The Right to Write: An Invitation and Initiation into the Writing Life

The Right to Write: An Invitation and Initiation into the Writing Life

3.92 of 5 stars 3.92  ·  rating details  ·  2,064 ratings  ·  115 reviews
What if everything we have been taught about learning to write was wrong? In The Right to Write, Julia Cameron's most revolutionary book, the author of the bestselling self-help guide The Artist's Way, asserts that conventional writing wisdom would have you believe in a false doctrine that stifles creativity. With the techniques and anecdotes in The Right to Write, readers...more
Paperback, 237 pages
Published December 27th 1999 by Tarcher (first published 1998)
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Salma
Feb 03, 2008 Salma rated it 5 of 5 stars Recommends it for: Everyone
Shelves: writing, favorites
I really like Julia Cameron's books. Her prose reads with the rhythm and color of poetry, so it isn't like your typical 'how-to-write' book. Whereas other books 'tell' you where and how to get inspired, Cameron does this by merely putting words to the page. I also think this is the most encouraging and open book on writing I've ever read. I call it my 'block-remover.'
Andrea
The book is subtitled "An Invitation and Initiation into the Writing Life," and thus is about the ways that people can start a writing practice that focuses on writing for the sake of the process rather than the sake of the product. Julia Cameron puts it this way:
If we are invested in a writing life -- as opposed to a writing career -- then we are in it for the process and not the product. We are in it for the body of work and not for the quick hit of one well-realized piece." (p. 66)

Each cha...more
Grace
I have several other things more pressing to do this evening then finish reading a book, but I just had to finish Julia Cameron's "The Right to Write: An Invitation and Initiation into the Writing Life" because I just couldn't stand to read it anymore.

At a short 230 pages, Cameron's book falls well within the range of a 'how-to on writing' book. The chapters were relatively short in length and ended with an "Initiation Tool" to get you on your way to a writing life. Both of these are good for w...more
Miri
I'm definitely of two minds about this book. On one hand, it was inspirational at times and I appreciated Cameron's rejection of the stereotype of the "Writer" who has to suffer for the sake of art, and all that. Some of my favorite chapters were "Loneliness,"which discusses how writing can help with that; "Witness," which talks about writing as "witnessing" life; and "Containment," which discusses the importance of not sharing your writing with too many people while it's still in progress.

The N...more
Richard Szponder
Having delved into Julia Cameron’s best-selling book, The Artist’s Way, a self-help guide to unblocking creativity and realizing artistic potential, I’ve been exploring her other books as well. The Right to Write is rooted in the same fundamentals as The Artist’s Way. But whereas The Artist’s Way is more a workshop in book format supporting all types of creativity (writing, painting, acting, filmmaking, etc.), The Right to Write is a collection of essays finely tailored specifically to writers.

C...more
Kathy Doll
Julia Cameron's 'The Right to Write' is an excellent guidebook and motivational tool for writers. As in her 'Artist's Way' books, the premise is that creativity is a gift from spirit. I think for anyone who agrees with that philosophy, this book will resonate highly. Writing is compared to creating art - which I think is true.

For those of us who struggle to sit our asses down in the chair and actually write, instead of reading about, thinking about, and stressing about writing; it gives compelli...more
Natacha P
My review is biased, and there’s a story to go with it.

As a result of my recent interest in Edgar Cayce, I have been reading some of his books to my utmost enjoyment. One day, I checked out his website where I saw a list of people somehow involved in or connected to the metaphysical world. One of the people profiled was Julia Cameron. I had never heard of her or her works. It seemed she had written quite a few books on writing, and I figured someday I’d get to reading at least one of them. I som...more
Mel
another book i've been reading on and off for years. great to have on hand for those times when the closest i can get to writing is reading about it. also the essay format is perfect for when i can't commit to anything (i.e. writing).
CX Dillhunt
This book works for me as a New Year's writer's kick in the butt; here are the key items:

1/ Morning Pages (3 pages, long hand, every day); counter-point, shorter, less frequent Evening Page
2/ Narrative Time Line (your life in 5-year intervals, with a writing friend)
3/ Cups (filling in the NTL)
4/ Weekly Artist Date (for 2 & 3, you write together, across the table)
5/ 43 Initiation Tools (including "how tos" for all of the above)

Easy to read, keeps you hopping, I like her style. I feel she's be...more
Ashley
This was okay, but I didn't enjoy it as much as Vein Of Gold (or even The Artist's Way). I ended up skimming the last several chapters, it just wasn't holding me. If I hadn't read any of Cameron's other books, I would probably have liked this one more. Most of the "practical" side of this is covered in her other books as well.
I suspect this book would, however, be excellent if you read it at the right time, when your confidence is what's holding your writing up. If you don't need to be convince...more
Julie Luekenga
This is not really a book to just read through, but rather to work through. Each chapter is a short inspiration and encouragement to get in touch with our "inner writer", whether you consider yourself a writer or not. Julia Cameron's belief is that we are all writers and have the ability to express ourselves on paper. She downplays the "tortured writer" stereotype and tries to encourage everyone to discover the joy of expression and creativity through words.

Julia Cameron is perhaps better known...more
David
Very hippy-dippy and new agey (Writing as channeling? Really?), but that flaky positivity was actually something I liked about this book. The author -IMO rightfully- tries to demystify the creative writing process and make it something that anyone can participate in. The idea of "art as suffering" or that there is a difference between a "writer" and "someone who writes" are facile ideas I've always despised & it's good to see someone take the piss out of such pretensions. Mixed in are some p...more
Melissa
The Artist's Way helped me so much with my writing, creativity, and just with my life, but I doubt that I would have completed it without a writing group (or "cluster" as she calls it) to provide accountability to read the chapters and do the exercises. This book covers much of the same territory as The Artist's Way in terms of the concepts, but feels more accessible to the solo, scared writer. It's chattier and feels more confessional than instructive, but it still teaches you a lot, and the ex...more
Rose
Julia Cameron's "The Right to Write" is more of a writing philosophy work rather than a "how to" book. I actually really liked reading her anecdotes on the writing life and what her experience and advice entailed. I liked her approaches to several different topics, including procrastination, writer's block, the drive to write, among others. And one of the things I really appreciated in this novel is that she completely knocks down the myth/fabrication of what some term as "real" writers versus n...more
Mirliz
I really liked this book. Generally I enjoy books about writing because they make me want to write even more myself. This one really did inspire me, especially as I'm having a writer's block at the moment. Several chapters hit the mark perfectly - I thought "yeah, that's me, exactly..." and I found that all the reasons as to why I'm not writing or even trying to write were turned into dust. I will definitely use this book and its exercises to get my writing going again. How lucky I was to "have...more
Seymour
This book could be well on its way to being a classic and an essential rite of passage for anyone who wants to write for pleasure or professionally.

Julia Cameron has set herself the mission of debunking the myth of "writers" being some special class of human being who must starve in a garret for the sake of their craft and uses her words to gently liberate and nurture the essential writer that she believes lies in every person.

The accumulated wisdom of her years as a working writer and a creativ...more
Kristie J.
I was going to give this book two stars because I got bored reading several of the chapters in the middle, however, I decided that there are enough good exercises and quotes about writing to give the book three stars.

I appreciated the author’s open, accepting, and welcoming attitude toward beginner writers. She encourages everyone to be a writer - all they have to do is start writing. The last several chapters have useful writing tips such as how to find a topic to write about and how to overco...more
April WW
I bought this in 2008, read the first chapter and did the first exercise, then did nothing else. I wasn't doing the exercises so I didn't let myself keep reading. Finally it made me feel guilty seeing it on my bedside table so I hid it away on a shelf.

I picked it up again earlier this month and went ahead and read the whole thing. Didn't do any of the exercises this time except for one mid-way through, which was to start writing "Morning Pages." Still doing that so far...), and starting back at...more
Sarah
This was a wonderful book that really helped me to sort out ideas for being a better writer. I felt she had written it just for me. Julia Cameron really makes you feel entitled and empowered as a writer and describes how she makes writing such a big part of her life. I would highly recommend this book to any level of writer or even for those people who don't think writing is all that important. Great book!
lee lee
Jun 06, 2008 lee lee rated it 4 of 5 stars Recommends it for: procrastinators; writers; lovers
Recommended to lee lee by: my mom's boss in florida whose name i have forgotten right now
mmmmmmmmmmmmm....yummy. i love this book. i love everything about this book, even the title. i think this is partly because it was one of the very first books on writing (the first?) that someone gave to me, the act of which gave me much confidence and made me feel very special. i love getting books, almost as much as i love giving them.

outside of that special story...the book itself is also quite good. you will find this hard to believe if you look over my bookshelves, but i'm actually not big...more
Lacey Savage
Fabulous! Absolutely outstanding. If you want to be motivated, rejuvenated, re-energized toward writing... look no further than THE RIGHT TO WRITE. Julia Cameron is a creativity genius. She understands the writer's life perhaps better than anyone. I couldn't put this book down. It's going to have a permanent place on my keeper shelf. 'Nuff said. Excellent, excellent book. (A+)
Rebecca
This book is so amazing, for sheer inspiration, creative unblocking, and a graceful, easy way to deeper thinking. I would recommend it to anyone who is a writer, or would like to have fun excuses to write a little bit more. Since I started doing the exercises in this book my creative output has increased dramatically. And so has the joy I take in writing. It's that good.
Jessica
The author of The Artist's Way had some good things to say about writing... but she said them over and over. Full of advice both inspiring and vague, meaningful yet impractical, she overuses her puns and rhetorical devices. This guide might be useful for a beginning writer (which she says we all are) or not, I can't tell because it got too repetitive and I disengaged.
Lia
You know it's a good book when you start reading it again right after you've finished it ... and when you call your sister to read her one of the essays ... and you find yourself re-reading certain pages because they remind you of all the reasons you love to write ... and reading an essay from it each morning finds its way into your routine.

Yes, this was a very good book for me. I've found that I don't like the notion of being "a Great Writer" who suffers and toils at her task. I'd rather enjoy...more
Jim Hunnicutt
For anyone considering writing, whether for a profession or the shear love of writing itself, this book is a excellent guide through the process of filling the paper with the words. It dives into the uniquely human experience that is the writing process and explains, while encouraging, why it is in our nature to tell the stories we have.
Barbara Cadwell
Feb 16, 2013 Barbara Cadwell rated it 5 of 5 stars Recommends it for: Say it like it can be.
Although I read Julia Cameron’s ‘The Right to Write’ several years ago, the message in the title still remains. Utilizing the analogy of a child’s see-saw, it’s almost as if, ultimately, we say what we see when we saw a myriad of timeless themes.
The love of the artist for their work is a class act, and I suspect writers have been recording since childhood, watching and listening, but never saying out loud what they saw and heard. So as adults, we become prolific at conjuring images, casting cha...more
Tennille [A.K.A Blair] Chase [A.K.A Mirth]
Compulsivly addictive reading. Insightful and inspirational. My thoughts are only love for this book and what guidence Julia brings to the table and continues to do so through every re-read of this book. For me this is like a writing bible, a place to visit, refresh and learn. I love it.
Ivory Autumn
I loved it! Period. A wonderful reminder why we writers write. This book is for anybody needing a pick up, and a renewal as a writer.

She has a unique way of putting things that resound and resonate with truth. Why do we write? Because it is who we are.

Loved it.
Tommy
Julia Cameron certainly makes one feel like they should write, often and without hesitation. Essentially, she holds up the banner of writing for the sake of writing, not for publication or profit.

It's therapeutic. It teaches us to be better communicators and human beings. It's spiritual. It invites us to be creators rather than spectators. Cameron captures a certain passion that makes the reader hungry to break out pen and journal.

There are moments of navel gazing and self-congratulatory passag...more
Mary Quast
Hubby gave this book to me when I was ill and stuck in bed and certainly not in the mood to write. I found this book very inspirational on a spiritual level. This book is a must have for any writer who believes writing can be a sensual and passionate experience.
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Julia Cameron has been an active artist for more than thirty years, with fifteen books (including bestsellers The Artist's Way, Walking In This World and The Right to Write) and countless television, film, and theater scripts to her credit. Writing since the age of 18, Cameron has a long list of screenplay and teleplay credits to her name, including an episode of Miami Vice, and Elvis and the Beau...more
More about Julia Cameron...
The Artist's Way: A Spiritual Path to Higher Creativity The Vein of Gold The Complete Artist's Way : Creativity as a Spiritual Practice Walking in this World The Sound of Paper

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“We should write because it is human nature to write. Writing claims our world. It makes it directly and specifically our own. We should write because humans are spiritual beings and writing is a powerful form of prayer and meditation, connecting us both to our own insights and to a higher and deeper level of inner guidance.

We should write because writing brings clarity and passion to the act of living. Writing is sensual, experiential, grounding. We should write because writing is good for the soul. We should write because writing yields us a body of work, a felt path through the world we live in.

We should write, above all, because we are writers, whether we call ourselves that or not.”
31 people liked it
“Writing is like breathing, it's possible to learn to do it well, but the point is to do it no matter what.” 24 people liked it
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