Looking forwards and backwards
Some creative prompts for January
Dear reader,
On this last day of January, and a little over two weeks before the beginning of a new lunar year, I thought I would send out a post that ties in with this time of year.
Then I found a two-faced stone
On burial ground,
God-eyed, sex-mouthed, it’s brain
A watery wound.
In the wet gap of the year,
Daubed with fresh lake mud,
I faltered near his power —
January God.
- Seamus Heaney
In this post I have some creative prompts that are inspired by the etymology of ‘January.’
This first month of the year is named for the Roman god Janus / Ianus, recognisable for his two faces. These two faces enable the god to look forward and back; he is the god of time, duality, beginnings and endings, gates and doorways, transitions and passages.
So, I thought that today’s prompts could be centred on where we find ourselves at this time: right at the beginning of this new year, with the end of the old still only a few weeks in the past. We are living in uncertain times, perhaps even in a liminal space, still waiting to see what will emerge during the rest of 2026, while coming to terms with 2025. Looking forwards and backwards.
So, let’s respond to that as our theme. I’m offering two prompts for you to choose from:
Prompt no. 1: Write / draw / sing / dance for, to, or about Janus.
Supplicate him. Complain to him. Ask him for guidance; ask him for forbearance.
Cook him a meal. Light him some incense. Create a ritual.
Or just have a heart-to-heart with him in your head.
January Night Prayer by Ursula Le Guin.
(Of course, Janus is a god of summer down here in Australia).
Prompt no. 2
Perhaps you could respond creatively to the theme of doorways, gates, archways, or passages?
Design one of these. Describe one. Enact or mime passing through one. Find one to photograph or sketch. Make one out of pasta and marshmallows. Or just conjure one up in your imagination when you have a few quiet minutes to spare.
And consider:
What do these imagined doorways shut out right now?
What do they keep in?
What entices you to walk through?
And what might you fear or welcome on the other side? Or are you content with not knowing?
And how do you go about opening or unlocking them? Will this be easy or hard?
What questions would you add?
(The Door by Schjerfbeck, Helene - 1884 - Finnish National Gallery, Finland - CC0.
https://www.europeana.eu/en/item/2021012/app_si_A_IV_3680)
Thanks for reading!
This is actually a reworking of a post I wrote back at the beginning of 2022. I am currently reviewing my old posts with a view to refining what I am going to do with this Substack. I would love your feedback: What would you like to see more of in my posts? Creative prompts? Interesting etymologies / images / quotes? Or something else?
Agree with Jax. Your posts always take me somewhere.
I love this one and had never thought of Janus/Ianus in this way. Like, I knew there were two faces but I never connected that with looking backwards and forwards at the same time!
Kind of what it sounds like you are doing with your substack as you revisit the old and re-vision the new. Im in a similar place with my own writing. Deep and labrynthine discernment about where to go next... so the invitation to think of doorways is much appreciated.
Love the Seamus Heaney poem, and the doorway artwork. Is the other bit of prose your own?
I like your etymologies and the sharing of public domain art and images. I also like your posts that incorporate geographical explorations.
When you envision what you want to do differently with the substack, do you imagine the themes themselves changing - or how you express these themes? For instance you could incorporate your own photography, art/doodles, or record these posts in audio formats.
Cheers,
Rian
Your posts always take me to another place. So, more please! Sometimes, I'd love a peek into your world. What you're doing. How these ideas weave into your practice. Thanks for your generosity in sharing these beautiful thoughts, artworks and poetry.