When You Need to Write

"And when I'm not working [writing], I'm not working at all, although during those periods of full stop I usually feel at loose ends with myself and have trouble sleeping." Stephen King

For the last month I've been letting a draft marinate while I focus on revisions and beta reading. This weekend I took time from all of it to celebrate my one year wedding anniversary. But my muse hasn't been idle...though sometimes it feels like it. I've been doing a lot of the things that stir my imagination and creativity: watching movies, reading, and listening to a ton of music.

As my time between new projects extends I find myself daydreaming more and more. At first the daydreams are disjointed, with no hint of what characters they belong to, if any, and little to indicate what plot they'd form. But then they grow more solid and I get an inkling on who is speaking to me and which book it belongs to.

Saturday night I literally dreamed about writing. It felt so good to be poised above the keyboard letting a story pour out my fingertips. I wish I could have seen what was on the screen. Unfortunately I was unable to do more than a blog post on Sunday due to my anniversary festivities. Then Monday, the kids came home...but I got as far as opening up the document and skimming through what I had. Today I'll hopefully be able to make some notes and maybe even begin a scene.

Does this happen to the rest of you when you go between projects? Is there a time where you clench your fists and say, "Damn it, I need to write!"?

What do you do to court your muse?