Julia Cameron used to depend on alcohol and drugs to drive her art. When her first film God’s Will didn’t get the critical reception she hoped for, her creativity dried up. She knew something had to change. This is how The Artist’s Way was born…

The Artist’s Way is essentially a workbook: a 12-week course filled with exercises, positive affirmations (in case you lose momentum), and introspective questions designed to recover your artistic impulse. It has sold over 4m copies since its publication in 1992.

OK, so what are these techniques that the likes of Alicia Keys, Tim Ferriss, and Elizabeth Gilbert swear by? The first step is to uncover your core negative beliefs and understand how they come about.

Let’s say you don’t even consider yourself to be a creative person. It’s something that only “arty types” do, right? Disqualifying yourself from creative pursuits is a telltale sign that you really are a creative person – but that artistic nature has been blocked from coming out…

A common example is what Cameron calls a “shadow artist”: someone who experiences art vicariously through the talents of others, e.g. managers, publicists, patrons. As Cameron puts it, shadow artists gravitate to their rightful tribe but cannot yet claim their birthright.

The Artist’s Way teaches people all of all experience levels to understand and harness the power nature of creativity consistently. But before going any further, it’s worth noting that it is a spiritual book. If you’re atheist, this doesn’t have to be a deal-breaker…

Cameron makes it clear that no religious belief is necessary to complete the exercises. The word “God” can be swapped for “good orderly direction” or flow, since all she’s referring to is a creative energy. “Universe”, “higher power”, “source” are shorthand for the same thing.

A basic creative block is “core negatives”: untrue but deeply ingrained thought patterns (e.g. “I’m not good enough”). Another form is “blurts”: the objections your inner critic spits out (e.g. “But you’ll embarrass myself”). Both of these gradually build a massive mental dam.

Fears mean that you are in a state of despair. They set off a never-ending cycle of judging and self-hate, keeping you in stagnancy instead of following the artist’s way.

So how do you overcome these fears and recover a sense of artistic freedom? The tools of change that Cameron offers have one simple thing in common: the antidote of action.