Tickling Salmon

This is the great-grandmother of all artistic inspiration books. First published in 1992, it outlines basic practices that will help you to clear your creative blocks and create a more fulfilling artistic life.

You can (and should) read the book to get all the details, but Julia Cameron proposes two simple practices that will transform your creative life.

First, morning pages (aka journaling). Write three pages a day, every day, as close to when you wake up as is possible. Don’t think, don’t analyze, don’t plan… just write. This will help clear your mind of clutter so that you can move into the day with fewer distractions, and will often lead you to sudden insights about your art and life.

Second, artists dates. Once a week, go out by yourself (no friends, no family) and do something that interests you. One time it might be a museum show, another time it might be a simple walk in the woods. The idea here is that, whatever it is, it should be something you genuinely want to do. Don’t go to the exhibit that everybody tells you is crucial to your career, and don’t go to the library to research your next project — this is a time to feed your soul, not your mind.

As I wrote earlier, these two practices are just the tip of the iceberg. Go read the book to get the full story.

Table of Contents

• Spiritual Electricity
• The Basic Tools
• Week 1: Recovering a Sense of Safety
• Week 2: Recovering a Sense of Identity
• Week 3: Recovering a Sense of Power
• Week 4: Recovering a Sense of Integrity
• Week 5: Recovering a Sense of Possibility
• Week 6: Recovering a Sense of Abundance
• Week 7: Recovering a Sense of Connection
• Week 8: Recovering a Sense of Strength
• Week 9: Recovering a Sense of Compassion
• Week 10: Recovering a Sense of Self-Protection
• Week 11: Recovering a Sense of Autonomy
• Week 12: Recovering a Sense of Faith
• Epilogue
• Appendix
• Reading List