More on the morning pages

A lot of morning pages really involves preparing the body, priming the mind. If you listened to Julia's video talk on the morning pages, you'll notice she said that the simple act of dumping negativity on the page clears the mind so they don't eddy through your mind for the rest of the day. I agree with that completely.

Morning pages is a great clearing exercise, but it really does more than that. See, what about days when you feel really clear, and the mind is silent? Do you skip the pages? Julia's structure is three pages (not back-to-back), so what about those days when there's just too much to write about. Can you do four? Five?

Julia herself admitted to writing beyond three pages at certain moments of her life when she needed more guidance than usual, when the looming problem just overshadowed her sense of peace and serenity. But she has also always advised sticking to three pages.

She also advises writing them by hand. Not using your smartphone or iPad or keyboard, but by hand. I do them by hand, but I won't stop you if you would rather use your computer. Each has its own separate benefits. Typewriting is faster, but sometimes, if you misspell a word, MS Word, or whatever software you use, will alert you via a squiggly red line. Now the point of the morning pages is not to care about grammar or spelling. The point is just to let it all out, and write while the inner editor is still too groggy to comment.

I ask you to experiment with the morning pages. They are an effective form of meditation. It forces you to be honest. If you gripe on continually for several days for three pages each on a particular person or situation, somehow the pages have a way of illuminating a perfect solution for you. So the morning pages have a way of changing one's life, three pages at a time. And often the advice you get from the morning pages are exactly what you need to do, even though they seem sometimes a bit too far-fetched or off the wall.

Tell me what you think of the morning pages. Are you willing to try writing them? Have you been writing them but fallen out of habit? Try it for twenty-one days. Set your alarm clock a little earlier than usual so you won't be late for work or school, then write three pages, then stop. take a breath, and then go on with your day.

Every day preparation tools #1: Morning pages

I want to start a series talking about some preparatory exercises that I aim to do every day that help my acting. Notice that I say I aim to do them daily. I don't. To do them daily and regularly is my ideal. If I fail to do them, I feel bad, out of place, but I've learnt not to berate myself when I fail to do my morning pages. As Natalie Goldberg sagely said, "No one lives to her full potential."

Julia Cameron talks about her version of the morning pages here. For her, it's three pages, stream-of-consciousness, first thing in the morning. Then the next morning, write another three. No one is supposed to read your pages. They are supposed to be a psychological safe place for you to write freely about anything and everything going through your head as soon as you wake up. Your complaints about your boss, your worries about your spouse or child, your joy at life's surprises, everything has a place within the space of three pages.

Do the morning pages whether you feel like it or not, whether you think they're working for you or not, whether you love them or not. Just get up, reach for your pen and notebook, and write. Write on bond paper size (8 1/2 by 11) or a large notebook. Wake up earlier if you have to, or else you'll have to catch up and write during lunch hour or on the commute. But first thing in the morning is best.

Do not reread your morning pages, at least for two months. Try this exercise. I'll continue to write more about the morning pages on succeeding posts.