sabotage my internet connection. But quite suddenly I've found that, for the sake of sanity, I've got to slow down my consumption of all things internet. My head's about to explode.

Don't get me wrong. I recognize the Web for the creative ocean it is, and believe me, I'm grateful. But I'm a perfectionist. Always have been. I find it difficult to do a half-ass job of anything. Must be on top of every subject I write about. Be fully prepared. So when I'm handed ideas on a platter, I've got to turn every one of them over. Just to be sure the next isn't better than the last one I pocketed.

After all, I learned at Dr. Seuss' knee. This exhaustive - and exhausting - study brings to mind Horton Hears a Who.

“I’ll find it!” cried Horton. “I’ll find it or bust!
I SHALL find my friends on my small speck of dust!”
And clover, by clover, by clover with care
He picked up and searched, and called, “Are you there?”
But clover, by clover, by clover he found
That the one that he sought for was just not around.
And by noon poor old Horton, more dead than alive,
Had picked, searched, and piled up, nine thousand and five.

Then, on through the afternoon, hour after hour…
Till he found them at last! On the three millionth flower!
“My friends!” cried the elephant. “Tell me! Do tell!
Are you safe? Are you sound? Are you whole? Are you well?”

Yup. That's me. Maybe I could keep it up if I knew there was only one dust speck that harbored a Whoville. But on the internet you find them with every nth click. What if I miss one? (Now if I just try the search this way....)

I've concluded that I've got to allow whole galaxies of Whos to drift right on by. Learn to skim, sift, and dabble, then trust I've got enough to go on. Allow other writers to pick up the strays.... Because it's not as if the drops are finite in this enormous sky. I can dip in a hand and grab a fistful of universe. Let the stars dribble out between my fingers.

Plenty more where they came from. No worries. Yeah, right.

- Lois