What do you write about when words wonāt come easy?
The Muted Muse explores the space between the creative urge and writerās block. In her first standalone chapbook of poetry, Jocelyne Smallian-Khan quiets the ālizard brainā of self-doubt, rejecting imposter syndrome, and facing the void of the blank page head on.
This little collection offers a variety of poetic forms to enjoy: short poems; haiku, free verse, humorous poems, confessional poetry, and declarations of self-deprecation and self-affirmation.
What do you write about when words wonāt come easy?
The Muted Muse explores the space between the creative urge and writerās block. In her first standalone chapbook of poetry, Jocelyne Smallian-Khan quiets the ālizard brainā of self-doubt, rejecting imposter syndrome, and facing the void of the blank page head on.
This little collection offers a variety of poetic forms to enjoy: short poems; haiku, free verse, humorous poems, confessional poetry, and declarations of self-deprecation and self-affirmation.
The Muted Muse
A Poetry Collection
By
Jocelyne Smallian-Khan
Copyright Ā© 2022
Jocelyne Smallian-Khan / Smallian-Khan Ltd.
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or any information storage and retrieval system, without express permission in writing from the author/publisher.
For information contact:
jjsmalliankhan@gmail.com
http://www.jjsk.ca
ISBN: 978-1-7780584-0-0
First Print Edition: January 2022
E-Book : ISBN 978-1-7780584-1-7 (March 2022)
Blocked
The ribbon, runs dry
The muse, is mute
Jocelyne Smallian-Khan
Table of Contents
Inarticulate .................................................. 2
Dreamtype ................................................... 3
Silent Typewriter ........................................ 4
The Muse .................................................... 5
At the desk .................................................. 6
Quiet Lizard ................................................ 7
Blank Canvas .............................................. 8
Blank Paper ................................................. 9
Remembering ............................................ 10
Retreat ....................................................... 11
Delete, delete ............................................. 12
Driverless .................................................. 13
So Much Rage ........................................... 14
Human Failure .......................................... 15
I thinkā¦ .................................................... 16
Creative Drought ....................................... 17
Diversion ................................................... 18
Silence ....................................................... 19
2AM .......................................................... 20
Noaughts ................................................... 21
Adam ......................................................... 22
Pretense ..................................................... 23
About the Author ...................................... 24
More from Jocelyne .................................. 25
Inarticulate
The itch of an idea
Prickling in my brain
It scurries and scrabbles into corners
Eluding catchā¦
Eluding scratchā¦
The sting of inspiration swells
Throbbing, throbbing
My pulse beats with a need to create
Somethingā¦
Anythingā¦
A slice of insight
Slashing my soul
My gasping psyche stretches out
Reachingā¦
Screechingā¦
Beseechingā¦
Dreamtype
I have been dreaming of typewriters
Old manual Underwoods
And electric Olivettis
Are appearing nocturnally
In my mindās meanderings
Remington reminiscences
Chunka-chuka and clickity-clickty
Pages rolling up and down
ziiip... ziiip
Striiitch... Thunkkk... Dinggg
Maybe my mind is telling me
That I should step away
From the computer
And get reacquainted
With an old friend
...Dinggggg
All writers have been there - when words become silent and the pen can't reveal the depths of thoughts. It creates a craving and a certain despondency that only a revival of the creative spree can cure. InĀ The Muted Muse: a poetry collection, Jocelyne Smallian-Khan elaborates on the anguish of the writers' block.Ā
The book cover takes us to a pre-computer era, where writers composed to the rhythmic clickity-clack of a typewriter. The first line in the book is reminiscent of a time that many of the 1990s generations do not know. Dreamtype, a poem in the collection, is an ode to the typewriters that one may only find in attics and museums. The poet wonders if technology is stealing our muse and if we need to go back to the silence of pen and paper and the symphony of typewriter sounds. The typewriter ribbons have run dry because of disuse as the poet pursues her muse.Ā
The writer is aware of the logjam of ideas and thoughts piling in her mind, all without an outlet.
"The thing I write about most
Is having nothing to write about"
The reader embarks on a journey filled with graceful words - evocative, emotive, and engaging - and beautiful metaphors, like the itch of an idea, a slice of insight.
I loved the piece - 2 AM - that resonates with the struggle of most creative souls. The afternoons demand rest, and the nights are an insomniac haven. There is an interesting poem on "Adam" where she speaks about the burden of legacy:
"How curious it must be
To be your father's son"
This is a slim volume, and some pieces are of just three lines. Experimental and creative, it is not the number of words but the meaning in each that counts. Dig in and find our interpretation of the poet in pursuit of the muse.