After a recent discussion with friends, I learned there's even an on-line course. I am not taking The Artists's Way course, nor am I involved in it in any way, but I am interested, and I intend to start exploring it a bit.
Too often, I think, we all tend to lose a little of our creative selves simply because life gets busy and keeps us occupied with the mundane. I seem to be going through a bit of that. And - I hate to admit this; but my on-line life seems to be contributing to that loss as well. Do I give up my blogging, my email, my DorothyL and my Facebook in order to reclaim a bit of my creative self? No - Not my blogging; it's a huge part of my creative self, and I cherish it. But as you can see for yourself, even that has fallen off, and it's at the top of my list of things to work on reclaiming; I miss it.
I don't want to give up the others either, but I definitely need to find a way to fit all the things I want to do into a day. A day that makes sense. And one that's fulfilling.
AND one that still allows me time to read.
Oh. and work. Once again . . . there's that pesky thing called a job . . .
So here's what I'd like to know.
Anyone out there use THE ARTIST'S WAY? Or did you at one time? Do you follow the book? Have you taken the on-line course? Or are there specific tools from it that you use after casting others aside. Can you recommend it?
Or, completely aside from THE ARTIST'S WAY, what exactly do you do to utilize your time best to tap into your creative side?
Have you had a "creative crisis?" What means did you use to resolve it?
5 comments:
I think this is a great book for you, K - I recommend it all the time. I do the "morning pages" a lot - a random dump of writing that separates itself usually into the "TO DO" list and then other issues that are more personal.
I love the idea of the "Artist's Date" - but haven't done it regularly in a long time. But I should.
I live in "creative crisis mode" full time, so I've read all the books. I think Artist's Way is one of the best. It's probably time for me to read it again (and it sits on my shelf, patiently waiting). I don't do the morning pages anymore because I write best in the afternoon, but I do go over my To Do List every morning and prioritize my tasks.
I'm in the process of dumping extras (no matter how much fun they are) so I have more time to write. I started a couple of months ago by moving all the Dorothy L and SinC posts into folders. Haven't even opened the folders yet. :) I'm also going to blog only on weekdays and feature more guests. Where there's a will, there's a way.
Patricia
I enjoyed reading the Artist's Way and also the Artist's Way at Work. I'm not great at doing exercises though, or morning pages.
I use Microsoft One Note to keep track of literally everything in my life. Super program - I love the check boxes. :)
Barbara Sher's book "Refuse to Choose" helped me understand how I work best. I love using scrapbooks to brainstorm.
Many of my friends swear by this book and I've meant to look into it but just never seem to find the time -- too many other projects and most of them creative.
Thanks, guys!
I love hearing what everyone's different thoughts and processes are.
And isn't it funny how some of us feel more creative in the mornings, and some in the evenings? I feel really motivated and energized early in the mornings and seem to not only accomplish more - but am more pleased with the results when it's a project I've worked on early in the day.
I picked up a copy of the book yesterday on our way home, and my plan is to settle down with it this evening and see what I glean from it. I know I already had a copy, but it seems to be among the missing.
One thing I absolutely intend to do is start limiting my time on Facebook when I'm at home. Since I'm in front of my computer all day at work, I can keep Facebook open along with my other screens and see what everyone is up to.
At home, I'm going to start getting back to other things.
Reading for one.
Writing pieces for my blog, another.
And knitting. I've got some of the most scrumptious variegated turquoise silk that I want to make a long scarf with and I've been carting it around in my tote for months. Time to actually work on it instead of thinking it might magically do itself.
Post a Comment