The Creative Act: A Way of Being

I studiously avoided reading reviews of this book until I was done because I (correctly) predicted there would be those who praised it as a new book of holy scripture and those who would utterly trash the work as thin and inconsequential. Neither of those two camps is right. And while I do not condone tossing a book before you've given it a fair chance (though I have utterly given up on a book or two, opinions will differ on what a fair chance is. I can see the naysayers who feel that the book is a bunch of twitter quotes strung together, and I can even see why people who went into it not expecting a philosophically-oriented book would be turned off to it (though why you would think that a book about creativity would NOT have a philosophical orientation is beyond me). That said, I lean towards the cult of those who sing this books praises. I'm not all-in drinking the Kool-Aid, but I am at the edge of the clearing watching everyone line up, considering.If one reads the book to the end, one finds the admission:You are you.The work is the work.Each person in the audience is themselves. Uniquely so.none of it can truly be understood, let alone distilled to simple equations or common language.And herein lies the heart of the matter. Creativity is very difficult to pin down. There are exceptions and contradictions. What works one time doesn't work the next. That's the whole point of creativity. If you're looking for an end-all-be-all truth, study Accounting. Paint-by-numbers is not creativity, and it never was. It's good practice, and one can learn principles from it, but the true teachers in creative acts are experience, intuition, and failure.Rubin does, however, share practical ways of thinking/being for those who might be struggling through the creative process. He also shares ways to ensure that you are creating good art when you think you've got a finished product. Any writer who's been writing for a while will tell you that the most difficult part of writing is editing. And if they don't, you can bet that their work shows it. I can categorically state that my early work, even those for which I was paid good money, could stand another edit. Or two. Or ten. Here Rubin doesn't spare the rod, but reminds us of our responsibility to create the best work we can, while giving us some tools to work with.Now many of these tools come in the last third of the book, but if one doesn't buy into the foundational principles (remember that old concept of "willing suspension of disbelief"?), then the latter parts of the book are going to be far less impactful. No, you don't have to drink all the Kool-Aid, but you have to be willing to read and observe with an open mind. If you can't at least accept, theoretically, that "art is our portal to the unseen world," then this book is not for you. But if you'll give that thought a serious chance, the rest of the book will make sense to you. Again, if you want paint-by-numbers-so-you-can-monetize-everything-with-high-productivity, you need to look elsewhere.If you're onboard with exercising a little faith, you'll be able to grok the book. The practicum really starts with the chapter on "Seeds," about a third of the way in. From here to the end, I've marked so many passages and taken so many notes that I won't take the time to put them all (if any) into this review. I've begun marking it up (in pencil - yes, I write in my books) with marginal notes, much like the ancient rabbinical scholars used to litter a verse of scripture with their annotations. As a result, this book has become highly personal to me and will continue to do so as I revisit it. It serves as a mirror to my own creative process, revealing all of its beauty and flaws. I will gaze into this book many times in the future both for inspiration and for practical solutions when I'm stuck (and there are many methods given for how to become un-stuck in the last third of the book).I have a handful of reference books that I keep "hot at hand" in my writing area. An old Roget's Thesaurus, Tim D. White's Human Osteology, Francis D.K. Ching's A Visual Dictionary of Architecture, and now: Rick Rubin's The Creative Act: A Way of Being.

Rick Rubin's book "The Creative Act: A Way of Being" is for anyone involved in creating any form of art. Indeed much of what he talks about is applicable even beyond the creative arts to anyone involved in creating anything. It is important to know what this book is and what it is not. It is not a "how to " book, nor is it any form of a self help book. Rather, as the title implies, this book focuses on how to think, act, live, and breath as a creative. One could say that one one level, Rubin's book is a philosophy of creativity or being creative.The book is laid out much differently than other books on the creative process. Rather than chapters, the book has 78 "Areas of Thought". The best way to read this book is to imagine that Rubin is your personal creativity coach and he is sending you 78 different letters with the aim of helping you discover your creative self and giving it full voice in whatever creative medium in which you happen to work. Thus, you may not find all 78 "letters" apply to you, or that some open you up to new ways of thinking than others. That is perfectly fine and I suspect Rubin would appreciate that as well.Rather than read the book straight through, I would suggest reading just a few of 'areas of thought' at a time and contemplate how the principles he's discussing might apply to you. I realized after reading the first 4 or 5 'areas of thought' that it wouldn't serve me very well to just plow through. So, I took my time with it and I think I got way more out of it for doing so.To emphasize that last point, the last few pages in the book are blank lined pages for you take notes on what you've read. For those wanting to take the concepts even deeper, there is a separate companion workbook that you can buy separately.The only negative for me was that at times Rubin dives into a bit more spiritual philosophy or mysticism, which, for me, didn't really serve his larger points all that well. I would recommend just ignoring those parts. One doesn't have to have the same spiritual worldview to appreciate the larger points Rubin is making and the creative was of thinking he is attempting (and succeeding) to inspire.In sum, I would highly recommend this book for anyone desiring to unleash their creativity more intentionally regardless of what creative medium is involved.

Despite being aware of Rick Rubin’s existence, I was mostly unfamiliar with his philosophy until recently. I decided to pick this book up after listening to one of his interviews with Andrew Huberman. While the interview I watched covered many of the topics in the book, reading it in its polished form has been extremely rewarding.Rick covers his philosophy on creativity, spirituality and the role each of us play in the universe. He bounces between the theory and practical application of his techniques, although the book comes off very casual; almost as if talking to a close friend. It’s structured in short, pointed chapters which makes it extremely digestible. Some people may view the book as esoteric, although Rick does a good job of making accessible language choices.Overall, I’d highly recommend this book to anyone who wants to expand their creativity or feels the need to challenge the direction of their day-to-day life. This is a book that will be staying on my shelf.

Most likely this book's impact on you will have a lot to do with whether or not you like having Rick Rubin's voice in your head. For whatever reason, this really works on me. If you're doing creative work in any capacity, professionally, aspirationally, or just because it makes you feel good, this book has a lot to say to you.