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ImperfectCJ
The Artist's Way | Julia Cameron
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Follow-up to my last post:

"Reading deprivation casts us into our inner silence, a space some of us begin to immediately fill with new words---long, gossipy conversations, television bingeing, the radio as a constant, chatty companion. We often cannot hear our own inner voice...above the static...If we monitor the inflow and keep it to a minimum...[o]ur reward will be a new outflow. Our own art...will begin to nudge aside the sludge..."

ImperfectCJ Still not convinced that this means I have to set aside Lone Women until this coming Sunday. Especially since today is my day off work. 3mo
IndoorDame I do vaguely recall that part. I think I assumed she meant talk radio, and mostly listened to music during that time. But it‘s definitely a daunting prospect! You should do whatever feels right. 3mo
Suet624 I can feel sometimes that I am avoiding silence by reading. When that happens I put the book aside to think through what it is I'm avoiding. Other times you can't tear me away from reading. It's all in the quality of need as far as I'm concerned. I also spend time in the morning doing a tiny bit of journaling so I'm not totally blocking out my inner voice. Read on, my friend, with intention. :) 3mo
See All 14 Comments
AmandaBlaze I admit that after Winter Games I took a day off mostly. I couldn't imagine a week. 3mo
BarbaraBB I see what she means but not how it would help me in any way to not read. I think reading gives me focus and stability 🤷🏻‍♀️ 3mo
ImperfectCJ @Suet624 I was actually thinking along similar lines. I know that sometimes I put an audiobook in my ears to drown out my own thoughts, and that perhaps if my intention this week is to read mindfully and with awareness of my reasons, that would meet the spirit of the activity. So far today I've mostly been listening to Low through my headphones, which has been lovely and sometimes cathartic but also doesn't leave much space for my own thoughts. 3mo
Suet624 @ImperfectCJ 💕💕💕 I haven‘t listened to Low in ages. Thanks for the reminder. 3mo
Faranae I think this a case where an author or creator takes something that worked for them personally and acts like it's a universal experience. I suppose if you've never done it before, it can be worth a shot, and I certainly think cutting back stuff that's intentionally addictive like social media might be helpful, but... some of us read *to* think more deeply, not to avoid it. 3mo
ImperfectCJ @Faranae You make a good point. I definitely find myself reading with an eye for metaphor and how to tell a parallel real-life story/situation/experience through symbolism, how that brings forth a truth that is difficult to impart just by recounting facts and emotional description, and I find that this really expands my thinking. I also see Cameron's point in that a pause gives those ideas space to develop, or they're just passing notions 3mo
ImperfectCJ @Suet624 I only recently discovered them (although I'm sure I've heard their music) via the podcast 60 Songs that Explain the 90s, and I am a little obsessed right now. Their last album is heartbreaking. I guess it's good timing for a reading break. :-) 3mo
Clare-Dragonfly This book is so widely recommended, but I dropped it after this week and get annoyed by the mention of it now. That was one of the most anxious weeks of my life (the most anxious I‘d ever been until my son was a newborn, and now my cancer diagnosis). Never doing that again. 3mo
Larkken Haha, I see what she means I think, but doubt that being bored would make me into something I am not: an artist or brilliant (thinking of the similar tagged book...). Reading is an escape, yes, but also makes me engage with the world in new ways. 3mo
ImperfectCJ @Clare-Dragonfly Wow, you had a very strong reaction to this exercise! I do find some of her suggestions strident and maybe somewhat off-base, but my reaction to it isn't as strong as yours (at least to this one...I have others that get my heart rate up in a bad way when people mention them). 3mo
ImperfectCJ @Larkken I think that part of the thing is that she was writing this in the late 80s/early 90s, and there really wasn't much besides books, TV, and radio to capture our attention. And TV was so different...no 24-hour news cycle, even. I feel like she could have rewritten this exercise to be more about mindfully engaging with potential distractions rather than cutting out reading specifically. It would have made it easier to personalize, at least. 3mo
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ImperfectCJ
The Artist's Way | Julia Cameron
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I forgot that Week 4 of The Artist's Way includes a week-long "reading deprivation." I didn't plan ahead, or I would have been working on books I don't mind putting off for a week instead of two I REALLY want to keep reading.

I've managed to avoid reading (print and audio) for nearly 5 hours. Surely this counts as enough deprivation?

catiewithac 😱 3mo
IndoorDame Does she say why? It‘s been years since I did it, but most creatives don‘t read as much as Littens, or for the same reasons... If she‘s just trying for a week long distraction deprivation, maybe a week sans television and/or social media would work? 3mo
Crazeedi I read this many years ago, forgot about this 3mo
ImperfectCJ @IndoorDame I'll post a follow-up with more details. 3mo
BarbaraBB Interesting. I wonder the same things as @IndoorDame does. 3mo
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DebinHawaii
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#Naturalitsy #MidwinterSolace #Hygge

For tonight‘s #7DayHyggeChallenge prompt: “Buy some flowers or a plant to add some greenery indoors,” flowers make me sneeze, so while I grabbed paint sample chips for a journal project at my local hardware store, I found a small succulent in their plant section & repotted her into a rock bowl I had on hand. She‘s marked as Echeveria letizia, henceforth to be known as Letty, a succulent wild woman. 😉🪴🌵💚

JamieArc This is great 💚🌵 3mo
TheBookHippie Oh how wonderful!!!! 3mo
IndoorDame Love her 💚🪴 3mo
Chrissyreadit 🌱🍀☘️🌿🍃💚 3mo
kspenmoll A succulent wild woman!!!!!!! Perfect! 3mo
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Andrea313
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Returning to work after the holidays is a total bummer, but a thoughtful gift from a colleague was an unexpected bright spot! I'm very much looking forward to this one.

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hissingpotatoes
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Pickpick

4/5⭐ A useful, concise collection of methods for generating ideas and approaching problems with fresh eyes, both individually and in groups. Applicable for both home and work settings. Includes many illustrative examples. #roll100

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LeftyDv
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Pickpick

I felt like I was sitting in a cabin listening to Rubin‘s musings first hand. I admittedly enjoyed the first half more, but the entire book was a fun guide to exercising your creativity, even if you don‘t consider yourself to be an artist.

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ImperfectCJ
The Artist's Way | Julia Cameron
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My first Artist Date since starting the tagged book again. It's been more than a year since I stopped taking voice lessons, and this morning before work I gave myself the time to spend just singing. It was cathartic and, I like to believe, occasionally melodious. My home-from-college kid woke up to my singing and said it was a great way to wake up, so there's that.

SamAnne Love this. Have you read Your Brain on Art? Just picked it up from the library. 📚 looks like it could be an interesting read. 3mo
CatLass007 I haven‘t sung in a while. I auditioned for Civic Chorale a couple of years ago and was asked to sing second soprano instead of first. Losing some of my range probably can be attributed to not singing and getting older. I enjoyed being part of a group again but I kept missing rehearsals because of migraines. It seemed to me that I was just putting myself through the frustration of falling behind and it wasn‘t necessary. That‘s happened (cont)⬇️ 3mo
CatLass007 with other things too. Until my neurologist and I figure out what‘s going to prevent migraines, I‘m not going to torture myself by making plans. 3mo
See All 9 Comments
CatLass007 @SamAnne Is the book something that would be better seen? Because saving my vision is one of the reasons I listen to audiobooks, and this is available in audio format. 3mo
CatLass007 Also, @ImperfectCJ, cute kitty. I guess I should ask you the same question: is The Artist‘s Way a book that is better seen than heard? 3mo
BennettBookworm LOVED the artist‘s way! 3mo
ImperfectCJ @SamAnne That book looks interesting! I'll have to check it out! 3mo
ImperfectCJ @CatLass007 Hmm...I haven't really thought about it, but I don't think it has to be seen. Mostly it's just essays/explanations of the weeks and the activities that you do on your own. I think it would depend on the individual and how they process information audibly, but I can't think of anything you'd miss if you experienced it only on audio. 3mo
CatLass007 Thank you. That‘s very helpful. 3mo
30 likes9 comments
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ImperfectCJ
The Artist's Way | Julia Cameron
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@Texreader Table of contents, part 2.

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ImperfectCJ
The Artist's Way | Julia Cameron
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@Texreader Table of Contents, part 1.

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ImperfectCJ
The Artist's Way | Julia Cameron
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Lately I've been feeling a little mid-life-crisis-y and decided I wanted to do The Artist's Way all the way through again, something I haven't done for 20+ years. Try as I might---I even had my family search---I could not find the copy I've had since 1996, so I ordered a new one. When it arrived today, I unpacked it, turned to the bookshelf to put it away, and put my hand immediately on my 1996 copy. So. The system works.

Texreader Dang! That‘s crazy! But also, this looks fascinating! Share more info? 4mo
ImperfectCJ @Texreader Absolutely! It's a 12-week series of activities designed to help you recover your creative self. The two main elements are daily Morning Pages and weekly Artist Dates. I'll tag you in a couple of posts showing the ToC. There's an element of New Agey spirituality in it that rubs some the wrong way, but I find the exercises to be valuable enough that I am comfortable translating the New Age language into something less cringey to me. 4mo
Texreader I‘m so going to check this out! Fascinating!! Thank you for the posts. 4mo
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