Really liked this post. Thank you for sharing your writing practices and how each one helps you feeling better throughout your days. I think I might try Morning Pages too. It sounds like something that would help my writing practice and also me personally.
Like you Liza I've experimented on and off with morning pages but it's never really taken root - 3 pages every day seems like a huge commitment! But I may revisit again with your good advice that it might be just 1 page or written in the evening instead. Also so glad I learned about the Pennebaker Method via Lindsay! Writing about painful things for 5-10 minutes and then ripping the words up is good medicine.
Hi Ellen, I get you on the 3 pages being a huge commitment. In my January post I wrote about MTO goal setting that I discovered thanks to Oliver Burkeman newsletter - you think of your goals in a way of Minimum, Target and Outrage (MTO) - so, if you do 1 page everyday, maybe that is a minimum, and outrage would be to do 3 pages everyday in the morning and anything in between the two would be target. That way you feel better about not hitting it out of the park every single time.
Hi Ellen, just realised I had called you Nicola, I edited it now. Was responding to your comment and that of Nicola, one after the other...scattered brain...sorry about that.
I loved reading this thoughtful reflection on the intersection of writing and our wellbeing, Liza. Writing has been such an important part of my own recovery from trauma. To be honest, I'm not sure I would have made it through some incredibly painful chapters without it.
It's been such a rewarding experience to guide the Life after Trauma community through The Artist's Way, and it's only been possible because folks like you show up to read and share your experiences every week. I really appreciate that Liza, and am so glad that it's been useful for you.
P.S. I think I mentioned that I keep a 'nice things people say about my work' file at some point over the last few months? I'm gonna screengrab some of your kind words to add to the file now. Thank you my friend 💕
Always glad to read a post from you. Been thinking about morning pages but simply couldn't get started, ever - the thought of having to do 3 pages is mortifying. Perhaps starting with just one might work. But I like the appreciation and gratitude practice a lot. Have been doing something similar - or trying to (and then I berate myself when I skip a few days). In this crazy world looking out for the good things and crumbs of joy is important, as is being grateful.
Hvala, Mojca. 3 pages seem scarier than they really are and there are notebooks that have fewer lines, you could start with one like that. And I agree, crumbs of joy are important. Reminds me of the Ross Gay's Book of delights that I learned about from you a few years ago.
So happy to see you posting, Liza! This is what I want to say: I doubt the writing you produced before age 25 was inconsequential. I doubt you’ve ever been inconsequential in your entire life. xoxo
Thank you for this wonderful post, Liza. So timely and helpful for me. Minutes before reading it, I had restarted a gratitude practice to help soothe my overthinking mind. This has now become a ‘Gratitude and Appreciation’ practice which I’m going to do nightly (as opposed to my Morning Pages which mostly I do first-thing). 🙏🏼
Wonderful to read this, Nicola. I also do my gratitude and appreciating just before sleeping. And sometimes I am really just grateful for not being dead :-) and other times, it is something big. It is surprisingly soothing.
I chanced upon a notebook of mine from 2016. One should never use these as bedtime reading. I was going through a difficult time then. One (long) entry sounded exactly like my internal monologue at the moment - almost word for word. Boy, was I pissed off about that! So much for the journey! The upside is that I did get through 2016, I am still here, and life is not nearly as hard as it was then. After 24 hours of mulling over that, I have adopted a positive outlook, and deal with these evidently persistent stumbling blocks I have. Thanks for this post.
Oh, I hear you Allison, I really do. We do often ruminate about the same issues, and also, we get through them, and life does get better, and maybe next time we stumble upon them ol' blocks we know a slightly better way of getting over them.
Really liked this post. Thank you for sharing your writing practices and how each one helps you feeling better throughout your days. I think I might try Morning Pages too. It sounds like something that would help my writing practice and also me personally.
Thank you for reading, Raquel. I look forward to reading your writing that will come from the inspiration that morning pages practice creates.
Like you Liza I've experimented on and off with morning pages but it's never really taken root - 3 pages every day seems like a huge commitment! But I may revisit again with your good advice that it might be just 1 page or written in the evening instead. Also so glad I learned about the Pennebaker Method via Lindsay! Writing about painful things for 5-10 minutes and then ripping the words up is good medicine.
Hi Ellen, I get you on the 3 pages being a huge commitment. In my January post I wrote about MTO goal setting that I discovered thanks to Oliver Burkeman newsletter - you think of your goals in a way of Minimum, Target and Outrage (MTO) - so, if you do 1 page everyday, maybe that is a minimum, and outrage would be to do 3 pages everyday in the morning and anything in between the two would be target. That way you feel better about not hitting it out of the park every single time.
Hi Ellen, just realised I had called you Nicola, I edited it now. Was responding to your comment and that of Nicola, one after the other...scattered brain...sorry about that.
Don’t worry Liza, I’ve been there too - it’s easily done! I’ve also been known to call my children by the wrong name 😬😂
I loved reading this thoughtful reflection on the intersection of writing and our wellbeing, Liza. Writing has been such an important part of my own recovery from trauma. To be honest, I'm not sure I would have made it through some incredibly painful chapters without it.
It's been such a rewarding experience to guide the Life after Trauma community through The Artist's Way, and it's only been possible because folks like you show up to read and share your experiences every week. I really appreciate that Liza, and am so glad that it's been useful for you.
P.S. I think I mentioned that I keep a 'nice things people say about my work' file at some point over the last few months? I'm gonna screengrab some of your kind words to add to the file now. Thank you my friend 💕
Thank you for your comment Clare, and I am happy to know that my comments will go into your "nice things people say about your work" file.
💕💕
Always glad to read a post from you. Been thinking about morning pages but simply couldn't get started, ever - the thought of having to do 3 pages is mortifying. Perhaps starting with just one might work. But I like the appreciation and gratitude practice a lot. Have been doing something similar - or trying to (and then I berate myself when I skip a few days). In this crazy world looking out for the good things and crumbs of joy is important, as is being grateful.
Hvala, Mojca. 3 pages seem scarier than they really are and there are notebooks that have fewer lines, you could start with one like that. And I agree, crumbs of joy are important. Reminds me of the Ross Gay's Book of delights that I learned about from you a few years ago.
So happy to see you posting, Liza! This is what I want to say: I doubt the writing you produced before age 25 was inconsequential. I doubt you’ve ever been inconsequential in your entire life. xoxo
Thank you, Nan. For reading and for your words.
Thank you for this wonderful post, Liza. So timely and helpful for me. Minutes before reading it, I had restarted a gratitude practice to help soothe my overthinking mind. This has now become a ‘Gratitude and Appreciation’ practice which I’m going to do nightly (as opposed to my Morning Pages which mostly I do first-thing). 🙏🏼
Wonderful to read this, Nicola. I also do my gratitude and appreciating just before sleeping. And sometimes I am really just grateful for not being dead :-) and other times, it is something big. It is surprisingly soothing.
I definitely felt a lot more settled last night for starting the practice.
I chanced upon a notebook of mine from 2016. One should never use these as bedtime reading. I was going through a difficult time then. One (long) entry sounded exactly like my internal monologue at the moment - almost word for word. Boy, was I pissed off about that! So much for the journey! The upside is that I did get through 2016, I am still here, and life is not nearly as hard as it was then. After 24 hours of mulling over that, I have adopted a positive outlook, and deal with these evidently persistent stumbling blocks I have. Thanks for this post.
Oh, I hear you Allison, I really do. We do often ruminate about the same issues, and also, we get through them, and life does get better, and maybe next time we stumble upon them ol' blocks we know a slightly better way of getting over them.