4 Reasons Why Ronnie James Dio is One of my Muses.

For those of you who don't know, today marks the two year anniversary of Ronnie James Dio's death. :( I wrote a huge memorial post about him last year. I also drew a portrait of him for my husband for our wedding anniversary, which is on the 30th. 

I swear, whenever I'm not writing, he seems to be glaring at me. 

 Anyway, somehow, in the last few years, Dio has become more than a favorite musician, he's also become one of my muses. I mentioned the realization to my husband and asked, "Do you think he'd be all weirded out, that some crazy romance author sees him as a muse?"

My husband shook his head. "No, I think he'd be flattered."

Maybe he's right. After all, I do believe that all artists and musicians really are muses.

And here's why Dio's one of mine:

1.) His music: Music has always been one of my primary inspirations to create. I hear a song and I picture a scene in my head. Often that scene becomes a story. Dio's songs always told stories. In fact, he once said in an interview that if he weren't a musician, he may have been an author.

Here's the song "FEVER DREAMS" from the album, "Magica." I have a novel in the works about a singer in a metal band who discovers she's the prophesied savior of another world. She has some strange dreams beforehand. I heard this song and thought, "Wow, he's singing about my character." Okay, not really, but it's still a fun thought.

Also, "Lately when my demons drag the night across my eyes..." is the coolest metaphor for falling into an uneasy sleep that I've ever heard.

2.) The inspiration of his life. Dio didn't build a successful music career that spanned across six decades without hard work and dedication. Any time I consider whining about the writing being hard, I think of him and remember that he wrote hundreds of songs and made a ton of albums. That took work. He also took lots of time to do concert tours and interviews and interact with his fans.

I try to think of each chapter I write as a song, and each novel an album. And I will strive to treat my fans as good as he did. He once sat out in the rain for HOURS signing autographs.

Here's a video of Dio in the studio, hard at work. :)

3.) We have a lot in common, so I can actually imagine talking to him. Dio loved to read. He was also really into fantasy and medieval history. I wish I could ask him if he's read PILLARS OF THE EARTH, or any of the HARRY POTTER series. Obviously, he loved music and a lot of the bands he's mentioned and toured with are among my favorites. He loved animals, cats as well as dogs. And he was short. I'm only 5' and I took a lot of crap for it growing up. So it's extremely inspiring for a fellow short person to become a giant.

You have to be big to tackle Aerosmith's "Dream On."

4.) He was damn good looking. I'll admit it, romance authors are always inspired by eye candy. I'm a sucker for great hair and eyes and Dio had both.

His wife was one lucky lady.

Muses are a good thing to have, truly. So in honor of Dio's memory, I'm going to rock out to his music and get back to work on another novel.

Who are your muses? What keeps you going when you're at the creative grindstone?