This week was all about recovering a sense of integrity through what Julia Cameron calls a "reading deprivation."
Today, this means more than just books—it can be a detox from social media, YouTube, podcasts, and mindless scrolling.
I wasn’t 100% strict and a couple of videos about upcoming UFC fights slipped through out of boredom. The goal was to remove external noise to uncover what thoughts remained without constant input.
Cameron warns that reading deprivation can make you irritable, and she was right. Working from home by myself made it uncomfortable at times, but sitting with that discomfort was the entire point.
We’re conditioned to fill every empty moment with quick entertainment, and true silence feels unnatural. But once I leaned into it, I realised just how much passive consumption had been dulling my creative instincts.
"Our uniqueness is overshadowed by different manifestations of resistance."
Boredom, frustration, and restlessness weren’t problems to fix—they were signs of my mind detoxing from external input. Once I sat with them, I found that new ideas started emerging and old ones no longer held weight.
One of the suggestions in the Week 4 chapter was to purge outdated versions of yourself—usually through a wardrobe cleanout. Since I regularly declutter my clothes, I took a digital approach instead.
I consolidated years of scattered notes from Apple Notes, Evernote, Bear and Notion. Deleting irrelevant ideas, refining those that still excite me, and structuring my digital workspace for future use.
Morning Pages & Internal Family Systems
A fascinating connection I made this week was discovering the Internal Family Systems (IFS) therapy framework on The Artist’s Way subreddit.
IFS suggests that our mind isn’t just one singular voice—it’s made up of different “parts,” each playing a role in our inner conflicts and dialogue.
At the centre of it all is the Self—the calm, curious, and compassionate core of who we are. But often, our parts take over to protect us from discomfort:
The Protector – The perfectionist, the overthinker, the people-pleaser trying to control everything.
The Firefighter – The impulsive part that seeks distractions like social media, food, or TV to numb discomfort.
The Exile – The hidden, wounded part carrying shame, guilt, or past fears.
Adding this tool during the reading deprivation week made these voices really apparent.
Now, during Morning Pages I have started identifying which part is speaking whenever I encounter my stream-of-consciousness tip towards doubt or resistance.
"This is the Protector trying to control the outcome because it wants to X"
"This is the Firefighter distracting me from the discomfort of doing Y."
"This is the Exile trying to avoid failure or reliving Z."
Noticing these voices in real-time, validating their needs and separating them from my true Self has been a game-changer for my self-awareness and creative clarity.
Artist Date
This week, instead of exploring a new place, I revisited last week’s Artist Date. I spent Saturday editing the developed 35mm photos from the street photography walk, so I could improve my colour correction and storytelling skills.
This reinforced that an Artist Date doesn’t have to be about consuming creativity. Sometimes, it’s about engaging more deeply with your own.
Weekly Tasks
Time Travel to Age 80
One of the week’s exercises was to write a letter from my 80-year-old self to my current self. This was easily the most impactful task so far.
Here’s a shortened version of what I wrote:
You're on the right track.
You know deep down when you are and aren’t, so listen to that intuition more—it guides you more than you realise.
You’ve spent and will spend a lot of time second-guessing yourself, but you won’t get to where I am if you let that creep into your bigger goals and aspirations.
I know you feel overwhelmed by all the sparks of opportunity in the world and how you fit within them, but trust me—there is time. I have 30 projects I’d be passionate about pursuing, and my hands are still full at 80. So, stop thinking in terms of how little time you have left and start treating your energy and curiosity as a blessing.
After 50 years of building yourself, your brand, your knowledge, and your integrity, I can tell you it has served me well—I’m reaping the benefits every day. So don’t stop working on that.
Keep sharing your values and insights. Keep your body strong. Maintain a sustainable schedule of exercise, diet, and sleep—no amount of work, professional or creative, will fix that problem for you.
Stand firm in your beliefs, passions, and convictions, but never be afraid to admit when you’re wrong. Always seek the truth.
Stay sharp. Keep learning, reading, playing, questioning, and writing especially—you enjoy it in so many formats, so make sure it’s a priority in how you learn, communicate, and relax.
Keep digging into your psyche and philosophies, stay on top of your journaling and self-reflection, and find more peace and calm in how you think about and operate in the world.
And lastly—keep the money moving to where it has the best leverage: healthy food, automation, investments, creative endeavors, and adventure.
This exercise put everything into perspective. The things I envision for my future self are completely within my grasp and control today. The key is to stay curious, disciplined, and open to lifelong learning.
My Ideal Creative Space
Another task asked me to describe my ideal environment.
For me, that would be a studio/library/office overlooking my backyard and property, with mountains in the distance. It would be a couple of hours from the city, but with everything I need. Lots of natural light, wood furniture, industrial elements, art, and plants.
I’ll be back next week with another update. You can also follow along with video updates on YouTube.
Thanks for reading! If you've worked through The Artist's Way yourself or are thinking about starting, I'd love to hear about your experiences in the comments below.
Keep going gang,
Drew Trott
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