🎨 Have you been on an artist's date?
✍️ Or tried morning pages?
This week,
of the Substack Snapshot is guest posting. She’s a writer, editor, and amateur photographer (like Moi) who co-facilitates Creative Cohorts, 12-week programs designed to unblock your inner artist in a community of women.
A few years ago, I realized I’d lost my sense of fun.
I longed to be spreading my creative wings, but I’d buried my creative dreams beneath stones of responsibility.
I could fly through a to-do list and summon new, fresh ideas when a work project or volunteer opportunity called for it, but making time for my creativity?
I didn’t know where to start, what I wanted to write, or even what my voice sounded like.
I’d gotten good at working hard, but I’d forgotten how to play.
Enter: The Artist’s Way.
It’s more than just a book; it’s a guide to help you become creatively unblocked.
For twelve weeks, you’ll peel back the layers of to-do lists, deadlines, and logistics and remember what makes you come alive.
It’ll help you dig deep to remember what you love and who you truly are at your core.
For over thirty years, it has guided thousands of artists toward becoming creatively unblocked.
Written by Julia Cameron, the workbook consists of two basic tools and weekly readings with assigned tasks.
The first tool is Morning Pages, which involves writing three pages in longhand, stream-of-consciousness style, each morning.
The second is the Artist Date, where you dedicate an hour or two to doing something (alone) that makes your inner artist come alive.
The tasks and reading will take you through themes like recovering a sense of identity, a sense of possibility, and a sense of abundance.
And—I don’t say this lightly—but it can be life-changing if you let it.
You’ve got to commit and stick with it, but if you do, I think you’ll be surprised at what comes out of it.
You’ll find your voice again—not the voice of your employer, the responsible adult, or the last person you did a project for—but your true, authentic voice.
If you’re intrigued but not yet convinced, I’d love for you to try two things, each inspired by The Artist’s Way.
Grab a piece of paper and a pen. Number your paper one to twenty, then write down twenty things you loved as a kid but haven’t made the time for recently. Don’t stop at ten. Sit there until you’ve thought of twenty things.
Look over your list and pick one of those things to do this week: an Artist’s Date. Then get out your calendar and block off an hour or two.
Treat it like an important meeting; don’t let yourself push it aside for something else. Whether you want to head to the skating rink and dust off your roller-blading moves or sit in the sunshine and blow bubbles, this time is for you.
And while you’re at it, grab a favorite childhood snack that brings a smile to your face.
Once you’ve tried this exercise, take a few minutes to think about how it’s reinvigorated your creativity.
If this little taste of The Artist’s Way has given you a much-needed boost, it might be time to try the whole thing.
Personally, I’ve found the book so helpful that I’ve gone through it multiple times.
I co-facilitate groups of women through the process in 12-week programs called Creative Cohorts. When they really commit to it—wow! Watching them rediscover the things they love and seeing the creativity unlocked in the process is pretty incredible.
In the most recent cohort I led, artist dates have ranged from tap dancing to trying new (and old) favorite recipes.
You might not think that baking a Funfetti cake or taking a tap dancing class will help you with your writing. 😀
But when you rediscover the things you love, you rediscover who you are.
And when you know who you are, your voice rings true.
If you’ve been on an artist date or tried morning pages tell me a little something about it below!
Laura Bass lives in North Carolina with her husband and kids, where she fills all her free minutes with words—both writing and reading them. Her work has been published by Coffee + Crumbs, Literary Mama, Kindred Mom, Fathom Mag, The Wake Forest Review, and the Joyful Life Magazine. She most frequently shares her writing on her Substack Snapshot, and can also be found at Laurapbass.com or @laurapbass on IG.