"Raziel, do you notice anything odd?" I asked.
"Everything feels strange when I've eaten your muse," Raziel answered.
"I can't believe you still let that lazy dragon trick you into doing its job," I giggled. "At least your inability to hold all of its knowledge makes you a more interesting traveling companion."
Raziel ignored my jabs. "You hinted earlier that something was amiss. Are we about to enter into another inane adventure?"
"Yes, and it irks me," I snapped.
"The adventures are yours," Raziel pointed out. "You are the embodiment of the Author. Everything we've been through together has been for your amusement. In a twisted way, you are bringing all of this on yourself."
"Yes, but it's been five years. I can sense that the Author is changed. I've always been slightly idealized, but I don't even resemble what she is now. Any changes that I suffer is simply because she can't remember me accurately."
I took a breath and continued. "What's irritating is that she's forgetting how depressing it is to be a fan of a dead series. She has other avenues to explore, but she's letting the shreds of her hollow glory tempt her back. And to try to reclaim that feeling with this self-indulgent claptrap that nobody even likes..."
"Then why are we having this conversation?" Raziel asked.
I stared at Raziel. One would assume by looking at him that his pre-abyss form had gained the blue skin of his resurrection. In actuality, Raziel's body was an arbitrary form influenced by the dragon he had consumed. Either Raziel's ability to harness the muse's power was limited, or he didn't bother to explore any of the skills beyond shapeshifting.
"You are my muse, and you're asking me this," I commented dryly. "With the right whisper, the correct nudge, an idea can take hold of me. You could have me scribbling in a notebook until I can't straighten my fingers. You could make me forget to eat, or keep me awake until my senses go all melty. And I would hate anyone or anything that tries to stop it," I explained fervently.
Calming a bit, I continued. "Some unformed ideas take up space. They are distractions. They keep rolling around, wanting to be formed. Somehow there are still self-indulgences that need to be cleared, but they're knocking lose ideas that she doesn't even know she has. And ten chapters of drivel just to set up human Zephon thanking me for saving him from vampiric spiders!"
I stopped my tirade to notice that Raziel was woolgathering instead of paying attention to me. I stomped over to him only to be stopped by an outstretched claw.
"The ideas were knocked lose when you started working on a serious story. Go back to that," Raziel said.
Pretty much a true story. I had been tempted into rewriting Drop a Stone at a point where I could not access my game collection or my notes. It's a frightfully tough story because of the Earth-human and the difficulties involved. And I did need to knock loose some ideas that brought friends. I make no illusions about how the SIAT series is stupid and unworthy of the bandwidth.