Making a Case for Morning Pages

How they’ve changed everything for me

Hi, friend! Happy Friday 🌸

Spring Cleaning is a free newsletter delivered straight to you (or the Substack app) where I share personal essays and reflections on growing up, making meaning, and discovering who I am as an adult. I hope that it brings joy and mini moments of reflection to your day. If my writing resonates with you, please share it with your loved ones! 💌

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Late last year I started The Artist’s Way by Julia Cameron, a 1993 book (book doesn’t feel like the right word - maybe more of an interactive course in book form) on creative recovery. I’d heard of the book before as I’m always seeking out new avenues for self-discovery, but never considered it for myself. The name really threw me. Before this year, I would never describe myself as an artist. To be honest, I probably still wouldn’t - if asked today, I’d likely dance around the subject and describe myself as someone who likes to create art; to explore and express my inner world through different mediums. I’m still figuring it out. I’ve always been interested in artistic expression and have dabbled in various creative hobbies like choir, theater, dance, painting, and pottery. However, I never felt “good” enough at anything to claim a title: dancer, actress, singer, or artist all felt too serious/pretentious.

I finished The Artist’s Way last month and could write a whole post around my experience with the book. As cheesy as it sounds, I feel like a different person than when I started in December - and I like her a lot! But that’s not what today is about. I wanted to share one small practice I took from The Artist’s Way that’s made a profound impact on my life, called the Morning Pages. Cameron explains it best:

From the mouth of JC herself

Just three pages. Every single day. For 12 weeks. Not too bad, right? 

Unsurprisingly, it’s not as easy as it seems (at least not for me). During my first week of Morning Pages, I was eager to start my journey and excited to see the results. I sprung out of bed in the morning and got right to work, diligently writing my three pages and ignoring the cramping in my hand. I am always energized by the promise of a new project, but after a week, that eagerness can quickly fade. This experiment was no different and after the first week, I started dreading the Morning Pages. Most days I did not want to write; I wanted to walk around my neighborhood, drink coffee, and scroll TikTok. Even exercise sounded better than writing three pages… However, I still did it almost every single day for four months (yes, the course took me four months instead of three and yes, I missed a few days because of life being life). 

Many days, my pages started off with something like this: “I don’t want to write. I have nothing to say. I don’t think this is working for me. I wish I was back in bed and I want to check my phone.” After my initial half page of ranting, things started to flow. Three pages does not come easily to me, and I needed to constantly dive inward to fill up space. This led me into corners of my mind that I rarely explore: to insights about my relationships, dreams, and purpose; to challenges I notice my community grappling with (many of these became Substack posts); and, to recognizing and honoring my intuition (spoiler: it’s always right). I even outlined chapters for a future book during one particularly inspired morning of writing. Shocking! 

By the end of my Morning Pages, I always find myself lighter, clearer, energized, and inspired. I feel really damn good. All that said… I’ve now filled up two Moleskine notebooks with writing and it’s still hard for me to sit down and start each morning. It reminds me of my relationship with exercise. Even though I’ve been exercising in the morning for almost 10 years, I dread it most days. A decade of data points has shown me that 100% of the time, I feel better on the other side. So far, morning writing feels the same. I’m not sure if it will get easier over time (I really hope so…), but right now I’m committing to doing one small thing that brings me closer to the best version of myself. 

Other positives that I’ve noticed

Phoneless mornings - My new morning routine no longer involves my phone for the first 30-45 minutes of my day. I get up and within 5 minutes I’m usually writing. It’s game changing. I love starting my day without my phone (this is also made possible by using a real alarm clock vs. my phone alarm) and have noticed a significant decrease in my stress levels in the morning. I’m never going back! Highly recommend.

Commitment to creativity - My normal routines are centered around health, food, and self-care - never creativity or play. Committing to my Morning Pages as a daily ritual has sparked new and unexpected creative interests like knitting, scrapbooking, painting, and vocal lessons. I have my writing practice to thank for continuing nurturing my creative consciousness and making space for me to uncover new parts of myself. 

Newfound love for pens - I’m now obsessed with pens. This is my favorite.

I’m going to try to continue my Morning Pages practice for as long as it serves me. The real challenge will be finding a place to store all my notebooks in my one-bedroom apartment!

Do you have any daily practices that help you get quiet with yourself, reflect, or that just make you happy? I want to know! If you’re interested in how Morning Pages would work in your life, I’d suggest that you give it a try even if it feels a bit intimidating. Please let me know how it goes 🤠

Sparking Joy This Week

💐Arranging flowers - Pretending to be a florist is fun. I have no idea what I’m doing design-wise but every week I go to Trader Joe’s, buy 4-5 different flowers, set up newspaper in my kitchen, and arrange into different bouquets. Voila!

🍓My new phone case - Is this not the cutest thing you’ve ever seen? It makes me happy when I pick up my phone 100x per day.

☕️Cold brew - The start of cold brew season is just the best. I like to sit outside in the sun for a few minutes and drink my coffee. Best way to start the day.

🌲Planning trips - I just planned a trip to Vermont for later this year! Hello, trees!

What I’m loving, reading, and listening to

I just read “The War at Stanford” from The Atlantic. I’m almost 10 years out of college (how the hell did that happen?!) and hearing about what’s happening on campuses of elite universities rattled me. However, this was a great read and I’d recommend it to anyone that’s curious about Gen Z and/or current events. Currently reading Daring Greatly by Brené Brown, which I got as a gift a few months ago. 

I recently listened to “How to Have the Hardest Conversations – in Marriage, Politics, and Life” on the Plain English with Derek Thompson podcast. This should be required listening for everyone. I’m very excited for Maggie Rogers’ album Don’t Forget Me, which comes out today. I will be listening ASAP. Her first album, Heard It In A Past Life, was my 2019 soundtrack.

Not watching anything! Should I?

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Thank you so much for being here and reading today’s post. I appreciate you so much. Spring is here! 🌸 x