I haven’t been strictly following the weekly structure, but in my own haphazard and meandering way, this year I’ve been happily working and playing through Julia Cameron’s classic book, The Artist’s Way. By that I mean, I’ve been reading it here and there, writing my Morning Pages when I feel like it and sometimes even when I don’t, and whenever I’m feeling “stuck” or uninspired, I turn to the exercises and ideas contained within. I highly recommend this, whatever type of artist or human you happen to be.
Cameron’s meditations are rather earnest and completely unironic, and they require a reader to bring a similar attitude. This isn’t always easy for me. If you can do this, though, there’s incredible personal growth and creative “unblocking” to be gained.
One of the most valuable things I’ve taken from TAW is one of the simplest: The concept of the “Artist Date.”
What’s an Artist Date? It’s a gift of time and play that you give your creative self. This could mean watching a movie, taking a class, going dancing, visiting an art museum or park…anything that you wish to do that brings you joy, that you do only for pleasure, and that you do alone. Cameron describes it as “once-weekly, festive, solo expedition to explore something that interests you. The Artist Date need not be overtly. “artistic” — think mischief more than mastery.”