10 Journal Prompts for Artists

I’m a big fan of journaling, particularly morning pages as referenced in Julia Cameron’s book The Artist’s Way. Seriously, that book changed my life and my art. I’ve been practicing morning pages for years now, and I credit them with much of my creative success. Here’s what Julia Cameron says about the practice:

“The bedrock tool of a creative recovery is a daily practice called Morning
Pages. Morning Pages are three pages of longhand, stream of consciousness writing,
done first thing in the morning. *There is no wrong way to do Morning Pages*–
they are not high art. They are not even “writing.” They are about
anything and everything that crosses your mind– and they are for your eyes
only. Morning Pages provoke, clarify, comfort, cajole, prioritize and
synchronize the day at hand. Do not over-think Morning Pages: just put
three pages of anything on the page...and then do three more pages tomorrow.”

If you don’t yet have a journaling habit to supplement your art, I’d highly recommend it. Making great art takes introspection. I truly believe your unique art style is always there, buried underneath a lot of insecurities. You just need to do some digging within to uncover it. Sometimes we get so wrapped up in looking at other artists’ work, we forget to ask ourselves the important questions.

Usually, morning pages are easy. Most days, the words just flow. Some days, I’m feeling stuck and need prompts to get started. Usually I’ll make up my own prompts, or Google prompts. Sadly, very few journal prompts on the web relate to artists directly. Today, I’m creating what I wished existed - list of prompts specifically designed to help artists. Below are some prompts to get you started. These are just 10 of my favorites from my guide 100 Journaling Prompts for Artists. I hope these questions help you grow as an artist as much as they’ve helped me. It can be helpful to revisit these prompts as you evolve over time.

Happy Journaling!