For those of you who aren't familiar with it, Julia Cameron's classic book, The Artist's Way, is chock full of wonderful ideas to help writers, artists, and other types get their creative mojo back.
One of the ideas I like best is that of taking yourself on the occasional "artist's date," something to refill the well of images and ideas that constant work depletes. An artist's date can be just about anything: a walk through a garden, a trip to a museum, an hour spent hanging out watching birds and butterflies--whatever it takes to get you out of your own head and reconnect you to the universe.
Yesterday, I took myself on an artist's date to see the new movie, The Artist, a black & white silent film that's making a very big splash. I went because my friend and fellow blogster, Joni Rodgers, told me it was full of little surprises that she could only describe as "delights."
She was right about that, and the fact that I'm predisposed to love anything with a cute, smart dog in it, as well. The movie made me laugh, it may me weep, but what really spoke to me was the journey of the protagonist, silent film star George Valentin, who finds himself unable to adapt to the rise of the "talkies," resulting in a meteoric fall, even as the shiny-new young extra he once helped soars to the heights of fame.
There's a lesson in it about the constancy of inconstancy--the way things continually change, not only in the world of entertainment, but the world in general, and how dangerous it can be when one is too slow to evolve. And how (thank goodness) it's never too late to put our pride aside and reinvent ourselves.
All wonderful messages for the writer. Take yourself on an artist's date if it's playing in your area. If not, watch for it at the Oscar's (I'd be willing to bet) and on video. It's a little masterpiece, and an inspiration, too.
One of the ideas I like best is that of taking yourself on the occasional "artist's date," something to refill the well of images and ideas that constant work depletes. An artist's date can be just about anything: a walk through a garden, a trip to a museum, an hour spent hanging out watching birds and butterflies--whatever it takes to get you out of your own head and reconnect you to the universe.
Yesterday, I took myself on an artist's date to see the new movie, The Artist, a black & white silent film that's making a very big splash. I went because my friend and fellow blogster, Joni Rodgers, told me it was full of little surprises that she could only describe as "delights."
She was right about that, and the fact that I'm predisposed to love anything with a cute, smart dog in it, as well. The movie made me laugh, it may me weep, but what really spoke to me was the journey of the protagonist, silent film star George Valentin, who finds himself unable to adapt to the rise of the "talkies," resulting in a meteoric fall, even as the shiny-new young extra he once helped soars to the heights of fame.
There's a lesson in it about the constancy of inconstancy--the way things continually change, not only in the world of entertainment, but the world in general, and how dangerous it can be when one is too slow to evolve. And how (thank goodness) it's never too late to put our pride aside and reinvent ourselves.
All wonderful messages for the writer. Take yourself on an artist's date if it's playing in your area. If not, watch for it at the Oscar's (I'd be willing to bet) and on video. It's a little masterpiece, and an inspiration, too.
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