Julia Cameron’s The Artist’s Way promises to teach readers how to “create more freely.” For anyone who has struggled against a blank page or canvas, this promise seems too good to be true.

The Program of The Artist’s Way

The Artist Way: A Spiritual Path to Higher Creativity, written by journalist and filmmaker Julia Cameron, is a 12-week program designed for the reader to find their “inner artist” by guiding them through weekly activities. Each week is prefaced by an essay, containing an anecdote or two from Cameron along with the rationale for the week’s theme, and contains tasks.

The pillars of the program are the Morning Pages and Artist’s Dates. Cameron instructs the reader to write three longhand pages of stream of consciousness first thing in the morning.

To complement each step of the program, once a week, an uninterrupted block of time, perhaps two hours, should be dedicated to nurture the inner artist.

These “Artist’s Dates” are flexible and can be as simple as a walk or as involved as a day trip. The goal was to explore, so I took this opportunity to cross off small things from my bucket list, like learning how to embroider and visiting a new art exhibit.

The Morning Pages, however, were daunting. Just thinking about getting up and word-vomitting all over my journal made me hide under my own covers and avoid waking up, yet after the first couple of days, I grew to welcome rather than fear my new morning routine. But why is the mere thought of writing first thing in the morning so intimidating?

Writing the pages first thing in the morning was like detangling my brain. Common themes cropped up, and I began to realize what held back my creativity. I was slowly curing myself of my fear of opening up to a blank page. The prompts in The Artist’s Way focus on tackling that mental hurdle to creativity.

Flaws of The Artist’s Way

Of course, there are more practical hurdles that are a given in life, such as work and familial obligations. Cameron addresses these in the essays; however, as much as having self-esteem is crucial for having confidence as a writer, Cameron’s attitudes towards financial and timely obstacles tend to be entitled at times. 

Cameron encourages readers to adopt the rigid schedule of the program, and if done accurately, The Artist’s Way requires the same time and effort as a college course. “In all, make a time commitment of about seven to ten hours a week— an hour a day, or slightly more if you choose,” Cameron writes.

Rather than taking an all-or-nothing approach and getting burned out a few weeks in, I think that the program should be customized to fit each participant’s needs. In her article titled “The Artist’s Way — but softly and slowly,” writer Louise Rigg offers suggestions to adapt the program, and I encourage that kind of method.

My Results from The Artist’s Way

In full transparency, I skimmed through a few weeks. Despite my transgressions, the program worked just as it intended to. Building off the Morning Pages, the program forces you to really dissect yourself and probe at the core of your inner artist. Cameron offers practical solutions, both short- and long-term, to tackle the mental challenges of creating art. 

Although the book works best as a program, The Artist’s Way can also be used as a reference book filled with exercises to complete anytime a little creative push is needed, and I think it is a great resource for educators. As a writer, I found the exercises well suited to creative writing, but activities can be used or adapted for other kinds of art, such as dance or photography. 

The Artist’s Way is available for purchase at most major book retailers, and for more information on the course or for additional creative resources, check out Julia Cameron’s website!

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Need some creative resources this new year? Check these out!

• Rekindling Creativity for a Healthy Lifestyle – Fitness for Creatives
• Line and Sinker: A Review of ‘Hooked’
• Conversation with the Art Spirit – Poetry
• Fight Write – Book Review

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