Who’s this group for?

Everybody! One of my first observations in AA meetings was noticing that people with a creative outlet had a much more attractive recovery. The artists, the writers, the gardeners. They were the ones that called to me. I truly believe that developing a connection to self lies within the creativity that exists in all of us and that especially in sobriety we need to learn who we are for a more satisfying sober life. I realised that sobriety was actually a gift, an opportunity to understand what life was about but in order to do I needed to find me first.

Morning Pages is one of my core tools, both for myself and in my work with others. Julia is the creator of this practice alongside Artists Walks and Artists Dates in her work The Artist’s Way. This work is often quoted by successful creatives but actually in its essence, it’s a spiritual path initiated and practiced through creativity. There’s also a lot more to it and I’m excited to get into the detail for you and have been collating it into a six week course. Julia has been sober for more than 35 years and developed The Artists Way as the result of her own sobriety practices.

Programme Details:

We will work through the approach that Julia uses in her book Living the Artist’s Way, which has the additional tool of Writing for Guidance. I will be providing overviews of the content each week in a recorded one hour zoom call, sharing my experience of doing the work as well as including content from several of her other books as well as The Artist’s Way (12 week version). The programme will be facilitated through a private Substack group, all material being available as emails and posts with the additional chat facility to allow for communication across all participants. I will be sending out daily prompts and additional reflections each morning for all 42 days which will include a weekly check-in every Sunday.

Each call will precede the week and there will be a final call at the end of week six to close. All of the calls will be recorded and available for six months following the last call. We start on Friday August 29th 2025 @ 9am PT/Noon ET/5pm BST.
The programme consists of three parts:
- seven live and recorded 60 minute calls
- 42 daily reflections sent by email and available in both print and audio
- a private substack community to share observations and reflections.

Curriculum:

Whilst the original book is a 12 week course, I wanted to start with the more condensed version, I find 12 weeks hard to commit, maybe I’ll do the full one next year. This structure for this version is:

Week One - Inviting Grounding:
- we’ll start with an introduction to the four tools and how to incorporate them into your week with the daily reflections supporting you along the way.
Week Two - Inviting Strength
- this week is about tapping into self care, seeking out the positive in your life, finding a sense of self-worth that will reinforce self-loving decisions.
Week Three - Inviting Calm
- the invitation to calm, to slow, to steady, to find the pause that forges a deeper connection to a benevolent universe.
Week Four - Inviting Optimism
- consciously choosing to bring in optimism into your life, counting the positives that will help you build a grounded and optimistic sense of self.
Week Five - Inviting Stamina
- this week will be encouraging you to stay the course, turning to guidance with both past and present issues
Week Six - Inviting Commitment
- in this final week, you will come to value perseverance, deepening the practices and hopefully committing to the long-term habits.
Final Call - Reflections & Observations

Daily Reflections
Each morning of the course you will receive a written and narrated daily reflection building on the principles and practices introduced on the call. These support the development of your practices and enquiry, providing a regular gentle and encouraging space.

Substack
Whilst Substack is mainly known for its newsletter capability, it also has an app which can be used to build community. The Artist’s Way space will be a closed and private group where everyone will be able to comment and share on each of the calls and daily refection posts as well as participate in a private chat.

Cost:

The programme costs £95 (approx $130). On receipt of payment, the link to the Substack group will be provided, please don’t forget to do this as it is a key part of the process.

Here’s the link, I look forward to meeting you there:
https://buy.stripe.com/6oU3cu76q3kn4OC7mhcAo01

Some background…

I found a fabulous summary of The Artist’s Way in Times Now news that I want to share with you.

The Artist’s Way explained in Under 2 Minutes.

It is for everyone.
A burnout or a slump, no matter where you are and what you are facing in life, The Artist's Way is here to bring your creativity back!

What it is.
This book takes you on a 12-week journey and helps you recover your creativity. It helps you heal creative blocks while reconnecting with your inner artist.

Core Philosophy.
The book teaches that you don't have to be an artist to be creative. You just have to be open and alive. It says 'creativity is the natural order of life’.

Morning pages.
The book starts with 3 pages of unfiltered, stream-of-consciousness thoughts that you have to write every morning. This helps clear mental clutter, builds discipline and sparks ideas.

Artist dates.
Once a week, you need to take yourself out on a solo adventure. A new cafe, a museum, or just a dance alone. Fuel your inner child and refill your creativity well.

Battling the inner critic.
The book helps you in identifying who you really are and that inner critic that tells you that you are not good enough. This book teaches you how to silence that voice.

Creativity is a practice.
With practice comes perfection. So you don't have to wait for inspiration on a daily basis. You just have to show up. Trust the process and you will unlock your genius.

Why it works.
The Artist's Way is part spiritual, part therapeutic, and 100% practical. It is for anyone who is craving creative joy in life.

TL;DR takeaway.
You gotta show up, write daily, play weekly and trust the process. That’s what The Artist’s Way is all about.

Some additional quotes for you:

“Julia Cameron invented the way people renovate the creative soul”, The New York Times.

“Three times in the last decade I’ve committed to doing The Artist’s Way programme, and each time I’ve learned something important and surprising about myself and my work”, Elizabeth Gilbert, author of Eat, Pray, Love.