‘Jealousy is a road map’
WITH HER MEMOIR OUT THIS AUGUST, BESTSELLING AUTHOR OF THE ARTIST’S WAY Julia Cameron SHARES THE LESSONS SHE’S LEARNED ABOUT WRITING
Name your inner critic
Very often, when it comes to writing, people have a fear of not being good enough. I think it’s a primordial fear – and one that I still have after 40 books. I don’t think this fear goes away, but you can learn to tame it. I have an inner critic whom I call Nigel. Nigel is wicked, and he will say to me, ‘Julia, you’re boring. Julia, this has been done before.’ I have simply learned to say, ‘Nigel, thank you for sharing.’ Sometimes, people want to know how to get rid of their inner critic. My experience is that you can’t, but you can miniaturise it. By giving your critic a name and also bringing humour into the picture, you have your power back. Your critic starts out as a booming, threatening, arrogant voice, but as you go along, and you say, ‘I hear you, but I don’t heed you,’ it goes from booming to being a wee peeping cry.
Harness early mornings
I have developed a tool called ‘Morning Pages’, which are three pages of longhand morning writing about whatever crosses your mind. We have a 45-minute window upon first awakening before our defences are in place, so I use those 45 minutes to write. You will find that you are more authentic, honest, vulnerable and more easily encouraged. You’re more authentically yourself first thing in the morning.
Establish a routine
Routine gives us faith in ourselves: I did it yesterday, and I’m going to do it again today. If you do your morning pages a day at a time, it convinces you, ‘Oh,
I bet a day at a time I could write a novel. I bet a day at a time I could write a play.’ You start to feel you can accomplish what previously seemed impossible.
Follow your first thought
Our morning pages give us little hints. Make yourself alert to these inspired moments that come fleetingly and grab them. Follow where they lead.
Find a cheerleader
In The Artist’s Way, I have a tool called ‘blasting through blocks’, where I have people write out a list of all their angers and all their fears, connected to the project at hand. They then read the list to an empathetic friend – somebody that I call a believing mirror – someone who just thinks you’re the bee’s knees and trusts your possibility and your power. That person will put the fears to rest, and then you can start writing.
Jealousy is a road map
It tells you what you wish for, what you want to do, what you aspire to. So when you feel jealous, instead of saying, ‘I’m such a horrid person,’ you say, ‘Ah, I’m jealous of playwriting. I guess I need to write a play.’ Jealousy is a clue as to what path is the most rewarding for you.