Rating: 
Summary: A Good Assistant
Review: I found the book to be helpful and specific to creative blocking. My criticism lies in the fact that if you have more damage that may have nothing to do with those things that block you creatively you may be wasting your time reading this book at this time. I am attending Al-Anon, seeing a therapist for being an Adult Child of an Alcoholic AND working through this book. With this combination of therapies, support and the work from the book, I am finding creative breakthroughs. In short, An Artist's Way is a good assistant to your journey through trauma, tragedy, or childhood injury but can only be a catalyst or a companion as opposed to counselor to you along your journey.
Rating:
Summary: good but superficial
Review: This book is good to get people started. But it's not good enough to keep you going. That's because to create, you need to do two things that I don't see at all addressed here:1. face the pain of living. Everyone has some sorrow in life, and the creative process, which makes you look at life unflinchingly, forces you to face the pain you've had. Most people don't want to hear this, which is probably why it's not here, except in a superficial way. Remembering the insulting things your teacher said to you in the seventh grade is a start, but it's not going to get you anywhere. I noticed that discussion of trauma, such as rape, incest, and other tragedies like severe childhood illness or the impact of a death in the family, are conspicuously avoided. This is absurd because the research shows that creativity and trauma are linked. Although we all have not had equal types of trauma in our lives, in my opinion, to face one you have to face the other. But this message doesn't fit with her happy message of 'just do your morning pages and artist dates and unleash your creativity'. 2. face the terror of bringing something new into being. Creating means taking your idea and translating it from the vision in your head to the material world. This can be fun, and exciting, but if you're on to a source of real power in terms of a creative vision, it's terrifying. Because you're leaving the place of safety, where everyone else is, and going off to your own place and - who knows when or if you'll be back, or even how you can reintegrate into society once you get back. The creative process can be quite frightening. It's like every horror movie where the people start in a nice, safe, secure world, then they have to leave it. People don't want to hear these things, so they are not here. But their absence detracts from the book. What's here is a nice, warm, reassuring book that gives people a great start at exploring the creative world, but won't take them the distance in my opinion. think about it - why are so many African-Americans so incredibly creative? Because they have faced the pain of life in a way that many whites have not. This does not in any way justify the oppression they endured for hundreds of years. But their strengh in dealing with it gives them a source of power. A good book on writing is "remembered rapture" by bell hooks.
Rating: 
Summary: It is not perfect, but it is a very good book
Review: Having read previous reviews on this book and having dabbled with creativity on and off most of my life, finally, I decided to take the plunge and see if this book could change my life. WELL? DOES IT WORK, DOES IT CHANGE YOUR LIFE?
Has it? Well Yes and no.
I'm not putting out massive works of art or prose, nor am I comfortable with even the pencil sketches I do. However, I am doing them again. I've had fits and starts of drawing, but this book does help you put that into perspective. You are a beginner and it is okay for your work to look like a beginners. Simple concept. Hard to internalize. INTERESTING OUTCOME.
What I did find and others who use this program can probably confirm is that it helps get situations out in the open. Family stuff. When you do the morning pages, you ramble. You put down all that trash you are thinking and then you find you work to clean it up. You know all the stuff your kids, your spouse, your co-workers do, that really tick you off. You find you start to address that. Kind of a neat by-product. MORNING PAGES ARE NOT SO BAD:
My first take on this, is dedicate a half an hour of my precious and sparse sleeping time.....? What are you nuts? Then I tried it. You have a clarity (and a drowsiness) in the AM, that is unmatchable any other time. Also, if you are like me get a whole lot less interruptions. I did the morning pages from 5:15 till 6:00 AM weekdays and after I got up on weekends. Weekends, sometimes I didn't get to them until afternoon. But, each day (except for 1 day in 12 weeks) they were religiously done.
Guess what? I'm hooked. I'm continuing and you might too. Consider this as a book (a life), you are writing, you are directing. What a concept! MORNING PAGES LENGTH:
With the Artist's way book, I bought the journal. These 3 pages were the size of 8-1/2 X 11 pages. 3 pages do not take you 1/2 hour but more like 45 minutes to an hour. Get ready for that. It seems like a lot some days and not enough on others. You don't need a special book to do this in either. I bought a spiral notebook to pick up where the journal left off, when it was full. The journal is nice though as it has passages from the book on each page. ARTISTS DATES:
I found that some of the timing of the artist dates were bad. I'm sure most others will run into this as well. I did this book through the Thanksgiving, Christmas holiday. Artist's dates were often dropped and sometimes one did double-duty. However, these can be very simple. You have to make them what is important to you and that is the point of the book. It makes you feel special. I think all of us wait for others to make us feel special. Most of us could wait a very long time. Little do we realize, we have to set the standard. Make ourselves feel special. Because we are. We have to appeal to the artist within us. It can be simple or extravagant. One thing I like is pens with a 1.0mm tip. They use ink like crazy, but what a wonderful broad stroke they make on the paper. That is one of my "perks". SOME CRITIQUE:
In the past years you've no doubt heard of people coming out of therapy accusing their parents of abuse. Many of these people were suggested into this practice by psychologists looking for a quick solution to some of their patient's psychoses. What I didn't care for in the book, is that some of the tasks appeared to be excercising these same demons. Trying to find devils in the details of past "creative blocks". Some times these blocks are cumulative and not one earth-shattering event. Like water on a rock. Sometimes the people around you were highly supportive, etc. etc.
We all have a mix of that. I felt however, that this negative aspect was overemphasized. A person sensitive to these suggestions could walk away very convinced that there was a horrible trauma they just can't quite remember. WEEK OFF OF READING TRULY IS IMPOSSIBLE IN SOME PEOPLE'S LIVES: One week was supposed to be one free from reading. I used it as a media free week (Radio, TV, magazines, newspapers, books and non-work email) and not from work related reading. If I neglected the reading in my job, I would have over 300 emails, very job related languishing in my in-box. I also would not be doing my job in writing specifications. Not possible in my job and not realistic in many others I'm sure. I think the author should just emphasize the noise factor or suggest doing this type of exercise on vacation. In summary this book and its tasks were excellent and I can't recommend it highly enough. I'm going on to her book on Work creativity next, then the Right to Write and the Vein of Gold. KEEP UP THE MORNING PAGES AND CHANGE THE WORLD - ONE PERSON AT A TIME!
Rating:
Summary: Writer's block be gone!
Review:
If you've ever had writer's block, or just felt like an uncreative dolt, than you should read Julia Cameron's guidebook on reclaiming your Muse. The Artist's Way is one of the best books you can ever read to get you motivated to write, paint, play music, sculpt, dance or do whatever other creative talent that is lurking inside yourself right now. Some of the text is a tad New Agey, but if you stick to writing three pages every morning and try some of the exercises in the book, you might find yourself oozing with creative and crafty ideas in no time.I also think readers of this book will enjoy the Web site:
The Days of An Artist.
...
This site documents the beginning struggles of a secretary who quits her dayjob and decides to become a freelance writer. Good luck with your writing and art! This book will become your creativity bible. -Bonnie Burtin
... founder/editor
Rating:
Summary: An Invaluable Resource
Review: For anyone involved with the arts, especially writing, this book is a lifesaver. It will help unlock your creative juices, quiet your "inner critic," and help you discover the artist you always were. A step by step program to open up the lines of creativity, I would recommend it without hesitation to anyone serious about finding their muse. Filled with inspiring quotes, motivating stories, and a useful daily program, it will get your spirit, work, and creativity souring.
Rating:
Summary: Avoidance and Denial getting you down???
Review: This book/journey/process/meditation will help.
Words cannot do justice to the degree of change this book's lessons helped to bring about for myself over the past year.
Anyone who has asked themselves "Why can't I create?" or says "What if?" or "Only if!" would benefit from the journey this book takes you upon. Whether you go through the book by yourself or with a group (i've done both), the change within you is inevitable. We just (we=six artists) just completed the cycle this month (11/01) and will start again in January.
Bring it on!
Rating:
Summary: Take a journey into creative recovery or self discovery...
Review: This book is a GREAT tool to fill your creative well. In the process you will discover joys you had pushed aside. The main tools in this twelve week workbook are the morning pages and the artist's date. Each day you journal three pages and each week you make a date with yourself. It is about nurturing and caring for yourself. Often times we beat ourselves up after the world gives us the message that we are not good enough, smart enough, etc. This book peels back the layers to your true self. WARNING! This book takes work. However it is fun. If you find a group to work with you will find synergy within the group and great insights through sharing. I facilitate groups using this book and the Vein of Gold and the results are amazing.
Rating:
Summary: If you buy one book this year...
Review: This is the one to buy. This book was given to me for Christmas. It couldn't have come at a better time. I was struggling with some fundamental things: "who am I," and "who did I really want to be?" This book, while painful at times, helped (and is still helping) me to be reborn. It helped me to dig up things from my past that were blocking my creativity that I didn't even remember...until I did the excercises. And now that I've dealt with those issues, I can truly become the person I was supposed to be. People that I've known for years have said that I look so much more at peace with myself and so relaxed. I attribute it to this book (Thanks Ms. Cameron!!!!!!) I recommend this book to anyone -- not just creatives -- who are searching for the meaning of their life. As you go through the book, you will find that you see everything differently, even your relationships with people you've known for years. It's that powerful of a tool, if you let it work for you. (My advice to people who find this book not useful: you need it the most! If you find a section of this book that won't help you, then you're denying something major in your life and you need to work through it.) This book is better than hypnosis or psychotherapy! Read it now!!!
Rating:
Summary: Personal Discovery
Review: The Artist's Way goes beyond helping you awaken your creative self. It is really a book about loving yourself enough to do the things you really want to do, whether it be painting a picture, going for a walk, or seeing a movie. To me, it is a path to deal with any codependency a person has in their lives. I have diligently been doing the exercises, which are quite fun, and have been ahead of the book each week, waiting anxiously for the next week's lessons. I would recommend it to anyone who can't find time to do the things they want and feel like other things run their lives.
Rating:
Summary: Applicable to More than Blocked Creatives
Review: I've finished Cameron's book. This course has helped me above all to focus on my strengths and interests. Although I am not a writer or painter who's blocked, I was able to re-connect with my career interests, dreams, what I'm good at and what I'm not. Through the activities (which are great because seeing your thoughts on paper helps you to really understand what you're thinking and feeling), I was able to re-focus my career goals, get more in touch with the kind of person I am and find ways to let that person emerge. Now I am pursuing the teaching career I once shelved and going back to living my life the way I always wanted but wasn't able to because of roadblocks.
In summary, this book's greatest strength is its applicability to a variety of people in a variety of situations. Those whose lives are in transition, are trying to re-focus and re-connect should try her course.
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