'The Artist’s Way' changed my life

+ Let's get creative with Lady Gaga, Beyoncé, Bréne Brown, and Elizabeth Gilbert ...

The Midst, Amy Cuevas Schroeder, and Andrea Bauer

Jul 20, 2025

AI is replacing a lot of things right now, but it cannot completely replace raw human creativity of the most original kind …

… the kind that connects you with people who struggle with the same obstacles in the midst of life as we know it. Knowing this motivates me when I read listicles about the professions most likely to be replaced by AI — especially with writing being at the top of the list.

That and knowing that creativity for creativity’s sake is what makes us feel whole, alive, and full of purpose. Which is how I feel after coming out to you last week about ending my hunt for full-time tech jobs during the Age of AI. I haven’t felt so creatively invigorated since I quit my full-time job half my life ago to work full time on a magazine about creative women.

As I recover from a tumultuous period of interviewing for intense jobs with companies whose hiring managers seem fearful about the future of AI that they’re creating, I take comfort in knowing that no one else can think quite like me — or you. Especially in the beautiful, messy middle that we’re in right now.

I also take comfort in knowing that being creative can increase positive emotions, reduce depressive symptoms and anxiety, and improve the function of our immune systems. The Journal of Positive Psychology says, “spending time on creative goals during the day is associated with higher activated positive affect.” Positive affect refers to positive moods people experience including joy, happiness, and optimism. — Amy

Inspo from Lady Gaga, Brené Brown & ...

This 39-year-old book transformed the way I see the world — and as promised, why and how I express myself

By Andrea Bauer

Originally published here on December 28, 2023

I’m not a fan of making New Year’s resolutions. They come with way too much pressure, and they rarely stick. Instead, I’m a firm believer that you can change your life on any day of the year, on your own terms, at a time that feels right for you.

But it was around this time last year (December 22, 2022) that my life shifted dramatically due to a New Year’s–esque commitment I made to myself: I would finally read The Artist’s Way, a book that had been sitting on my shelf for more than two decades.

I can’t remember how this book first came into my life. I probably snagged it from a “free” bin at work in my 20s just because I had heard of it. As a twenty-something in the arts community, the title would often come up in conversation — someone was doing The Artist’s Way, and it was changing their life.

I would listen intently to snippets of wisdom, twirling my hair around my finger while wistfully saying, “I really wanna read that …” And yet, every moving day, my unread copy would get packed into a U-Haul only to collect dust on a different bookshelf, in a different part of town. I’ve lugged this book to seven apartments without ever cracking the spine.

Now in my 40s, I’m happy to report that I have not only opened the book, but I’ve read it cover to cover. I’m amazed at how long this gem has been in my possession without my knowing what was inside. Unbeknownst to me, the answers I was looking for throughout my 20s, 30s, and beyond had been with me all along. A classic case of Dorothy’s ruby slippers.

What is The Artist’s Way?

The Artist’s Way: A Spiritual Path to Higher Creativity by Julia Cameron intends to help people overcome their limiting beliefs and fears that hinder creativity. While the book is geared toward “blocked artists,” you don’t have to be an artist to benefit.

Cameron’s definition of creativity is broad, encompassing anything from writing a novel to creating a more inspired life. This workbook-style guide is organized into 12 chapters to be read over the course of 12 weeks. At the end of each chapter, there are “tasks” — exercises designed to help unblock whatever is holding you back.

There are two main components of the course, which Cameron says are non-negotiable:

1. Morning pages: Three handwritten pages every morning, stream-of-consciousness style. This is not a journal, diary, or writing exercise — it’s more of a brain dump.

2. The artist date: A block of time set aside weekly to nurture your inner artist. A solo playdate of sorts, it should inspire the senses and can be anything from visiting a museum to taking a walk in nature.

Spiritual but not religious

There’s quite a bit of God-talk in this book. If God is not your jam, fear not! Cameron’s use of the word isn’t connected to any religion, but rather it’s her term for the creative force that moves through all of us. According to Cameron, we’re all channels for this creative force; it’s in our inherent nature to be cute little vessels spouting divine creativity. And we can all get high on this energetic supply — everyone has equal access to the flow, and it works whether we believe in it or not. You can call this force anything you want, be it God, a higher power, or Cameron’s suggested acrostic, “good orderly direction.”

If you’ve ever graced the rooms of AA, some of the language in this book will probably sound familiar. Cameron’s path of creative recovery is loosely based on the 12 Steps of Alcoholics Anonymous (hence the 12-week course). This just may be the reason why so many readers find it life-changing — AA’s 12-step program is recognized as the most effective public health service that has helped millions, well, change their lives.

Breaking out of the dead zone

I was finally inclined to read The Artist’s Way because I was feeling stuck. In a dead zone, if you will. The pandemic was ebbing and a return to normalcy was in full swing.

Initially, I had excelled at lockdown. As an introvert, I had been training for this moment my whole life. Finally, I could decline invites guilt-free! I could read endlessly! I could work from home! Doom-scroll from bed! But little by little, too many of the things I enjoyed fell away.

I stopped playing music with my band, and eventually, stopped writing songs altogether. I only stayed in touch with a few friends. I rarely went anywhere, mostly sticking to the four-block radius around my house. My universe had become increasingly small. As pandemic restrictions lifted, the world was moving all around me, but I was standing still, wheels spinning in the mud.