A reader of this blog recenlty asked a very good question:
Do you have to be a visual artist to do The Artist's Way, or can you be a writer?
I'd like to take that question a bit further? Do you have to identify as any kind of artist or writer or actor or anything else creative to do The Artist's Way?
The answer is empahtically NO! NO! NO!
The Artist's Way is for anyone who wants to wake up and strengthen their own creative juices. We can use creativity in all parts of our lives:
When I add a touch of cinnamon to a recipe that doesn't ask for it, that's creativity. When I create a menu for guests, that's creativity
When I put two tablecloths together and top them with baskets of fruit and a beautiful bowl, that's creative living.
When a woodworker or hobbyist chooses a piece of rosewood for a shelf, that's creative living.
And if one already identifies as a writer or sculptor or painter or poet, all the better. This book and support group helps the creative urges arise and manifest.
For me, I was afraid of my creativity for most of my early life. Why did these images and words and ideas keep coming to me? I tried to shut it down out of fear. Now, I know that is the divine working through me. I'm not in control of the ideas that come to me, but I am in control of how I respond to them and for keeping that channel open. Some ideas I bring to reality. Some I file away. Some I forget. But I no longer feel the need to stop the flow.
Bottom line: Anyone who wants to live a more vibrant, creative life will benefit from the principles, exercises and practices of The Artist's Way.
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