Monday, October 17, 2011

Find Your Muchness

One of my favorite scenes in Tim Burton’s Alice in Wonderland is when the Mad Hatter informs Alice she’s lost her muchness. There is some debate on what he meant exactly, whether it was her childhood belief and innocence, or the very essence of what made her…Alice.

But I prefer to think he meant her courage, her spirit in the face of adversity. And I realized something this past week while layering in subplots and adding twists to my current wip. Somewhere along the way, my story had lost its muchness. I stopped pushing the boundaries, and I must have been in a good mood about three quarters of the way through because suddenly everyone became very nice. Even my villain.

Not Good.

Then it occurred to me that maybe I have lost some of my own muchness. Have I become too civilized as an adult? Have I lost the courage and spirit to speak up when it’s not considered polite or when I believe in something that might not be popular? Every day I believe in the impossible but am I willing to back that up in my writing?

I vow today to be much muchier. And so does my manuscript. We may not be brandishing a sword but our pen rocks out loud.

How’s that for muchness?

6 comments:

  1. I love that movie with a burning fiery passion. And yes, there are times I've lost my muchness as well. Not today, though!

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  2. Was there really a debate going on? I must've been busy. I'm glad you're vowing to be more uncivilized!
    Seriously (Yeah right), I don't picture you the girl in the corner agreeing with the world because you lost your mojo. I'm sure your writing reflects the same. :)

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  3. Yes! I also need to find my muchness!

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  4. Writing is no place to lose your muchness. Excellent post and a good reminder to make your headspace a "no complacency" zone. :)

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  5. I know what you mean about losing your muchness. I've been feeling that way myself for awhile and I worry it's creeping into my work!

    Here's to getting our muchness back. :)

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  6. That's one of my favorite movies. :)

    Hooray for muchness!

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It helps to know I'm not just talking to myself.