Daily Rituals: How Artists Work Hardcover – April 23, 2013

So here's the takeaway:

1. The people described in this book all work very hard and, frequently, VERY long hours.

2. Regular, extended exercise - usually walking - is frequently an important part of their routines.

3. They're mostly early risers, with significant exceptions, and do their best work in the first several hours of the day. There are a few nightowls but not many.

4. They have a work routine that they adhere to almost fanatically.

5. Finally, implicitly, habits are key in their successes and productivity.

There, I've saved you the price of this book.

The stories about the different artists are frequently interesting on their own account and very useful in fleshing out the "takeaways" listed above. I don't think it's intended as a self-help book. The author doesn't attempt to derive a series of lessons from his subjects' activities but a pattern emerges after reading a lot of these.

Daily Rituals: How Artists Work by Mason Currey (Editor)

This book is a hard one to review because of what it is. This is a meticulously researched work on the work habits of writers, composers, artists and other creative types. He pulls this information from existing sources, biographies, autobiographies and personal journals. If you are looking for this type of detailed information, than this book easily could merit a five star review. Currey does a great job presenting this information, presumably sifting through mounds of notes, interviews and books to capture the essence of the artists work habits. There are almost 30 pages of footnotes for this book. I took a lot of notes while reading this book and I will post the writing life tidbits out on my twitter feed as #authorfacts in the next few weeks.

In a purely unscientific assessment of these habits, I can present to you a summary of what I learned here:

Artists work first thing in the morning to get it out of the way early so they can go about their day. 113 out of the 161 artists profiled (or 70.2% of them) began work in the morning, and many of the the late-rising artists also began work as one of their first activities of the day in the afternoon or night time, but the overwhelming majority of artists woke in the morning and got to work within 2 hours of waking.

Most of them followed a strict daily work schedule working for a set number of hours, (typically anywhere from 3 to 6 hours) or until they hit a goal word count (usually 1000 to 1500 words).

Many artists drank or smoked to excess, all ultimately having a negative impact on their work. Another popular excess: coffee.

The one thing I wish this book would have done was to interview more contemporary authors, a lot of these artists are dead and from the 19th and early 20th century. Although the book contains some writers from the late 20th Century, the majority of these are of the Baby Boomer generation, and I'd be curious to see the daily rituals of Generation X or Millennial authors, and how they handle the distraction-rich, socially interconnected world of the 21st century. I think this information is out there and available, and maybe even easier to collect and write about, so I was disappointed that this wasn't captured.

I also couldn't figure out how the book was organized. The artists were not classified by the medium or subject area, and not in alphabetical or chronological order. The profiles seem to be completely random, and considering the audience for this book, I think it would have better been served by some sort of organizational structure to make it easier to look up a particular artist, time period or profession.

But the book is what it is. It is a solid, well-researched work of an obscure, somewhat academic subject, and although this is fascinating to a writer such as myself, I'm not sure the book can hold the interest of someone not specifically looking for this type of information, and I'm not sure it could hold the interest of writers and other artists not specifically interested in this aspect of the creative process.

Rating: *** Buy Used $17.46 Hardcover, or $12.99 Kindle eBook

About Ratings: ***** -- Well Worth it at Full Retail Price; **** -- Buy on Sale/Discounted; *** -- Buy Used; ** -- Borrow It from the Library; * -- Waste of a Good Tree

Excellent book for those readers who want to get a glimpse into the schedules of extraordinary talented artists...namely, that even true masters have to find the mundane ritual of daily routine a necessity when creating great work. The creative process is often thought of as elusive and transient, however this book goes to great lengths to show how a steady working schedule can often lead to some of the modern world's greatest creative achievements. Very inspiring for those wanting to create some kind of art in their day...

Small format books ask us not to take them seriously, but don't be fooled here. This little gem is a fount of inspiration for anyone with creative urges and dreams. The diversity of creators represented is a welcoming affirmation that whoever you are and however you create, there's a place for you at the table. If you're disciplined, you'll find models of discipline. If you're a hard partier, you'll have good company. If you're reclusive, you'll be affirmed in your desire and need for solitude. Mason Currey has done a fine job bringing creators from many centuries into our awareness to speak for themselves or be spoken about. Thank you.

I love this book.
The habits and daily work practices of many authors.
I use this as a teaching tool so writers can see that ALL writers
have to deal with challenges: Hours. Work Ethic. Space. Solitude. Money and a Room of One's Own.

The anecdotes and strange solutions writers came up with through time to do their work inspire...

Get creative. Build a desk. Do what you gotta do...

Brava, and Thank you.

forever,
Annie

Annie Lanzillotto
author of "L is for Lion: an italian bronx butch freedom memoir" SUNY Press
and "Schistsong" BORDIGHERA Press

www.annielanzillotto.com

L Is for Lion: An Italian Bronx Butch Freedom Memoir (SUNY series in Italian/American Culture)
Schistsong (Via Folios)
Blue Pill
Carry My Coffee (Live)
Eleven Recitations