First Pages

Every notebook, sketchbook, journal I work with opens on blank pages. The first page of a new book is like the archetype of all blank pages; Page One (Don't Mess It Up). I always begin a new notebook a healthy few pages in, giving the first idea space to breathe, not too much pressure to be having to  open the show. No need for a strong and engaging introduction. It gives the book a chance to work backwards as well as forwards. It allows the book to begin with no identity, you know what's happening once it begins to feel full and heavy with reflections, that's when the first pages get to be filled in, if they're lucky.