Beyond 'The Artist's Way': What if there was another way?

You don't need a 12-week program. You need permission to play.

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A quick note to say I’m experimenting with hosting mini workshops inspired by the exercises in OVERRIDE! book. My hope is they can be a way to gather and feel supported in the world we live in. The first edition will be this Sunday, March 2nd at 7pm CET (Paris), 1pm EST (NYC), 9am PST. BRING A BANANA!🍌 All subscribers are welcome to join. Information is linked below. [FOLLOW THIS POST for all future banana mapping on the first Sunday of each month.]

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If you run in creative circles, chances are you’ve heard of The Artist’s Way by Julia Cameron. First released in 1992 it’s become a “Bible” for creative unblocking that has changed millions of lives. But here’s a confession: I’ve never made it all the way through.

Even if you’re not familiar with the title, chances are you’ve heard of two of Cameron’s key foundational ideas: “morning pages” (3-pages of long form journaling each morning to “unclog the gutter”) and “artists dates” (taking yourself somewhere each week for inspiration). Throughout the book, which is broken into a 12-week guided program with weekly assignments, these two foundations are the common thread.

I’ve had multiple friends swear by this book and cite it as a key force between making a big life change. One went on to write her own book. Another pivoted her career to photography and painting.

I’ve met countless people who have bought or started The Artist’s Way—but far fewer who have finished it. And the ones who haven’t? They often feel a twinge of guilt, as if they’re somehow “failing” before they even started. But what if the issue isn’t them? What if the book itself doesn’t fit how modern life works?

My personal belief is that even when we do things imperfectly, it still all adds up. Trust the messages you receive to be enough. It was that approach that I took when writing OVERRIDE! What if there was another way? A pocket playbook for possibility. I wanted the reader to have discernment to go through it in a way that worked for them.

Because The Artist’s Way is so widely celebrated I think many people feel shame around the fact that they’ve never gotten through it, or may feel a bit “broken” because they have not found the secret to life. It can become overwhelming quickly, which of course is not helpful when you’re feeling blocked.

The way that I’ve seen people work through it most successfully is in doing it in community, whether someone is hosting a group, or a book club reads it together. This kind of work can be isolating. It’s a book that needs accountability.

I’m not sure if Cameron ever addresses it in the book (more likely in later editions), but community is something I wanted to address in OVERRIDE! It was also the impetus for creating this companion website for the book out of the gate, as well as creating facilitation resources so people can gather, connect, and realize they’re not alone in many of the ideas they feel.

One of the first decisions I made when imagining OVERRIDE! was to create something light, portable, and easy to engage with.

The Artist’s Way is dense. It’s not the heaviest book in the world, but certainly not the lightest. The content has you do some deep excavation too. When a book feels overwhelming, it’s easy to drop off.

I wanted OVERRIDE! to be different. A book you could travel with, slip into your bag, pick up and put down anytime. Recently, I was at a networking event when a woman pulled OVERRIDE! out of her purse and said, “Look what I was reading on the metro here.” That’s exactly what I hoped for—something that fits into real life.

It was also important for me to create a book which had a structure that allowed creative freedom. Not only do we have limited hours in the day, we have brains that function differently. OVERRIDE! encourages breaking the rules, experimenting with different approaches, and finding what works for you. I’ve loved hearing from readers that are intentionally going through it slowly. There are multiple ways forward.

I want the reader to have agency in the change they want in the world. No prescribed steps—just invitations to explore. Write your own permission slip. Flip to any page on any day to receive a message/reminder you may need to hear, or read it straight through. OVERRIDE! invites playfulness, drop-in engagement, and the idea that there’s no “behind.” You can start anywhere, anytime. (In creating a shorter, easier to digest book, it also makes re-reads for reinforcement more accessible.)

While The Artist’s Way is highly introspective, OVERRIDE! encourages creative action and interaction with the world. The focus is on staying open, trying, and doing (not just thinking about it). The entirety of part three is focused on taking action and getting out of our head so we can show up in the world in a way that feels true to us.

I wanted to be accessible, and invite in a range of tools that readers can experiment with, as well as invite a sense of play. It’s not about doing it all, or doing anything perfectly. I didn’t want OVERRIDE! to feel like school. In fact, I want people to undo so much of how they learned in school, and question how things have always been done.

One of the biggest things The Artist’s Way doesn’t address? Privilege and societal programming.

So many of our creative blocks aren’t just personal—they come from the messaging we’ve received since childhood and the world around us. From school, family expectations, media representation—these all shape what we think is “possible” for us.

While I firmly believe everyone is creative, creativity (of even doing “self work”) isn’t equally accessible to all. A bookseller once told me she never felt like The Artist’s Way was “for her” because she didn’t grow up with means. That hit me. Cameron assumes everyone can carve out time for morning pages or artist dates, but not everyone has that luxury. This isn’t limited to financial means. Parents and caregivers have responsibilities that pull their time, energy, and attention. We are all human.

This isn’t about shaming privilege—it’s about naming it so we can break free from limiting beliefs we’ve inherited that inform the actions we take—or don’t take. Once we see these as constructs, we don’t have to hold them as truth. And that changes everything. Acknowledging what is at play is part of our liberation. It can be a complete game changer when this becomes apparent, as if to free us. If we miss a day of morning pages, we’ll still be OK.

This isn’t a post to shun or dump on a book that has changed millions of lives. It’s a reminder that there are always OTHER WAYS forward. It’s an invitation to ask more questions.

Times change. We evolve. Creativity isn’t a one-size-fits-all process. Life certainly isn’t. Maybe OVERRIDE! can be the next-generation The Artist’s Way.

Just like OVERRIDE!, The Artist’s Way started as a self-published book. We never know where pathways may take us…

It’s a bold ask. But then again, so was The Artist’s Way when it first began.


I’m curious. Have you read The Artist’s Way? Tell me in the comments.

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🌟 YOU’RE INVITED! 🌟

I hope you join me this Sunday, March 2nd for a mini workshop in community, my latest idea I’m playing around with, and the one is free to join. We’ll gather on Zoom at 7pm CET (Paris), 1pm EST (NYC), 9am PST, (that’s 9am Monday in AEDT (Sydney)). (Be sure to add it to your calendar!) It will run between 30min-1 hour.

We’ll be working through the first banana map exercise in the book, so you’ll need to 🍌BRING A BANANA🍌 and a ballpoint pen! (No banana? Grab anything with a peel, or something from the recycling bin. Anything non-traditional to map on works, although bananas will give you the maximum experience.)

UPDATE: Learn more about the workshop series here + subscribe to receive access to the Zoom room each month.

I will be recording the session, but TBD if I’ll be posting the replay or not. As this is an early prototype and I’m not giving you a lot of notice, I want to see how it goes before over promising. (When you buy the book, there’s access to a pre-recorded workshop in the back for those who are interested.)

Haven’t read the OVERRIDE!? 📓 Come anyway! (You can pick up a copy here if you do want one!). Curious minds are welcome. Have friends who are curious to join? Tell them to subscribe to this Substack!