It’s summer, and time to replenish, revive and restore. Time to reflect, dive in, immerse oneself in the sounds, sights, sensations of the season. One of my favourite summer pastimes is reading. Voraciously. Novels (Favourite Daughter). Memoirs (How to survive a bear attack). Non-fiction (The Audacity of Relevance).* And one book that caught my attention recently is The Book of Alchemy, which was featured on a CBC special interview with some independent Canadian bookstore owners, who chose it as one of their picks.
I love to write as well as read, and summer affords me some time and space to do that more, well, spaciously. The Book of Alchemy is a book about inspiration for writing, for creativity. There are many other authors who have covered this topic, probably most famously (and also previously referenced in Singing and Self) Julia Cameron (The Artist’s Way). But this book uses daily writing–a 100-day challenge–to kickstart a writing/journaling habit in the quest for greater creativity and access to same.
In my own creative life and process, journal writing has been an important touchstone. It’s helped me through sticky situations in both life and art, as well as being a dumping ground for all the detritus that gets in my way as a creative being. Since being an artist and singer is (I believe), first and foremost, an excavation of the self, this provides a welcome conduit to the alchemy that is the Creative Process. So, if you want to spend some early morning (or whatever time of day suits you, but I find getting this done early, even first thing, is a game changer) contemplative and playful time with these daily prompts, join me in this 100-day challenge. I dare ya! (And I’m on Day 7 so far, just so you know how deep into it I am at this point).
If you choose to partake, please reach out to me through my website contact form! I’d love to hear from you and even compare notes. Game on! Let’s see if it doesn’t spur us on to ever greater and more creative acts!
*All of the books cited are recent publications. The Alex Sarian book, The Audacity of Relevance, was published in 2024. All the rest, including Book of Alchemy, are 2025 publications. Enjoy!