Daily Pages

This weekend, I finally started doing Daily Pages.

If you’ve never heard of them, they’re one of the core practices from The Artist’s Way by Julia Cameron. It’s designed as a 12-week program to help artists, writers, and anyone who feels creatively stuck reconnect with their creativity. The two pillars of the program are deceptively simple: write Daily Pages every morning and take yourself on a weekly Artist Date.

I read the book several months ago.

And if I’m being honest? I wasn’t convinced.

I remember thinking, I don’t need this. I already have ideas. I’m inspired. I write consistently. Why would I spend time journaling when I could be working?

Then summer happened.

With two kids home all day, my writing routine disappeared overnight. Instead of uninterrupted stretches of work, my days became a patchwork of ten minutes here, fifteen minutes there. Every time I wasn’t writing, I felt guilty. Every time I did have a spare moment, I wasted half of it trying to figure out where to start.

I wasn’t lacking motivation.

I was carrying around so much mental clutter that I couldn’t use the little bits of time I actually had.

Enter Daily Pages.

My goal for the rest of the summer is simple: before I do anything else, I sit down and write my three pages.

So what exactly are Daily Pages?

They’re three handwritten pages of completely unfiltered thoughts. Not a diary. Not beautiful prose. Not something anyone else will ever read.

Just a brain dump.

You complain. You repeat yourself. You make grocery lists. You brainstorm a scene. You write “I have nothing to write” fifty times if that’s all that’s there. There are no rules beyond showing up and filling the pages.

The purpose isn’t to produce anything worth keeping.

It’s to empty your mind of everything that’s competing for your attention so your creativity has room to breathe.

I’m only on day three, but I’m already noticing something interesting.

The constant anxiety that’s been building from not getting enough work done has started to fade. My mind feels quieter. More focused.

Normally, when the kids are at school, I make an action list for the day. During the school year, that list is full of writing goals, edits, and deadlines.

This summer?

It’s mostly about the kids. Activities. Camps. Snacks. Laundry. Playdates.

Somewhere along the way, I stopped putting myself on the list.

Daily Pages have become a small reminder that my creative life still matters (even in a season when it doesn’t get the majority of my time).

They aren’t replacing my writing.

They’re making it easier to return to it.

We’ll see how I feel after a few weeks, but for the first time all summer, I feel like I have a path back to my work instead of just feeling guilty that I’m not doing enough.

If you with me, give it a try. Write those three pages a day and see if you notice a change.