the artist's artist's way
I am trying to engage and indulge my creative side more in 2025, but it can feel difficult to simply let go and go for it. It is really easy to get caught up in wanting everything to be perfectly right and correct before starting a new project because what if you mess up? And then what would be the point in all of the effort? Mistakes are terrifying! Time lost, the horror! But then you realize you’ve wasted just as much if not more time thinking about doing the thing than actually doing it. Making it perfect in your mind and having nothing to show for it in a physical sense. This is something I have been working on within myself - letting go and figuring it out along the way. I think this is ultimately a lesson in life as a whole, as choices need to be made every single day even with no guaranteed outcome.
I was scrolling on the internet, as one does when procrastinating, and I stumbled on a video describing how the artist, Doechii, documented her journey through The Artist’s Way by Julia Cameron. This sparked my interest for a couple of different reasons:
Doechii is incredibly talented and has absolutely exploded this past year - hello! she performed at the Grammys and won that same night!
The Artist’s Way has been in the zeitgeist for years and in my own periphery, but it is something I have never picked up or explored on my own.
I found out that morning pages are part of the Artist’s Way program, which is something I have already implemented on my own this year without even knowing! Ha! Success!
Doechii found this book 5 years ago and went through the 12 week process. Look at her now! She is everywhere, and her star is BRIGHT. Did you see her perform on Colbert? If you haven’t, I do implore you to go watch. Her talent is so undeniable, but I am struck by her journey. She put hard work and effort into getting where she is now. The talent is within her, but it’s the effort that brought that talent to our televisions and speakers.
I am obviously late to this story, she has been on the rise for a while now, as seen in this profile on Vulture, but I feel like her story has found me at the right time. I want to create things that I want to see, that make me feel good, put effort into a project because it feels right to me. Going through life as the most authentic version of myself is only going to attract the right people, opportunities, and experiences to me. It is something that is easy to say, harder to put into practice. BUT trying is what it is all about!
I have watched Doechii’s video on her Week One of going through the book, and I am going to source a copy for myself. There is no reason to stand in my own way anymore, and I am so inspired by her journey - showing her vulnerability going down this path, to seeing her amazing success 5 years later - she is a trailblazer. I am going to follow along her journey while also going on my own, and will see what happens.
And as I said, I have already been on the morning pages train this year, which I absolutely recommend. All you do is wake up, do NOT hit the snooze button, roll out of bed, brush your teeth, and then hit that journal. It is 3 pages to fill with whatever is in your head - no rules, just right. I love it because it has been extremely helpful to spend some time with solely myself, no outside influences, just thinking my thoughts. It might be things I did the day before, things I would like to achieve today, life problems that I simply need to get out of my head and put them somewhere else. I get to give myself the gift of time solely for me. This is huge for me, because I am also a person that listens to podcasts when I shower just so I don’t have to be alone with my thoughts. But I have come to realize that my thoughts and opinions are important, they should at the very least be important to me! I owe it to myself to give me time to feel. I don’t need to immediately scroll my phone the second my eyes open to a new day. I don’t need to let the outside world in immediately - I can carve out time for only me, even if it is simply filling out 3 pages of a notebook with my thoughts.
The world can grind you down if you let it, there is constant noise trying to grab your attention. Taking time to think, feel, pursue creativity - that’s what being a person is all about. Perhaps it is even The Artist’s Way? I’m not sure because I have not read it yet or watched all of Doechii’s videos, but that is my summary of the experience so far. I’ll keep you updated!
And I really truly implore you to implement morning pages into your morning routine. It might sound dumb or feel dumb or look dumb but who even cares because it is so nice for your brain. Trust me.
Confession time - the first ever entry I wrote in this gorgeous journal was from November 2013…I just completed the last page of the journal this year, January 2025. SO I guess you could say I have not been the most consistent with journaling, which I have blamed on my fear of my journal being read (ahem, younger brother, best friend, old boyfriend…maybe more people that never confessed), but it is actually really nice to spend time with myself from those years. Sure it was not a consistent story as I really only hit the page when I was frustrated, but nice to be able to track some growth, and also see how consistent I have been personality wise (for better or worse!!!). The morning pages have been a game changer in terms of consistency, and will also be huge for the journal sellers of the world, because I don’t anticipate it taking me 12 years to fill up my new one hehe lol.
Also please note my gorgeous art in my gorgeous office - you can really tell creativity lives here, no?