"The Muse" (season four, episode twenty-one; 29 April 1996): Wikipedia-link.
Commentary: The main plot deals with Jake Sisko falling under the spell of an energy being, in the guise of a corporeal woman, who offers to help Jake hone his writing ability. The energy being, Onaya, had functioned as a muse for a variety of architects & authors, all of whom died prematurely but who "live forever" through their work. Onaya stimulates Jake's creative process & gives him confidence in his ability, but also dangerously overstimulates his brain; Onaya is an energy "vampire." Jake is eventually rescued, but Onaya escapes into deep space. This is one of the lesser episodes of the series, but it is a nice touch that the novel Jake worked on under Onaya's influence was Anslem, his debut novel referenced in "The Vistor."
The B-plot involves the third & final appearance of Lwaxana Troi & her romantic interest in Constable Odo. Odo gives a speech detailing how Lwaxana helped him form his first real connection with another being, after a lifetime resigned to isolation, afraid to let solids see how profounding different Odo is as a Changeling. Odo's affection for & gratitude toward Lwaxana are real, but she correctly perceives that what Odo wants from her is companionship, while what she was from him is romance. Mrs. Troi's three appearances on Deep Space Nine—"The Forsaken," "Fascination," & "The Muse"—are more satisfying & less annoying that her six appearances on The Next Generation.
From the confusing episode titles department: There was a T.N.G. episode titled, "The Emissary," while the D.S.9 pilot was titled, "Emissary." In addition to today's D.S.9 episode, "The Muse," there is a Voyager episode tiled, "Muse." I guess that sort of thing is bound to happen when over seven hundred episodes of the various Star Trek series were produced between 1966-2005.
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