Home Discussion Topics Dictionary Almanac

Signup Login

Julia Cameron

Overview

For the British photographer, see Julia Margaret Cameron
Julia Margaret Cameron
Julia Margaret Camer

Discussion

Ask a question about 'Julia Cameron'

Start a new discussion about 'Julia Cameron'

Answer questions from other users

Full Discussion Forum

Quotations

Nothing dies harder than a bad idea. And few ideas are worse than the ones we have about art.

Anger is meant to be acted on. It is not meant to be acted out. Anger points the direction. We are meant to use anger as fuel to take the actions we need to move where our anger points us. With a little thought, we can usually translate the message that our anger is sending us.

I have learned, as a rule of thumb, never to ask whether you can do something. Say, instead, that you are doing it. Then fasten your seat belt. The most remarkable things follow.

Growth is an erratic forward movement: two steps forward, one step back. Remember that and be very gentle with yourself.

Perfectionism is not a quest for the best. It is a pursuit of the worst in ourselves, the part that tells us that nothing we do will ever be good enough — that we should try again.

What we really want to do is what we are really meant to do. When we do what we are meant to do, money comes to us, doors open for us, we feel useful, and the work we do feels like play to us.

Art is not about thinking something up. It is the opposite — getting something down.

Each of us has an inner dream that we can unfold if we will just have the courage to admit what it is. And the faith to trust our own admission. The admitting is often very difficult.

Creativity — like human life itself — begins in darkness. We need to acknowledge this. All too often, we think only in terms of light: "And then the lightbulb went on and I got it!" It is true that insights may come to us as flashes. It is true that some of these flashes may be blinding. It is, however, also true that such bright ideas are preceded by a gestation period that is interior, murky, and completely necessary.

All too often too often we try to push, pull, outline and control our ideas instead of letting them grow organically. The creative process is a process of surrender, not control. Mystery is at the heart of creativity. That, and surprise. :The Right to Write : An Invitation and Initiation into the Writing Life (Tarcher, 1998; ISBN 1-58542-009-3)

Encyclopedia

For the British photographer, see Julia Margaret Cameron
Julia Margaret Cameron
Julia Margaret Cameron was a British photographer. She became known for her portraits of celebrities of the time, and for Arthurian and similar legendary themed pictures....

.

Julia Cameron (born March 4, 1948 in Illinois) is an American teacher
Teacher
In education, a teacher is a person who educates others. A teacher who educates an individual student may also be described as a personal tutor....

, author
Author
An author is defined both as "the person who originates or gives existence to anything" and that authorship determines responsibility for what is created...

, artist
Artist
The definition of an artist is wide-ranging and covers a broad spectrum of activities to do with creating art, practicing the arts and/or demonstrating an art. the worlds best artist is a man named mitchell peter lay who is often loved by the ladies. The common useage in both everyday speech and...

, poet
Poet
A poet is a person who writes poetry. A poet's work can be literal, meaning that his work is derived from a specific event, or metaphorical, meaning that his work can take on many meanings and forms. Poets have existed since antiquity, in nearly all languages, and have produced works that vary...

, playwright
Playwright
A playwright, also known as a dramatist, is a person who writes dramatic literature or drama. These works are usually written to be performed in front of a live audience by actors...

, novelist, filmmaker, composer
Composer
A composer is a person who creates music, usually by musical notation, for interpretation and performance. The level of distinction between composers and other musicians varies, which affects issues such as copyright and the deference given to individual interpretations of a particular piece of...

, and journalist
Journalist
A journalist is a person who practises journalism, the gathering and dissemination of information about current events, trends, issues, and people while striving for viewpoints that are not biased.Reporters are one type of journalist...

. She is perhaps most famous for her book The Artist's Way
The Artist's Way
Starting as a collection of tips and hints from different artists and authors, The Artist's Way was collected into a single book and published by Julia Cameron as a set of helpfulmethods for maximizing the creativity and productivity of artists....

(1992). She also has written many other non-fiction works, short stories, and essays as well as novels, plays, musicals, and screenplays.

Biography

Julia Cameron was born and raised in a Chicago suburb, and grew up Catholic
Catholic
The word Catholic is derived from the Greek adjective , meaning "universal". In the context of Christian ecclesiology, it has a rich history and several usages. For some, the term "Catholic Church" refers to the church in full communion with the Bishop of Rome, made up of the Latin Rite and the 22...

. She started college at Georgetown University
Georgetown University
Georgetown University is a Jesuit private university located in Georgetown, Washington, D.C. Father John Carroll founded the school in 1789, though its roots extend back to 1634. While the school struggled financially in its early years, Georgetown expanded into a branched university after the...

, then transferred to Fordham
Fordham University
Fordham University is a private university in the United States, with three campuses located in and around New York City. It was founded by the Roman Catholic Diocese of New York in 1841 as St...

. She started her journalism
Journalism
Journalism is the craft of conveying news, descriptive material and comment via a widening spectrum of media. These include newspapers, magazines, radio and television, the internet and even, more recently, the mobile phone...

career at the Washington Post, then moved on to Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone is a United States-based magazine devoted to music, politics, and popular culture that is published every two weeks. Rolling Stone was founded in San Francisco in 1967 by Jann Wenner and music critic Ralph J. Gleason.The magazine was named after the 1948 Muddy Waters song of the same...

.

She met Martin Scorsese
Martin Scorsese
Martin Marcantonio Luciano Scorsese is an American film director, screenwriter, producer, actor, and film historian. He is the founder of the World Cinema Foundation, a recipient of the AFI Life Achievement Award for his contributions to the cinema and has won awards from the Oscars, Golden Globe,...

when interviewing him for Rolling Stone. They married in 1975 and divorced in 1977; Cameron was Scorsese's second wife. They have one daughter, Domenica Cameron-Scorsese, born in 1976. Cameron and Scorsese collaborated on three films. Cameron's film, God's Will, is based on the Cameron-Scorsese marriage and divorce, portraying a divorced, self-centered show business couple who die unexpectedly and end up fighting in heaven over what will happen to their daughter.

A review of Cameron's memoir Floor Sample states that Cameron "reveals the dark side of her privileged life: her descent into alcoholic blackouts and drug-induced paranoia as well as descriptions of her bouts with psychosis." In 1978, reaching a point in her life when writing and drinking could no longer coexist, Cameron stopped the drugs and alcohol, and began teaching creative unblocking, which propelled her to fame after she published the book based on her teachings, The Artist's Way. She states creativity is an authentic spiritual path.

Cameron has taught filmmamking, creative unblocking, and writing. She has taught at The Smithsonian, Esalen, the Omega Institute, and the New York Open Center. At Northwestern University
Northwestern University

For the British photographer, see Julia Margaret Cameron
Julia Margaret Cameron
Julia Margaret Cameron was a British photographer. She became known for her portraits of celebrities of the time, and for Arthurian and similar legendary themed pictures....

.

Julia Cameron (born March 4, 1948 in Illinois) is an American teacher
Teacher
In education, a teacher is a person who educates others. A teacher who educates an individual student may also be described as a personal tutor....

, author
Author
An author is defined both as "the person who originates or gives existence to anything" and that authorship determines responsibility for what is created...

, artist
Artist
The definition of an artist is wide-ranging and covers a broad spectrum of activities to do with creating art, practicing the arts and/or demonstrating an art. the worlds best artist is a man named mitchell peter lay who is often loved by the ladies. The common useage in both everyday speech and...

, poet
Poet
A poet is a person who writes poetry. A poet's work can be literal, meaning that his work is derived from a specific event, or metaphorical, meaning that his work can take on many meanings and forms. Poets have existed since antiquity, in nearly all languages, and have produced works that vary...

, playwright
Playwright
A playwright, also known as a dramatist, is a person who writes dramatic literature or drama. These works are usually written to be performed in front of a live audience by actors...

, novelist, filmmaker, composer
Composer
A composer is a person who creates music, usually by musical notation, for interpretation and performance. The level of distinction between composers and other musicians varies, which affects issues such as copyright and the deference given to individual interpretations of a particular piece of...

, and journalist
Journalist
A journalist is a person who practises journalism, the gathering and dissemination of information about current events, trends, issues, and people while striving for viewpoints that are not biased.Reporters are one type of journalist...

. She is perhaps most famous for her book The Artist's Way
The Artist's Way
Starting as a collection of tips and hints from different artists and authors, The Artist's Way was collected into a single book and published by Julia Cameron as a set of helpfulmethods for maximizing the creativity and productivity of artists....

(1992). She also has written many other non-fiction works, short stories, and essays as well as novels, plays, musicals, and screenplays.

Biography

Julia Cameron was born and raised in a Chicago suburb, and grew up Catholic
Catholic
The word Catholic is derived from the Greek adjective , meaning "universal". In the context of Christian ecclesiology, it has a rich history and several usages. For some, the term "Catholic Church" refers to the church in full communion with the Bishop of Rome, made up of the Latin Rite and the 22...

. She started college at Georgetown University
Georgetown University
Georgetown University is a Jesuit private university located in Georgetown, Washington, D.C. Father John Carroll founded the school in 1789, though its roots extend back to 1634. While the school struggled financially in its early years, Georgetown expanded into a branched university after the...

, then transferred to Fordham
Fordham University
Fordham University is a private university in the United States, with three campuses located in and around New York City. It was founded by the Roman Catholic Diocese of New York in 1841 as St...

. She started her journalism
Journalism
Journalism is the craft of conveying news, descriptive material and comment via a widening spectrum of media. These include newspapers, magazines, radio and television, the internet and even, more recently, the mobile phone...

career at the Washington Post, then moved on to Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone is a United States-based magazine devoted to music, politics, and popular culture that is published every two weeks. Rolling Stone was founded in San Francisco in 1967 by Jann Wenner and music critic Ralph J. Gleason.The magazine was named after the 1948 Muddy Waters song of the same...

.

She met Martin Scorsese
Martin Scorsese
Martin Marcantonio Luciano Scorsese is an American film director, screenwriter, producer, actor, and film historian. He is the founder of the World Cinema Foundation, a recipient of the AFI Life Achievement Award for his contributions to the cinema and has won awards from the Oscars, Golden Globe,...

when interviewing him for Rolling Stone. They married in 1975 and divorced in 1977; Cameron was Scorsese's second wife. They have one daughter, Domenica Cameron-Scorsese, born in 1976. Cameron and Scorsese collaborated on three films. Cameron's film, God's Will, is based on the Cameron-Scorsese marriage and divorce, portraying a divorced, self-centered show business couple who die unexpectedly and end up fighting in heaven over what will happen to their daughter.

A review of Cameron's memoir Floor Sample states that Cameron "reveals the dark side of her privileged life: her descent into alcoholic blackouts and drug-induced paranoia as well as descriptions of her bouts with psychosis." In 1978, reaching a point in her life when writing and drinking could no longer coexist, Cameron stopped the drugs and alcohol, and began teaching creative unblocking, which propelled her to fame after she published the book based on her teachings, The Artist's Way. She states creativity is an authentic spiritual path.

Cameron has taught filmmamking, creative unblocking, and writing. She has taught at The Smithsonian, Esalen, the Omega Institute, and the New York Open Center. At Northwestern University
Northwestern University

For the British photographer, see Julia Margaret Cameron
Julia Margaret Cameron
Julia Margaret Cameron was a British photographer. She became known for her portraits of celebrities of the time, and for Arthurian and similar legendary themed pictures....

.

Julia Cameron (born March 4, 1948 in Illinois) is an American teacher
Teacher
In education, a teacher is a person who educates others. A teacher who educates an individual student may also be described as a personal tutor....

, author
Author
An author is defined both as "the person who originates or gives existence to anything" and that authorship determines responsibility for what is created...

, artist
Artist
The definition of an artist is wide-ranging and covers a broad spectrum of activities to do with creating art, practicing the arts and/or demonstrating an art. the worlds best artist is a man named mitchell peter lay who is often loved by the ladies. The common useage in both everyday speech and...

, poet
Poet
A poet is a person who writes poetry. A poet's work can be literal, meaning that his work is derived from a specific event, or metaphorical, meaning that his work can take on many meanings and forms. Poets have existed since antiquity, in nearly all languages, and have produced works that vary...

, playwright
Playwright
A playwright, also known as a dramatist, is a person who writes dramatic literature or drama. These works are usually written to be performed in front of a live audience by actors...

, novelist, filmmaker, composer
Composer
A composer is a person who creates music, usually by musical notation, for interpretation and performance. The level of distinction between composers and other musicians varies, which affects issues such as copyright and the deference given to individual interpretations of a particular piece of...

, and journalist
Journalist
A journalist is a person who practises journalism, the gathering and dissemination of information about current events, trends, issues, and people while striving for viewpoints that are not biased.Reporters are one type of journalist...

. She is perhaps most famous for her book The Artist's Way
The Artist's Way
Starting as a collection of tips and hints from different artists and authors, The Artist's Way was collected into a single book and published by Julia Cameron as a set of helpfulmethods for maximizing the creativity and productivity of artists....

(1992). She also has written many other non-fiction works, short stories, and essays as well as novels, plays, musicals, and screenplays.

Biography

Julia Cameron was born and raised in a Chicago suburb, and grew up Catholic
Catholic
The word Catholic is derived from the Greek adjective , meaning "universal". In the context of Christian ecclesiology, it has a rich history and several usages. For some, the term "Catholic Church" refers to the church in full communion with the Bishop of Rome, made up of the Latin Rite and the 22...

. She started college at Georgetown University
Georgetown University
Georgetown University is a Jesuit private university located in Georgetown, Washington, D.C. Father John Carroll founded the school in 1789, though its roots extend back to 1634. While the school struggled financially in its early years, Georgetown expanded into a branched university after the...

, then transferred to Fordham
Fordham University
Fordham University is a private university in the United States, with three campuses located in and around New York City. It was founded by the Roman Catholic Diocese of New York in 1841 as St...

. She started her journalism
Journalism
Journalism is the craft of conveying news, descriptive material and comment via a widening spectrum of media. These include newspapers, magazines, radio and television, the internet and even, more recently, the mobile phone...

career at the Washington Post, then moved on to Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone is a United States-based magazine devoted to music, politics, and popular culture that is published every two weeks. Rolling Stone was founded in San Francisco in 1967 by Jann Wenner and music critic Ralph J. Gleason.The magazine was named after the 1948 Muddy Waters song of the same...

.

She met Martin Scorsese
Martin Scorsese
Martin Marcantonio Luciano Scorsese is an American film director, screenwriter, producer, actor, and film historian. He is the founder of the World Cinema Foundation, a recipient of the AFI Life Achievement Award for his contributions to the cinema and has won awards from the Oscars, Golden Globe,...

when interviewing him for Rolling Stone. They married in 1975 and divorced in 1977; Cameron was Scorsese's second wife. They have one daughter, Domenica Cameron-Scorsese, born in 1976. Cameron and Scorsese collaborated on three films. Cameron's film, God's Will, is based on the Cameron-Scorsese marriage and divorce, portraying a divorced, self-centered show business couple who die unexpectedly and end up fighting in heaven over what will happen to their daughter.

A review of Cameron's memoir Floor Sample states that Cameron "reveals the dark side of her privileged life: her descent into alcoholic blackouts and drug-induced paranoia as well as descriptions of her bouts with psychosis." In 1978, reaching a point in her life when writing and drinking could no longer coexist, Cameron stopped the drugs and alcohol, and began teaching creative unblocking, which propelled her to fame after she published the book based on her teachings, The Artist's Way. She states creativity is an authentic spiritual path.

Cameron has taught filmmamking, creative unblocking, and writing. She has taught at The Smithsonian, Esalen, the Omega Institute, and the New York Open Center. At Northwestern University
Northwestern University
{{Infobox university|name = Northwestern University|image_name = NU seal.png|motto = Quaecumque sunt vera |mottoeng =Whatsoever things are true |established = 1851|type = Private|calendar = Quarter...

, she was writer in residence for film. In 2008 she taught a class at the New York Open Center, "The Right to Write," named and modeled after one of her bestselling books, which reveals the importance of writing.

Cameron has lived in Los Angeles
Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles is the largest city in the state of California and the second largest in the United States. Often abbreviated as L.A. and nicknamed The City of Angels, Los Angeles has an estimated population of 3.8 million and spans over in Southern California...

, Chicago, Taos
Taos, New Mexico
Taos is a town in Taos County in the north-central region of New Mexico. In New Mexico, a municipality may call itself a village, town, or city . Taos calls itself the "Town of Taos" and was incorporated as such in 1934...

, and Washington D.C., but now lives in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States, and the center of the New York metropolitan area, which is among the most populous urban areas in the world. A leading global city, New York exerts a powerful influence over worldwide commerce, finance, culture, fashion and entertainment...

.

Nonfiction

The Artist's Way Every Day: A Year of Creative Living (Tarcher, 2009)

Prayers to the Great Creator: Prayers and Declarations for a Meaningful Life (Tarcher, 2008)

The Writing Diet: Write Yourself Right-Size (Tarcher, 2007; ISBN 1585425710 )

Floor Sample (Tarcher, 2006; ISBN 1-58542-494-3), a memoir

How to Avoid Making Art (2006; ISBN 1-58542-438-2), illustrated by Elizabeth Cameron

The Sound of Paper (Tarcher, 2004; Hardcover ISBN 1-58542-288-6)

Supplies: A Troubleshooting Guide for Creative Difficulties (Tarcher, 2003; Rev&Updtd edition ISBN 1-58542-212-6)

Walking in this World (Tarcher, 2003; Reprint edition ISBN 1-58542-261-4)

The Artist's Way, 10th Annv edition (Tarcher, 2002; ISBN 1-58542-146-4)

Inspirations: Meditations from The Artist's Way (Tarcher, 2001;ISBN 1-58542-102-2)

God is Dog Spelled Backwards (Tarcher, 2000; ISBN 158542062X)

God is No Laughing Matter (Tarcher, 2000; ISBN 1585420654}

Supplies: A Pilot's Manual for Creative Flight (2000)

The Artist's Date Book (Tarcher, 1999; ISBN 0874776538 ), illustrated by Elizabeth Cameron Evans

Money Drunk Money Sober (Ballantine Wellspring, 1999; ISBN 0345432657)

The Writing Life (Sounds True, 1999; ISBN 1564557251)

Transitions (Tarcher, 1999; ISBN 0-87477-995-2)

The Artist's Way at Work (Pan, 1998; ISBN 0330373196)

Blessings (Tarcher, 1998; ISBN 0-87477-906-5)

The Right to Write: An Invitation and Initiation into the Writing Life (Tarcher, 1998; ISBN 1-58542-009-3)

Heart Steps (Tarcher, 1997; ISBN 0-87477-899-9)

The Vein of Gold (1997; ISBN 0-87477-836-0)

The Artist's Way Morning Pages Journal (Tarcher, 1995; ISBN 0-87477-886-7)

The Money Drunk (1993)

The Artist's Way (1992)

Fiction

Popcorn: Hollywood Stories (Really Great Books, 2000; ISBN 1-893329-12-7)

The Dark Room (Carroll & Graf Pub,1998; ISBN 0-7867-0564-7)

Poetry

This Earth (Sounds True, 1997; ISBN 1564555496)

Prayers for the little ones (Renaissance Books, 1999; ISBN 1580630480)

Prayers to the nature spirits (Renaissance Books, 1999; ISBN 1580630472

The Quiet Animal

External links

{{wikiquote}}

The Artist's Way, Julia Cameron's official web site

Artist's Way At Work web site, by Mark Bryan

{{Persondata
|NAME= Cameron, Julia
|ALTERNATIVE NAMES=
|SHORT DESCRIPTION= American writer
|DATE OF BIRTH= March 4, 1948
|PLACE OF BIRTH= Libertyville, Illinois
Libertyville, Illinois
Libertyville is a northern suburb of Chicago in Lake County, Illinois, United States. It is located 5 miles west of Lake Michigan on the Des Plaines River. The 2000 census population was 20,742; the 2005 estimate was 21,760...

, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

|DATE OF DEATH=
|PLACE OF DEATH=
}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Cameron, Julia}}