Perfume oils for writing?

[Flowermouth]

I got my first six imps in the mail yesterday (Darkness, Anne Bonny, Laudanum, Zombi, Nosferatu, Black Phoenix, and Verandi as a freebie). Unfortunately, two of them smelled just like.. Old Spice. O.o Which isn't good.

 

But, anyway. I enjoy writing, you see. But lately I've ran out of ideas, and I'm somewhat lacking motivation. So.. Anyone have any ideas of some scents that could work as a muse? Nothing too floral or perfumey (well, perfumey is okay-- Darkness made me smell like a senile old woman yet I love it). I'm open to pretty much anything, though.

[xith]

You could try the muses!

 

From the lab:

 

THE MUSES

Sing in me, O Muse, and through me tell the tale.

 

CALLIOPE

But when, Calliope, thy loud harp rang --

In Epic grandeur rose the lofty strain;

The clash of arms, the trumpet's awful clang

Mixed with the roar of conflict on the plain;

The ardent warrior bade his coursers wheel,

Trampling in dust the feeble and the brave,

Destruction flashed upon his glittering steel,

While round his brow encrimsoned laurels waved,

And o'er him shrilly shrieked the demon of the grave.

 

The eldest of the Muses, she is Eloquence, and thus, governs heroic and epic poetry, and her eloquence has served to calm quarrels even amongst the surliest of Gods. She is crowned in gold, and holds a roll of parchment or stylus and tablet. Hers is the scent of creative inspiration, and it is a boon to writers, poets and arbitrators: lavender and bright mint with bergamot, verbena, thyme and a touch of sweet orange and warm almond.

 

 

CLIO

Majestic Clio touched her silver wire,

And through time's lengthened vista moved a train,

In dignity sublime; -- the patriot's fire

Kindled its torch in heaven's resplendent ray,

And 'mid contention rose to Heaven again.

 

The Proclaimer is the Muse of Historic and Heroic Poetry. Clio holds a scroll or set of tablets in her hands, and is surrounded by a veritable wall of books. She is credited with introducing the Phonecian alphabet to the Greeks. As a consequence of her teasing, barbed sense of humor, she was cursed by Aphrodite: she fell in love with a mortal, Pierus, the King of Macedonia. Clio bore two sons, one by Bacchus and one by Pierus: Hymenaeus, the God of Marriage Ceremonies and Wedding Feasts, and the doomed Hyacinth. She is the patron of historians, epic poets, biographers and all those who wish for fame, reknown, and celebrity status. Her scent is the warm, dry parchment of scrolls, lavender for critical thought and analysis, the solidity of heavy woods, ornery patchouli and glib benzoin, and superstar-splashed orange and amber.

 

 

ERATO

But when Erato brushed her flowery lute,

What strains of sweetness whispered in the wind!

Soft as at evening when the shepherd's flute

To tones of melting love alone resigned,

Breathes through the windings of the silent vale;

Complaining accents tremble on the gale,

Or notes of ecstasy serenely roll.

So when the smiling muse of Cupid sung,

Her melody sighed out the sorrowing soul,

Or o'er her silken chords sweet notes of gladness rung.

 

She is the Muse of mimicry, and inspires both erotic and romantic poetry. She is crowned in roses, holding a lyre. Her scent inspires creative expressions of love and lust: a crush of roses with sweet pea, myrrh, ylang ylang, orris and stephanotis.

 

 

EUTERPE

Euterpe glanced her fingers o'er her lute,

And lightly waked it to a cheerful strain,

Then laid it by, and took the mellow flute,

Whose softly flowing warble filled the plain:

It was a lay that roused the drooping soul,

And bade the tear of sorrow cease to flow;

From shady woods the Nymphs enchanted stole,

While laughing Cupids bent the silver bow,

Fluttering like fays that flit in Luna's softened glow.

 

The Giver of Pleasure, Euterpe is the Muse of Music and Lyric Poetry. She is Delight, and her name means “Rejoicing Well”. She is credited with inventing the aulos, and is most often depicted playing that double-flute. Her scent is the joy of performing, the euphoria in song, and the passion inspired by all music: carnation and white poppy, honeysuckle, lemon, iris and white musk.

 

 

MELPOMENE

But oh Melpomene! thy lyre of wo --

To what a mournful pitch its keys were strung,

And when thou badest its tones of sorrow flow,

Each weeping Muse, enamoured, o'er thee hung:

How sweet--how heavenly sweet, when faintly rose

The song of grief, and at its dying close

The soul seemed melting in the trembling breast;

The eye in dews of pity flowed away,

And every heart, by sorrow's load opprest,

To infant softness sunk, as breathed thy mournful lay.

 

Melpomene is Tragedy, and the sound of Her voice is filled with beauty, power and strength. She is crowned in cypress branches, holds the mask of tragedy, wears the cothurnus and wields a knife or club. Her scent is rife with pathos, and inspires us with the ability to express our grief, loss, and the pain in our souls in a cathartic, creative fashion: dark cypress with mint, geranium, Bulgar lavender, orange blossom and passion flower.

 

 

POLYHYMNIA

The rage of Pindar filled the sounding air,

As Polyhymnia tried her skill divine;

The shaggy lion roused him from his lair,

And bade his blood-stained eyes in fury shine;

The famished eagle poised his waving wings,

Whetting his thirsty beak--while murder rose,

With hand that grasps a dirk, with eye that glows.

 

She of Many Hymns governs Sacred Poetry and the Gift of Eloquence, and brought the gift of Geometry to the world. The most introspective one of the Sisters, she is contemplative, withdrawn and brooding. The Solemn One is veiled, garbed in long, somber robes, and is shown either resting her arm upon a pillar, or with her finger to her mouth in a gesture of silence. Polyhymnia grants fame and glory to writers, brings inspiration and immortality through one’s written work. Orris root, white sage, rowan bark and red sandalwood, with myrrh, rosemary, lemon balm and honeysuckle.

 

 

TERPSICHORE

And when Terpsichore, with iris-plume,

Bade o'er her lute her rosy fingers fly;

'T was pleasure all -- the fawns in mingled choirs,

Glanced on the willing nymphs their wanton fires,

Joy shook his glittering pinions as he flew;

The shout of rapture and the song of bliss,

The sportive titter and the melting kiss,

All blended with the smile, that shone like early dew.

 

The Whirler! She is the Muse of Dance and the Dramatic Chorus. She holds both a lyre and a plectrum. Terpsichore is the mother of the Sirens by Achelous, the River God. Bright, joyful and expressive, her scent is kinetically charged, graceful, and an inspiration to all dancers: vanilla and carnation with neroli, iris, stephanotis, sweet pea, apple blossom and palmarosa.

 

 

THALEIA

How light the strain when, decked in vernal bloom,

Thalia tuned her lyre of melody.

 

Thaleia the Flourishing is the Muse of Comedy and Pastoral Poetry, and shares the same name as one of the Gratiæ. She is a very down-to-Earth Goddess, and has a special fondness for rural folk. She wears a crown of ivy leaves and carries the Mask of Comedy and a shepherd’s crook. The Blooming One is the Goddess of Comedians and inspires creativity in wit and the joy and release we have in laughter. A vivacious, dazzling, merry scent: honey, ylang ylang, apricot, ciste, blood orange and gardenia with earthy, warm tonka.

 

 

URANIA

Urania, o'er her star-bespangled lyre,

With touch of majesty diffused her soul;

A thousand tones, that in the breast inspire,

Exalted feelings, o er the wires 'gan roll --

She sang of night that clothed the infant world,

In strains as solemn as its dark profound --

How at the call of Jove the mist unfurled,

And o'er the swelling vault -- the glowing sky,

The new-born stars hung out their lamps on high,

And rolled their mighty orbs to music's sweetest sound.

 

The Heavenly One is the Muse of Astrology and Astronomy, and guides all those who look to the stars for knowledge. She wears a flowing cloak embroidered with her beloved stars, holds a staff and a globe, and her eyes are skyward. Her scent is that of endless, star-clad space: glittering, cool, vast. Moonflower, Moroccan jasmine, benzoin, white musk, iris, moss and a flash of ozone.

[Mountaingrrl00]

Block Buster's another one to consider. It's a good wake-you-out-of-doldroms oil, and works well as a room scent.

[Court Analyst/Strategist]

I write quite alot, and I find rosewood to be a motivator and producer (as well as good for calming down and focusing, etc, which is also something I often need when switching from a chaotic day to sitting down to write).

Fenris Wolf has a good strong rosewood component in it. Ouija is another blend with a good note of rosewood, but Ouija was unfortunately so faint it disappeared on my skin chemistry in minutes.

 

I also find that I work well with scents with resinous or wood components to produce focus and productivity. I find Thanatos works pretty well for this purpose, and its a fairly light-weight scent (so as not to be distracting) with a touch of green to it. Its non-floral as well.

 

The Cracked Bell has been by far the best scent for musing purposes that I've found yet, but its an Limited Edition blend, unfortunately.

 

I hope you find something that works for you

 

Court

Edited February 12, 2006 by Court Analyst/Strategist

[PirateMaggie]

I find that Sea of Glass, Tamora, and The Unicorn do the trick for me. If your muse really seems to need a wake-up call, some of the Voodoo oild wouls probably work--Van Van, Has No Hanna, or Blockbuster should do the trick.

[Sycorax]

I suggest any Wanderlust oils that look appealing to you. Most of them really are evocative of the settings that they relate to. I find that they're some of the best oils for inspiring moods. Neo-Tokyo, for example, is all ultra-modern ozone and metal with a hin of sweet cherry blossom. Dublin is lush, dew-covered Celtic forests. Tintagel is metal and mulled wine and idealized mediaeval fantasy.

 

Pick a place you'd like to write about, or at least a mood you want to project, and away you go.

[sestina]

Unfortunately, two of them smelled just like.. Old Spice. O.o Which isn't good.

 

Which ones smelled like Old Spice? I -l-o-v-e- Old Spice.

[Spring Snow]

When I write, my biggest problem is just sitting down and concentrating for a while. Blockbuster is really helpful with that, as are citrus blends, especially Moxie and The Star (tarot). They are great for keeping you awake and focused.

 

Best of luck!

[parrot_suspect]

How about something contemplative and thoughtful? Something quiet and not playful. I'm thinking woods, incense. Aureus comes to mind, as do Cathedral, Kathmandu and Morocco. If you like patchouli, Urd would be a good choice as well.

[Myaru]

As a writer, I feel your pain. I've had plenty of ideas lately, but zero motivation to do anything about them.

 

My suggestion is to be patient and wait for a scent that you really, really love. I loved Malkuth right out of the bottle, and two minutes after I put it on, I had an idea and the will to write it. Not only do I love the scent, but I also love the symbolism, and all of that stuff associated with the sephirot. All I had to do was start thinking about it, and bam!

 

So maybe, if you find a blend that you love in both concept and scent, that will be the inspiration you want to find.

[aedes]

Eucalyptus seems to do a great job waking me up and making me more alert and active. Jabberwocky's my particular go-juice, though lots of people also like Loup Garou for their eucalyptus fix.

 

Also, just going with my standards of Seance or Hades works well because they're familiar. And they both have a little bit of pleasant "spikiness" on the nose that perks me up without making me go "ew!"

 

Oh, and thirdly, Pele can really make me feel great on a blah day. Sets me to humming and dancing, activities which I find similar to a good writing splurge.

[theshapeshifter]

Personally, I like to seek out scents that relate in some way to the people or places I'm writing about. For instance, for a character of mine who's strongly linked to the element of fire, I had some great ideas while wearing The Living Flame.

[tailoredshirt]

Since I've gotten into BPAL, I've started thinking about how a scent affects what I'm writing. The other day, I was writing a scene set in a used bookshop, and I was testing Ravenous, which ended up being mostly patchouli on me. Everything just clicked! The patchouli reminded me of dusty books, and the way a bookstore would smell. The scent didn't really work for me as a fragrance, but the next time I went back to the scene, I put on some more and was able to slide back into that place.

 

I find that there are a lot of scents that I find evocative - The Caterpillar smells so illegal, and Gaueko smells like a hookah bar - but could never wear as a perfume. But they're perfect for writing. Same for perfumes that don't smell like me, but they smell like they'd be a character's favorite.

 

Does anyone else use BPAL to get into a scene or into a character's head?