Why I started following The Artist's Way

I wrote this back in March 2022 and it still rings true.

Photo by Thought Catalog on Unsplash

Why follow The Artist’s Way indeed.

All I can tell you is that as little as 10 minutes spent scribbling my Morning Pages is enough to clear my head of the swirling thoughts that take up so much headspace. I feel the weight lifting and the fog clearing as my pencil moves across the page.

I always write in pencil and have a stack of large Agenzio notebooks from Paperchase to write in. After much trial and error, they are my notebook of choice. I’m left handed which means that as much as I love a ring bound notebook it just doesn’t work when my head opens up and I need to write quickly to keep up with the thoughts that come pouring out of it. And pour out they do – mostly. Although there tends to be 15 mins of frantic scribbling before the inevitable to-do list emerges.

Why didn’t I start writing sooner?

It’s strange because I only bought The Artist’s Way last year (2021). There had been nothing stopping me from writing morning pages or an equivalent before then but there’s something about having it by my side with its prompts and explanations of how and why it can help, that has made all the difference.

And while generally I struggle to follow guides – early enthusiasm often waning before long – The Artist’s Way has become a firm fixture in my coping with life toolkit. Possibly because I bought it when I was ready for it and it gives me a framework rather than a tick list and all the guilt that comes when you miss a step.

I guess it’s also worth saying that it’s less about being an ‘artist’ whatever picture that conjures up in your head. The Artist’s Way is about creating space for your to tap into your creative, emotional self.

Creating the writing habit

Writing Morning pages during Writers Hour has given me the habit of writing. And that habit has bred confidence. The more I write, the more confident and comfortable I feel hearing my voice on paper. I’ve learned how to just pick up a pencil and write without having to overthink it.

I’ve even hit the point where I now look forward to these free writing sessions where I can just scribble down what’s going on in my head.

It’s been incredibly freeing

The conundrum though is that the times I’d have really benefitted from The Artist’s Way, I wasn’t able to.

I simply wasn’t ready for it. So much brain space was taken up with grieving, moving from one place to another. Settling children into new schools, helping them to make friends. Finding somewhere to live. Getting used to new rhythms and routines. And then there was the business of cancer. That’s the official reason.

But honestly, I don’t think I trusted myself to open that box. If I started writing about the stuff going on in my head, I’d have to start facing the extremes of emotions that come with grief and life change. And that’s not a pretty picture. Some of these emotions are ugly. Better to try and keep a lid on them until I was ready and able to go down that road.

Because I always knew I’d have to turn on the tap at some point. That it couldn’t all stay buried but I didn’t know when or where.

But I’m here now, stack of notebooks by my side, a pile of pencils, pencil sharpener and rubber.

I bought this version of The Artist’s Way and follow Julia Cameron on Instagram for prompts and ideas to get the creative juices flowing.