04 Joy on Invoking the Muse

Do you have creative techniques to set the stage for inspiration?

You mean besides organize my closet or do the dishes? [Laughs.] It’s strange, but to chase this mystical idea of the muse, I find that creating order is the way I make space for her to show up. So whether it’s scrubbing the sink or cleaning up a closet, I find I have to organize things around me in order to feel like the creative person within me has the breath to sit and stew in the chaos of what I want to make musically. I like to organize the outer woman so the inner woman feels free to create.

—JAAN UHELSZKI