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I’ve begun reading The Artist’s Way by Julia Cameron. This book is a workshop to discover and recover your creative self.

All of us lose that dauntless creative spark as we get older, and I wanted to develop a creative lifestyle so that I would get into a better writing routine. I didn’t even feel creatively blocked, but now that I delve into this book, I realized I do have some rusty, old blockages and stale issues with self-doubt that need to be resolved.

I bought this old copy from Amazon. I like the worn-in magic of used books. I feel they hold some of the residual energy of the previous owner. The book is very spiritual and it’s also superstitious. I love its wide margins peppered with inspirational quotes. I’ve been using the extra space for notes, which is what I’m sure the author intended.

There are many exercises to do each week, but so far, I’ve only been doing what’s called ‘morning pages.’ They are three pages of stream of consciousness writing first thing in the morning. I thought this journal writing stuff would take up too much of my time, but I find that after I’ve done my three pages, it’s as if time moves more slowly. My head is less cluttered with aimless ruminations, and I have space to think productive thoughts.

I also started going on the ‘artist date.’ Scandalous, I know! This is a date you have with your inner artist to fill the creative well and trigger inspiration. You must be alone on this date – and it’s not setting aside a few hours to write/paint/create by yourself. It’s inventing some other activity that isn’t directly related to your work.

For instance, one week I watched and reviewed Bitter Moon. The next week, I gutted and refurbished the woman cave – my artistic haven. It can be anything from going to a garage sale to making an exotic recipe you’ve never tried before. I think it’s all about training your brain waves off the usual tasks to allow the unconscious processes time to gel.

I plan to give this copy away when I’m done with my journey. I hope to pass the creative spark and the notes along to another artist. This book has changed the lives of people all across the world. Artists form groups and go through the journey together. I will at least share my experience with you and pay it forward.

So, join me in my journey if you’d like to cultivate your creativity, and hashtag your posts on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram with #myartistdate so we can share in the creative cauldron!

Register to be the one to receive my worn-in copy of

The Artist’s Way.

May the artistic force be with you!