The first night I was at The Mountain, I decided to keep a journal during the week. I have never kept a journal; this was my very first venture. I'm sitting there on August 6, starting to write, and my cabinmate comes in. Turns out that Lisa Sallie writes a journal every morning without fail. We nod at each other and say "synchronicity." The next morning she loaned me The Artist's Way, by Julia Cameron, G.P. Putnam's Sons, NY. I intend to continue with daily journal work, but I doubt if I'll buy the book. I think I've gotten what I needed from it.
If you do an Alta-Vista search on "Julia Cameron" you'll find about 150 listings.
http://www.marketspace.com/enlightenet/art_way.html is a commercial for the book, which although it is about "artist's block" is more than that -- it's about allowing yourself to be as creative as you possibly can be.
http://www.cybergrrl.com/review/gb0496.html#Artist gives a negative review-- including:
"The weekly exercises ask you to write in a journal every day, have an artist's date with yourself once a week, and do numerous other exercises, such as write about friends living and dead, skip reading for a week, throw away old clothing, saying affirmations, etc. There are enough exercises to make you feel that you are working a program, but the connection to creativity is a little nebulous IMO. The book has a spiritual approach, and the author is very Christian; and although she says that God is whatever you'd like it/her/him to be, the flavor is still quite Christian, which is hardly noticeable, if and only if you are Christian."
I agree that the flavor is Christian.. However, I think that the Basic Principles and the Creative Affirmations could be useful for dialogue between Christians and non-Christians. As one who affirms creativity without granting that it implies Creator, I affirm those Principles and Affirmations which do not have theistic language. A Christian would also select the Principles and Affirmations that use theistic language.
Maggie, August 12, 1996