The 1 Book on Creativity I’ve Recommended 100 Times
If creativity had a bible, this is it.
The best books are able to make coherent sentences from thoughts your mind can only mumble to itself. I’ve only ever read one book that has put my thoughts to words, and it’s one that I’ll be recommending to friends until the end of time.
Elegant and practical, Elizabeth Gilbert’s Big Magic is the one book whose nuances I’ve continued to explore even years after reading it. Never have I read about the creative lifestyle in a way that felt so personal and universal — every sentence was the fully realized version of my then fragmented thoughts about the subject.
Of the many smaller takeaways, the three that have made the deepest impact in how I conduct myself when I work in creative spaces are:
1. Treat creativity as a living thing
Prior to reading Big Magic, I had always thought of creativity as something inanimate, like a block of stone you chip away at until you can step back and see a sculpture from the rubble. For formulaic instances of practicing creativity, say, if we were attempting to practice color theory, this is a working model. Experiment with enough shades and you can find something that fits, but may lack that spark — the little bit of magic that…
