A year ago I started to work through ‘The Artist’s Way’, a
book written by Julia Cameron. I’ve had
my copy for many years. It is dog eared, written in, highlighted and much
read. But I had never worked through the
chapters in the way Julia invited: One
chapter each week. With tasks to
complete. 'Morning pages’, otherwise
known as daily journaling. And 'Artist Dates'.
I have used Julia's ideas to write. I did it regularly for a
while. But over time the routine got lost and I stopped writing and forgot about
it. Except on a couple of occasions when it felt helpful to write. Then I’d
close my journal and forget about it again until the next time.
I did not think about working through the Artist’s Way book,
because my life did not allow the time it needed. But that changed when I was invited to join a
small online group. Instead of a
chapter a week we would do a chapter a month.
THIS was manageable. The idea
excited me. And last July I began.
What followed was far from what I expected. Julia claims that it is important to work
through creative blocks and allow ourselves the freedom to explore these. She also encourages you to look for
synchronicity – and yes, you can be cynical and put experience down to ‘luck’ or
‘coincidence’ but I choose to be open minded.
I decided to embrace this time working through the book, and to put my
doubts aside and to go with the flow.
And I was blown away by some of my experiences.
This is a spiritual journey and the book refers throughout
to God and The Great Creator. And if I
am honest, this is where I found my initial barrier. But I decided that if I remained open minded and held onto my own sense of wonder and
curiosity at things unexplained, and if I allowed myself to interpret Julia’s
writing in a way that sat comfortable with me, then I knew it was the right
time for me to work through this book and to commit to this. At the
end, it doesn’t matter the reason or how we get there. I trust my intuition and if some prefer to
believe that this is a higher influence, call it God or any other name, that’s
fine. And in this regard Julia says:
“Because the Artist’s Way is in essence a spiritual path,
initiated and practiced through creativity, this book uses the word God….. to succeed in this course no god
concept is necessary. In fact many of our commonly held god concepts get in the
way. Do not allow semantics to become one more block……. What we are talking
about is creative energy……. The point is
not what you name it. The point is that
you try using it. For many of us
thinking of it as a form of spiritual electricity has been a useful jumping-off
place”.
And so I embraced my year of working through the book. I gave time and attention, and my experience
has been powerful, amazing, curious, and hugely uplifting. I have grown and gained in so many different
ways, I can feel more than describe it.
And though my life is crazy at times, with balls all in the air at the
same time, and a work life balance to try and manage, I knew I would miss the
routine of The Artist’s Way. And I was
sad when I started the final chapter, knowing this was the end.
Yes… I could continue the Artist’s Dates and the daily journaling, but there was so, so much
more. And just as I was preparing myself
for the end Julia wrote her final task:
“Reread this book.
Share it with a friend. Remember
that the miracle is one artist sharing with another….”
And so that’s exactly what I plan to do!
I feel just as excited and inspired as I did
a year ago, when I first started this journey.
I don’t know where it will take me a second time round. Some of the tasks might not be so relevant,
or I might see them from a different perspective this time. This is a continued time for discovery. And if you are interested in joining me the
following information might be helpful:
1. You need
a copy of Julia Cameron’s book ‘The Artist’s Way’ A Course in Discovering and
Recovering your Creative Self. You will also need 2 basic note books for writing in. You do not need the workbook that is also available.
2.
At the end of each chapter there are a list of
10 tasks. I found these interesting,
sometimes fun, sometimes thought provoking. Like all things, you have choice in
what or how much you do.
3.
Morning pages. Julia views these as
essential. Put simply, these are a
stream of thoughts written daily. She recommends writing 3 pages in long hand
first thing each morning. I had to come
up with a way that worked for me.
Writing first thing in the morning was not possible on work days, so I
got into the routine of writing whenever I could. Some days on waking, other days before going
to bed, sometimes during the day. To me the process and routine of writing was more important than the
time. I did write long hand and I found the experience of daily writing
powerful and something I plan to continue.
4.
Artist’s Date. Now this was something that
greatly excited me! The idea of writing an
allocated time each week in my diary, just for me to be playful or to try
something new! Julia suggests a block of
time, and again for this work for me it needed to be flexible.
I work shifts.
I have commitments and busy schedule.
I have excuses and reasons.
I am no different to anyone else.
But I started out by listing things I could
do, places I could go. And some weeks I
achieved this. Like the time I went for a walk along the river with my camera,
or visited a new tea room. My biggest
adventure was a 3 day road trip on my own. Other times a play date with a
friend ticked the box. Sometimes I
forgot to write anything down or plan this special time. In hindsight I might have remembered
something that qualified as an artist date, but unless it was planned it never
had the same impact. Lesson learned.
5.
I never beat myself up if I missed a morning
page or Artist Date. The course was meant to be fun and rewarding, not
punishment. That said, I did take the course seriously. I tried hard to maintain focus and the
rewards outweighed any effort involved.
6. Facebook.
I plan to set up a closed group and to use this forum as somewhere we
can share our individual journeys and thoughts. There is strength and support in people
working together.
7.
As part of the closed group I will send a monthly
newsletter by email. This will introduce each chapter as we work through them
and I hope this will make the course more personal and interactive.
8. The Artist’s Way is a creative course for everyone. It doesn’t matter if you write, sew, paint,
draw, take photos or paper craft. If you create – you are invited.
9.
So! Are
you interested in signing up and getting started?!
10.
This free course will run 1st October
2013 for 12 months. I'd love you to join me in this!
11.
I will be preparing the first newsletter and
sending this out on 1st October.
To benefit from the group it is best to sign up at the beginning so that
you have time to work through each chapter. Members will be able to join after this date with
understanding that they may need to work through any missed chapters for the
course to be personally beneficial.
12.
To sign up – email me with your full name saying
that you would like to take part in The Artist’s Way course: sandie17@talktalk.net
If you want to join the closed Facebook
Page (and I hope you will, as sharing
with others and being part of a group is what helped me to maintain focus and
gain more from the experience) then also send me your Facebook contact
details so that I can add you.
And if you have any questions please email
or leave a comment. Thank you!
And finally, if you have read Julia Cameron’s book or worked
through the chapters I would be interested to hear your thoughts and
experience. I wish my prejudice or
barrier had not been around when I first bought my copy some years ago, but
then again, perhaps that was not the right time for me to work through the
chapters. After all, there is a time and
place for all things. And at least I can
look forward to starting over again.
“A painting is never
finished – it simply stops in interesting places”
Paul Gardner
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