Book: Steal Like an Artist by Austin KleonGenre: NF
Rating:★ ★ ★ ★ ★
For: Fun
From: Amazon
This book was mentioned at a Nanowrimo workshop I went to in November. I was intrigued at the time because of the whole "steal" thing... that no idea is original but the fact that we take ideas and do original things with them is the thing.
So I bought it. It's a tiny little thing, but filled with short and simple bits of advice that really hit you where you need it. It's also filled with wonderful artsy pictures, since the author is also an artist in the traditional sense of the word.
In the book, he makes ten points. These ten points are all on the back of the book so I'm assuming I'm good to share them with you. I guess you'll need to get the book for the "in depth" discussions found in the book! :)
1. Steal like an artist.
2. Don't wait until you know who you are to get started.
3. Write the book you want to read.
4. Use your hands.
5. Side projects and hobbies are important.
6. The secret: Do good work and share it with people.
7. Geography is no longer our master.
8. Be nice (the world is a small town.)
9. Be boring (it's the only way to get work done)
10. Creativity is subtraction.
So does that peak your interest? It did mine and I'm glad I spent the money to have this little pep talking book by my side now! And yes, I even plan to follow most of its advice!
Bottom line: Loved it!
Other Reviews:
It’s a very quick read, and has lots of illustrations — hand-drawn, and actual black-and-white photos.From Should be Reading
If you are looking for motivation, this will fit the bill. From Lindy Reads and Reviews
And the last point about creativity being subtraction I should tattoo on my forehead. From Draft No. 4
Here's the author talking about his book and the ideas in them:
Fun!!! I've been recommended this book, too. I can't wait to get my hands on it!
ReplyDeleteThe title of this book always makes me smile :) I haven't read it yet, but I'd like to because I feel like it could have some advice that would be relevant to doing research. Coming up with a hypothesis is a bit of an art and for the most part, research builds very closely on what came before. I've also heard the theory that many great revolutions in scientific thinking came about when ideas from one field were applied to a different field. Either way, there's definitely a lot of borrowing for your peers when doing research :)
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