Guest Post: Jonathan Muse by Ally Malinenko

*Bounces in* *Taps screen* Guess what? We have a muse in the house. That's right a real muse, from Lizzy Speare and the Cursed Tomb but really he is not just a muse, he is the muse. That's right William Shakespeare's muse, Jonathan Muse, is right here. I'm kind of excited *But don't tell him that, I don't want it going to his head* Oh wait, that's right he already has a big ego. But that doesn't change anything. Seriously, keep the praise to the minimum we want him to fit through the door when he leaves. 

Big ego aside, Jonathan is here to divulge all there is to know about being a muse....well as much as I could get him to divulge. You see Jonathan is kind of secretive and he believes in telling you just enough information to hang yourself with. Just kidding...well maybe a little, but not about the secretive part. Jonathan has lived a long life, he is sort of immortal, so he is a walking encyclopedia of information. Hmmm, I wonder if he was the inspiration behind the encyclopedia *shakes head* sorry getting sidetracked. Well I think that is enough from me......Please join me in giving Jonathan Muse a great Consuming welcome!!! *Applause*

Jonathan I know you are busy with this whole Lizzy, Marlowe thing so I will just cut to the chase.

1) You seem to be quite passionate about being a muse. What exactly does being a muse mean to you? 

Ah, I’ve heard this one before. Why is it that no one goes around asking humans what it means to be human, eh? Being a Muse…well, it’s a gift. It’s a blessing. I’ve worked with some of the greatest writers, and well, let’s not split hairs here, the greatest writer of all time. I wasn’t kidding when I told Lizzy that I was a direct descendant from Polyhymia – the Muse who inspires legends. And I’m not saying that to brag. I’m proud of the work I have done – the work that my artists and I have done together. A universe without poetry, without art, is a terrifying place. Muses have always been here, helping people along, driving them towards their destiny. In what is often a cruel and senseless world, we are a part of something better - something beautiful that lives in the heart of every man. Something he, or she, just might need help finding. 

Me: Wow kind of poetic. But you are a Muse after all.

2) We all know that William Shakespeare was a genius, and that he had some mad skills. And I imagine that being his muse you got to know Shakespeare on a pretty personal level. So tell us, what was Shakespeare really like? Did he have any quirks you want to share with us? You know something to make him seem a little more human; because let’s face it, in the world of literature he is a bit of a God.

Ha! Will is a bit of a God isn’t he? Ah, what can I say? He was really just as human as anyone else – except within him flowed a river of untapped potential. The man practically thought in verse. It was a gift, to be sure but one that I have to admit would have been washed aside had someone not been there to guide him. You want to know what Will was really like? I’ll tell you. He was a dreamer. He was a hopeful sap most of the time. A bounding lovestruck puppy. There was one time that I took him over to the Fey – where Queen Titania rules. The poor boy was tripping over himself trying to woo these fairy women, who of course just laughed him off. He left a bit heartbroken – okay probably more than a bit. I remember him grabbing my shoulders and swearing he would win their hearts as we stumbled out of the wood. From that we wrote Mid Summer Night’s Dream. And he did win some hearts – even Queen Titania which, I must tell you is not an easy prize to gain. She said he had a wicked tongue. But when Her Majesty says it, it’s a compliment….I think!

Oh! Also, he constantly mismatched his doublet and breeches. His shoes even! He quite literally showed up at the opening performance of Romeo and Juliet with two different shoes on. He was always distracted like that. A man of pure genius but the simple things in life – dressing oneself and remembering to eat lunch and dinner, they proved a bit of a challenge.

He was my very good friend. Not a day goes by that I don’t miss him. I feel honored to have worked with his descendants – in each of them I see a bit of Will. A bit of his love, his passion, his fear. Lizzy by far has the most. She’s lucky – more than any of the others, she inherited his sense of wonder. Creativity cannot exist without wonder. It is the soil in which magic takes root.

3) I know that you take being a muse very seriously, but have you ever wished to be recognized for the work that you help produce? It can’t be easy watching others get fame and fortune for what you created. 

Fame and fortune. That’s a big one for you humans. I have my theory that your focus on it comes from your unfortunately brief lifespan. Muses live forever and let me tell you, that definitely puts things in perspective. When you know you will live through all the subsequent ages your viewpoint shifts. It stops being about what other people think. You can zero in on creating something grand, bringing it to life and letting it breathe and flower and change the world. Once you do something like that, you realize it never belonged to you anyway – you were just the vessel through which it came to be.

Can a great musician be jealous of his cello? Can a cello be jealous of the hands that play upon her? They need each other and without they are only one half of a potential beauty. Man and Muse have always worked together. And they always will. 

Me: Now if only we all could look at the world that way 

4) Now on to something a little more personal. You and Marlowe seem to have a pretty interesting past. And one day I hope to get to the bottom of that, but tell us, why do you think Dimitri holds so much anger for the Shakespeare family? And don’t tell me that you can’t talk about it either because I know there is more to the story than you are telling Lizzy. I promise not to tell, cross my heart!

Must we talk about that cretin? Has he not already destroyed enough? Look, I will admit to the fact that mistakes have been made. The wrong people were trusted. I should have been paying closer attention to what was happening in the Shakespeare line. Less focused on the work perhaps, more focused on the family. Marlowe….if only my poor Kit knew what lay before him, what would happen to his family. To think that such greatness, such beauty has degenerated into that. That ball of rage and jealousy and anger.

But that doesn’t answer your question does it? You want to know why – Why one man would hold such anger for one small girl. Why he would hang upon her all the ills of his life, all the pain and sorrow and heartache – simply because her namesake is Shakespeare….

Look, I have made mistakes. I admit that. And Dmitri once had the potential to be so much more than he is. Is that my fault? Maybe…I don’t know. The things that happen to us when we are young, they change us. Dmitri cannot cast off his past. He cannot forget what wrongs he suffered at the hands of Balthazar and Gwen - my poor poor Gwen. For him everything has been shattered. When your life is broken, you wish only to break the lives of others.

That’s really the most I can say. Lizzy has her choice to make. And I may be her Muse and I may try to help her, but in the end, the key to forgiveness, the key to healing, for all of them, has always laid in her palm.


You know Jonathan, once you stop being so secretive you are a pretty deep guy. You really should let your Muse shine through more often. Well thanks for being here today. Look forward to chatting with you again!!


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About the Author:

Hi. I’m Ally.
 I live in Brooklyn which is good except when it’s not which is horrid. I’ve been writing for awhile, and have some stuff published and some stuff not.
 I don’t like when people refer to pets as their children and I can’t resist a handful of cheez-its when offered.
 I have a burning desire to go to Antarctica, specifically to the South Pole so I can see where Robert Falcon Scott died.
 I like to read books. I like to write stories and poems. I even wrote a novel. Rumor has it, it got published. But I don’t believe rumors. And you shouldn’t either.

 Contact Her: Website | Twitter

"Devouring worlds, one book and recipe at a time."