March 2025

Beginning Again

"The time between projects is just as important as the time within them. Rest is not the enemy of creativity—it's the soil in which new ideas take root." – Anne Lamott

Anne Lamott, author of Bird by Bird, and Julia Cameron, author of Artist's Way.

The whirlwind that comes with a creative project deadline is like catnip to my artist brain. The ideas germinate and take shape, and it's so exciting to be in the studio. I don't want it to end.

But, alas, that level of activity is not sustainable. I'm a grown-up and know that down-time is a must before launching into the next big thing. Experience has taught me that it is often when I'm doing nothing at all (or nothing that appears constructive) that the next little tender baby of an idea takes root. 

When I'm in this phase, it's comforting to turn to the experience of other artists and writers and get confirmation that my artist life is not over, and to trust the process. Two of my guides are Anne Lamott and Julia Cameron, who both advise cutting yourself some slack and give new ideas a chance to enter into consciousness.

SHITTY FIRST DRAFTS

MORNING PAGES: After a big project is finished, I dig back into a routine of writing my morning pages, a practice I've followed off and on for the last 20 years. It was introduced by Julia Cameron in "The Artists Way," first published in 1992.

The idea is to write three pages of stream-of-consciousness writing first thing in the morning. I write long-hand and go at it fast and furious to get through three pages without stopping to finesse the wording. I can barely decipher my own scrawling marks when I'm done.

While new ideas rarely emerge on the pages themselves, it has helped to clear up mental clutter. And, sometimes, it can make way for ideas to rise to the surface later. At the least, it helps me to see when I'm stuck on a problem or in a cycle of self-doubt.

Here's an NPR story about the book and finding the spark of new ideas.

TAKE THE PRESSURE OFF

PLAY: For me, playing in the studio is the best of times. And feels like such a luxury. I usually must clean up the studio really well in order to "deserve" it.

When I can finally buckle down to play (ha!), I love exploring, the ease with which one thing leads to another, and then that leads to another. The outcome does not matter. What a freedom to not take myself or the art so damn seriously!

It requires total abandonment of productivity and efficiency. I must give myself permission to just "waste time," knowing that it will lead me toward the next thing, eventually. 

GRIND DOWN THE INNER CRITIC

SELF-DOUBT: When I do get centered on a project and back to the work, I like to remind myself of what Anne Lamott calls the "shitty first draft."  If you're not familiar with Anne, you're missing out. I'm so grateful every time I read her words or listen to her talk. 

The author of Bird by Bird, Anne writes about not knowing what we're doing, grinding down the inner-critic voice inside of us, and quieting the constant judge of self-doubt. She says just do it badly. Don't wait for inspiration or perfection. It's going to be imperfect, even lousy. And that's to be expected. 

Here's a great interview  on the subject with Tim Ferris and Anne from 2022. 

I'll be listening to it as I start on the shitty first draft of my next project.