See, it all started with this dream.

I don't know who has muses (I've heard a lot of people do) but I have seven. Seven very annoying muses that tend to kill me from time to time. Nylira is my dream muse. She's this short, blonde little sprite who is forever annoying me by being all calm and peaceful. Like muses are supposed to be. All my other muses are loud, chattering, opininated, and generally very definitive. On everything. But like I said, Nylira is irritatingly calm and serene. So she usualy inspires the more placid, peaceful, beautiful, philosophical, and strange pieces.

Yep. Strange. Nylira is very strange. She gives me fanfiction dreams, as well. Like Poison Flower. And lots of others not posted on ff.net. But the only muse stranger than Nylira is Esquiline.

Esquiline is my "Muse of Randomness". If you don't like fics like Once Upon A Bordem or Anyway, blame it on Esquiline. She's this little weird blue haired sprite who runs all of my MSTs. Anyway, I would just like to say that Esquiline is responsible for this piece. Solely resposible. Blame it on her. And maybe Riana, but mostly Esquiline.

And I guess I should explain that Riana is my Angst/Anger Muse. They go hand-in-hand, for me at least. Riana is this angry little redhead that's always hitting me if I don't write things. Not like Alani. Alani's this little brunette who's always hitting me over the head with ideas during sitcoms, books, TV shows, and cartoons, and forever making fun of Jaqueline for being so serious. Jaqueline has this weird hair that's yellow-orange and curly, with these huge blue eyes who always comes to me during novels and romantic things. Jaqueline writes my serious romance. Then there's Ophelia...my very moody, brunette oddly daydreaming muse who dominates my poetry.

But then Srlaae is a whole different story. She's like Sailor V in Sailor Moon--she just appeared out of nowhere, this mysterious purple-haired figure in the distance. She kept hitting me with words like 'afrofrizznistick' and 'fantasmataically' and now there's a whole page devoted to her after my 'language' called 'Bigailian. Enjoy...it's all Srlaae's fault. But she's agressive--she loves action and adventure.

Maybe someday I'll write a fic called: "Purple Abigail and the Seven Muses."

Nylira - Dream Muse
Esquiline - Random Muse
Alani - Fluff/Action Muse
Riana - Angst/Anger Muse
Jaqueline - Romance Muse
Ophelia - Poetry/Mystery Muse
Srlaae - Word/Action Muse

Calliope : greek - muse of epic poetry
Calliope (Calliopeia), the "Fair Voiced" and the eldest Muse, is the muse of epic poetry and is seen holding a writing tablet in hand, sometimes seen with a roll of paper or a book, and crowned in gold. Calliope is known for taking a fancy to Achilles and taught him how to cheer his friends by singing at banquets. She also was called by Zeus to mediate the quarrel between Aphrodite and Persephone over possession of Adonis. She settled the dispute by giving them equal time, providing Adonis some sorely needed free time to himself. By Apollo, she bore Linus, who was slain by Hercules, and Orpheus.

Clio : greek - muse of history
Clio the "Proclaimer" is the muse of history and is often seen sitting with a scroll and accompanied by a chest of books. She has been credited with introducing the Phoenician alphabet into Greece. Clio had teased Aphrodite's love of Adonis, and in consequence of her wrath, Clio fell in love with Pierius, the son of Magnes and the king of Macedonia. By Pierus, she bore Hyacinth.

Erato : greek - muse of love poetry
Erato the "Lovely" is the muse of love poetry and mimicry, and is seen with a lyre and sometimes wears a crown of roses.

Euterpe : greek - muse of music
Euterpe the "Giver of Pleasure" is the muse of music and is represented with a flute. It has been said she is the inventor of the double flute. By the river Strymon, she bore Rhesus who was slain at Troy.

Melpomene : greek - muse of tragedy
Melpomene the "Songstress" is the muse of tragedy in spite of her joyous singing and is represented by the tragic mask. She is sometimes seen with garland, a club and a sword. She is often seen wearing cothurnes, boots traditionally worn by tragic actors, and a crown of cypress.

Polyhymnia : greek - muse of sacred poetry
Polyhymnia (Polymnia), "She of Many Hymns," is the muse of Sacred Poetry and is seen with a pensive look upon her face. She brings distinction to writers whose works have won them immortal fame. She has also been called the Muse of geometry, mime, meditation and agriculture. Polyhymnia is often veiled.

Terpsichore : greek - muse of dancing
Terpsichore the "Whirler" is the muse of dancing and is often seen dancing with her lyre and a plectrum, an instrument used for plucking stringed instruments. By the river god Achelous, she bore the Sirens.

Thalia : greek - muse of comedy
Thalia (Thaleia) the "Flourishing" is the muse of comedy and of playful and idyllic poetry, and is seen with a comic mask. She is sometimes seen with a crown of ivy and a crook. By Apollo, Thalia had the Corybantes, priests who castrated themselves in identification with the goddess, Cybele.

Urania : greek - muse of astronomy
Urania the "Heavenly" is the muse of astronomy and is represented by a staff pointed at a celestial globe. She foretells the future by the position of the stars.

all taken from Circle of the Muses

Aoide : Means "to sing" in Greek. In Greek mythology she was one of the original three muses, the muse of song.

Erato : Means "lovely" in Greek. In Greek mythology she was the muse of lyric poetry.

Euterpe : Gr Means "delight" in Greek. In Greek mythology she was the muse of music and joy. She was said to have invented the double flute.

Kalliope : Means "beautiful voice" from Greek kallos "beauty" and ops "voice". In Greek mythology she was the muse of epic poetry and eloquence.

Klio : Derived from Greek kleos meaning "glory". In Greek mythology she was the muse of history and heroic poetry. She was said to have introduced the alphabet to Greece.

Melete : Means "practice, exercise" in Greek. In Greek mythology she was one of the original three muses, the muse of meditation.

Melpomene : Means "choir" in Greek. In Greek mythology she was the muse of tragedy.

Mneme : Means "memory" in Greek. In Greek mythology she was one of the original three muses, the muse of memory.

Ourania : Derived from Greek ouranios meaning "heavenly". In Greek mythology she was the muse of astronomy and astrology.

Polyhymnia : Means "many songs" from Greek polloi "many" and hymnos "song, hymn". In Greek mythology she was the muse of dance and sacred songs.

Terpsichore : Means "enjoying the dance" from Greek terpsis "delight" and choros "dance". In Greek mythology she was the muse of dance and dramatic chorus.

Thalia : Derived from Greek thallein meaning "to blossom". In Greek mythology she was the muse of comedy and pastoral poetry. This was also the name of one of the three Graces (Charites).

all of the above © Mike Campbell 1996-2003. Displayed with his permission from Behind the Name.