I kind of fell off the wagon, in terms of making weekly posts about progress on The Artist’s Way. I’ve still been doing my pages – missed a few artist dates – and am still finding great value in this trip through the program. I have found it funny how my experiences have synchronized with the book this time – even though I don’t specifically recall what’s in each chapter, it seems to be exactly right each week.
For example, I had a long talk with someone about discipline a few weeks ago. This person was amazed that I write every day, and insisted that I must have terrific discipline. I was a bit flummoxed by this, because I’m pretty sure I don’t have a lot of discipline (otherwise, I’d have only one knitting project on the go at one time, and other things in life would get done routinely or on time.) Lo and behold, the chapter I read in TAW the next day talked about the difference between discipline and enthusiasm. Aha! Enthusiasm I’ve got by the truckload. That made perfect sense, and tied into my convictions that everyone should do something that they love. When you love your work, it doesn’t feel like work (or discipline). It’s so exciting and interesting that each day, you’re anxious to get back to it. I love writing and feel very lucky to be making my living by doing it.
I’m also very stubborn about making my living by writing. Publishing can be a tough business and every publishing career is marked by successes and failures – the writers who love writing, though, are the ones who pick themselves up afterward and write something else. I’m always amazed by how many writers I’ve known or met over the years are no longer publishing – they’re probably not writing either. Because their motivation was rooted in something else than enthusiasm for writing itself, they hit one of those bumps in the road and decided to do something else. Something easier. I hope it’s something for which they have enthusiasm.
My other recent aha-moment with TAW was the section on creative u-turns. Actually, I always enjoy this section. It allows you to acknowledge choices that you might make differently the second time around – just reviewing them makes that learning exercise possible. This exercise extends beyond writing and publishing and into the rest of life, which is always interesting.
There are other sections that don’t have a lot of meaning for me – the part about jealousy, for example, or the section on workaholism – but overall, I’m finding this a potent trip through the book and its exercises. How about you? Are you still doing your morning pages? Where have you gone on a good artist date? (I need to do one this week.) Are you having any breakthroughs or making any progress? Are you more productive creatively?
Deborah Cooke: Author 