Sometimes my students ask me how much they should “think” about what they are going to write in their Morning Pages.

I don’t want you to pause and have a mental cigarette and strategize about what you’re going to write. It’s better to just say “here goes” and go right into writing.
One thing that’s important to remember is that if there’s something that’s really bothering you, the Morning Pages won’t let you drop it. Morning Pages will keep tapping at your consciousness, and if there is something really important that you are meant to notice, Morning Pages will keep tapping until they get your attention. You don’t need to worry too much about thinking and addressing a topic.

Sometimes people ask me what the difference is between writing Morning Pages and writing in a journal. In journaling, you you tend to choose a topic and then write everything on your mind on that topic. With Morning Pages, it is more free form. You can jump from topic to topic, and that’s OK. Morning Pages typically sound scattered-- they’re not “real” writing. We’re not looking for real writing-- we’re looking for stream of consciousness.