Artist's Way, 10th anniversary edition

"I was hugely dissapointed upon reading this book.Having seen numerous positive and glowing reviews, as well as it being widely stocked, I did not hesitate to buy this book when I attempted to start painting again after a period of acute illness.

Unfortunatley, my hopes were not met. Wishy-washy and pseudo-psychological opinions really started to grate with me, as well as the authors dramatic use of theatrical language. There is also an obssesive reliance on God which could possibly become a crutch for some recovering creatives.

The book is not pragmatic, is not practical, is very linear , and very, very boring. It is not empowering, enlightening and unfortunatley delivers nothign it promises, at least for me. I simply, and much to my dismay, cannot understand why this book is so highly regarded."
~ Written on 2008-03-31

"I am not an artist, and when I read this book I was not hoping to recover my creative self. I was, however, suffering from severe depression and this book was recommended to me. There are many books on depression - I think I must have most of them! - but this is the only one that really helped me on the road to recovery.

It's an easy read, which sets out a simple program that anyone can follow.

Perhaps what it is really about is helping people who feel trapped in a rut make their great escape, by setting out a number of simple, practical steps which are easy to follow. The thinking behind all of the these tasks is explained, but many give additional benefits to the particular person who is reading it.

It contains no mumbo jumbo or pop psychology, just a series of practical things anyone can do in order to move forward. Some may seem odd, but all are easily done.

Above all, this books contains nothing that could harm or mover you backwards.

My personal recommendation is that it cured my depression, and actually made me much more creative.



"
~ Written on 2008-02-26

"This book was recommended to me by a friend, and now I am eternally grateful for the opportunity to read and work through this book. It "spoke" to me immediately, and I have continued with the course with a real sense of change occuring in my thoughts and perceptions about myself and others.
Most of all, of course, I have started painting again, and finally I am painting pictures of the type I always wanted to. Even though I didn't think I was blocked, I was. Each week revealed something else about me, and revelations are still coming out in my Morning Pages Journal.
All in all, if you are recovering, or discovering your creative self, this book is for you.
You won't regret it!
"
~ Written on 2008-01-24

"The blurb on the back tells us this is the seminal book on the subject of creativity. However, you need to understand one very important thing: this book is not about how to be more creative, it's about freeing your creativity. This implies that your creativity has been blocked, which in turn implies that something has gone wrong which should be put right. Julia Cameron tells you the causes of the block, and the Artist's Way is a course of therapy to help you recover. (In each chapter you Recover a Sense of something, eg Compassion, Possibility).

I think the Artist's Way was developed for women of her generation who as children were discouraged from being creative and as adults expected to always put others' needs first. Such experiences mean that a) one doesn't believe in one's own creative abilities, and b) one doesn't have time or space to be oneself. If this is true for you, you may find the Artist's Way very useful.

It is divided into 12 units, one for each week. Although there is a different theme for each week, they didn't seem particularly differentiated to me. Each unit contains a couple of essays on living a better life, as well as some tasks to do; many of them seem to consist of making lists of what you would do/be/buy if you the had time/permission/money. You are also instructed to write 3 pages every morning on whatever is on your mind, and do something enjoyable by yourself as a "date" with your "artist child" every week. Although she says you don't need any religious belief to follow the course, she does talk a lot about spirituality. It has a New Age feel and I think I gave up at the point where I was expected to build an artist's altar and listen to recordings of myself reading aloud my favourite sermons from her book!

Overall, I was disappointed with this book and don't think it did anything to make me more creative. Some of what she writes is interesting, and I liked doing the morning pages - in fact I still do them. However, for me, developing creativity has really been a case of getting into the habit of painting, drawing and taking photographs regularly. I don't find it particularly helpful to blame other people for discouraging me, or to fragment my life into ever more activities and self-indulgences in order to discover my creative self.

If you are thinking of doing the Artist's Way I would recommend you read several units first to see if what she says is true for you. I didn't, and stuck with it for several weeks, hoping all would be revealed, but in the end decided my time would be better spent developing my artistic skills...
"
~ Written on 2007-10-10

"The practical advice in this book could help a person through an initial stage of getting out of the rut of low self-esteem, and the exercises Cameron gives are strictly structured, but fun. While it's unlikely that the book will be able to help a person to become an artist, it can certainly help a person to become more enthusiastic about life and, possibly, to find more of a sense of purpose and zest in life. Yes, this book could help a person to 'jump start' their dead battery.

So why do I give this two stars and a 'caution'? Here it is: over and over again, the author suggests that, when we follow a 'true' creative path, 'helping hands' tend to suddenly appear to guide us and 'synchronicity' tends to arrive on the scene to bring us serendipitous opportunities we never dreamed of or didn't expect. Well ... sorry folks, but life isn't always like that. Good, focused artistic people with a sense of purpose and drive can get crushed by illness, accidents, or lack of funding or support. Brutal and mean people without any spark of positive creative energy about them can make enormous strides and step on anyone in their way. I expect we have all, sadly, observed this in our lives -- we've all seen it happen. Sometimes, we have great luck in our lives, and sometimes we do not ... Sure, it's great when we are lucky, but I don't think it's wise to promote an idea that following this author's programme will increase the likelihood of good luck coming our way so that our lives will suddenly take off out of nowhere in a flurry of unexpected success and happiness. This is pretty naive -- and it's dangerous. By all means, we should live with joy and courage, and trust our creative intuition, but this needs to be grounded in reality and an understanding and acceptance of life in all its harshness and gentleness - the complete package, for all it is worth.

Another disturbing point: this book puts forward a kind of 'you shall know them by their fruits' attitude -- in other words, if someone is poor and unsuccessful, it is because they are just not being honest with themselves, not believing in themselves, or not having the guts to follow their star. The book suggests that if these unsuccessful people were being truly creative and following their true path, they would be receiving (sometimes out of nowhere, unexpectedly and mysteriously) all the help they need to reach their goal. This is nonsense. Compassion begins when we realise just how random life can be, how precious, and how ephemeral. Maybe knowing this is the beginning of a true artist's way."
~ Written on 2007-01-02