The Creative Act: A Way of Being
The #1 New York Times bestseller.
"A gorgeous and inspiring work of art on creation, creativity, the work of the artist. It will gladden the hearts of writers and artists everywhere, and get them working again with a new sense of meaning and direction. A stunning accomplishment.” —Anne Lamott
From the legendary music producer, a master at helping people connect with the wellsprings of their creativity, comes a beautifully crafted book many years in the making that offers that same deep wisdom to all of us.
“I set out to write a book about what to do to make a great work of art. Instead, it revealed itself to be a book on how to be.” —Rick Rubin
Many famed music producers are known for a particular sound that has its day. Rick Rubin is known for something else: creating a space where artists of all different genres and traditions can home in on who they really are and what they really offer. He has made a practice of helping people transcend their self-imposed expectations in order to reconnect with a state of innocence from which the surprising becomes inevitable. Over the years, as he has thought deeply about where creativity comes from and where it doesn’t, he has learned that being an artist isn’t about your specific output, it’s about your relationship to the world. Creativity has a place in everyone’s life, and everyone can make that place larger. In fact, there are few more important responsibilities.
The Creative Act is a beautiful and generous course of study that illuminates the path of the artist as a road we all can follow. It distills the wisdom gleaned from a lifetime’s work into a luminous reading experience that puts the power to create moments—and lifetimes—of exhilaration and transcendence within closer reach for all of us.
"A gorgeous and inspiring work of art on creation, creativity, the work of the artist. It will gladden the hearts of writers and artists everywhere, and get them working again with a new sense of meaning and direction. A stunning accomplishment.” —Anne Lamott
From the legendary music producer, a master at helping people connect with the wellsprings of their creativity, comes a beautifully crafted book many years in the making that offers that same deep wisdom to all of us.
“I set out to write a book about what to do to make a great work of art. Instead, it revealed itself to be a book on how to be.” —Rick Rubin
Many famed music producers are known for a particular sound that has its day. Rick Rubin is known for something else: creating a space where artists of all different genres and traditions can home in on who they really are and what they really offer. He has made a practice of helping people transcend their self-imposed expectations in order to reconnect with a state of innocence from which the surprising becomes inevitable. Over the years, as he has thought deeply about where creativity comes from and where it doesn’t, he has learned that being an artist isn’t about your specific output, it’s about your relationship to the world. Creativity has a place in everyone’s life, and everyone can make that place larger. In fact, there are few more important responsibilities.
The Creative Act is a beautiful and generous course of study that illuminates the path of the artist as a road we all can follow. It distills the wisdom gleaned from a lifetime’s work into a luminous reading experience that puts the power to create moments—and lifetimes—of exhilaration and transcendence within closer reach for all of us.
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Community Reviews
I’ll definitely have to read this again. There are so many good things in this book I couldn’t possibly retain them all.
Rick Rubin’s self help guide is just that; a short read masked in beguilingly large format. There is no memoir here or name dropping. Just a deeply contemplative exploration into his experience and perspective on the creative process. I have seen it recommended everywhere and referred to by friends and colleagues. It is also a book I have struggled to get behind.
I read it from a distance. Rick Rubin gives his own disclaimer at the start but you should add another layer of filtering yourself. His ideas are often brilliant but a quick search will show that Rubin’s reputation is suspect. There are various instances when he’s made overtures of support or affiliation with unsavory characters. That said his creative output cannot be denied. So this breakdown of his views on creativity is magnetically alluring.
The singular focus with which he approaches discussions on artistic creation are mesmerizing. Almost everything else comes second. Perhaps this mono vision contributes to his political and moral ambiguity; which makes it hard to accept him fully as he is. His consistent call for approaching life with a clean slate beginners mind allows that ambiguity to make more sense.
If you can compartmentalize some of his retweets and other political punditry you should pick it up. Even if you are not an artist, there is a zen to being and doing here that is worth reading. You can feel the enveloping calm radiating from the pages and around you. I would rate it higher if I was sure that there won’t be some bombshell expose that exposes more nutty behavior and have me regretting ever picking it up.
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