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Showing 1-10 of 1,471 reviews(Verified Purchases). See all 1,698 reviews
on April 24, 2012
I am not a creative person. I want to be. I think like most people I want to create something. I want to write something. Create something. While searching for something new in the books section of Amazon.com I hit on this title. I knew nothing about Austin Kleon. I am not a poetry fan so I did not know about the Newspaper Blackout book. I actually judged this book by it's cover (and the description to be honest). I read it in an hour (you can too - it is a short book). Then I read it again much more slowly and with a highlighter. Most of what he writes about may be trite to those "in the know" but for me this book said I could go into the world, find something I love and tweak it bit to make it mine. And in doing that I could show the creator that his work inspired me to create something. This book also told me that I already possessed the tools to be creative. Since I know that I like Kleon suggest that I study why I like it. Find out what makes it work for me and then use that as a jumping off point. But even these words do not convey accurately enough how inspired I was - I read it again - I added his blog and tumblr feeds to my daily readings - I follow him on twitter and bought some books he recommended. Finally - rather than sending him an email telling him how wonderful this book is - I am following his advice and putting those same thoughts in a review. A small book awakened a bit of passion for being creative. Not a small feat. A small book but a big heart. Hope all these words add up to this - I love this book.
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on April 11, 2015
I liked what this author had to say and enjoyed the material, but this was not a book. When I got to the end, I said "Where's the rest of it? Where's the useful stuff?" I went on a hunt and found the author on YouTube giving a TED Talk called Steal Like an Artist. There it was, the entire book in an eleven minute speech. Save your money and just listen to the speech.
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on March 10, 2015
Austin Kleon writes, “All advice in autobiographical… This book is me talking to a previous version of myself… These ideas apply to anyone who’s trying to inject some creativity into their life and their work. (That should describe all of us.)” The book is thoughtfully written and designed in a creative six-inch by six-inch format.

The idea behind stealing like an artist is that “nothing is completely original… All creative work builds on what came before... If we’re free from the burden of trying to be completely original, we can stop trying to make something out of nothing, and we can embrace influence instead of running away from it.”

“We learn by copying. We’re talking about practice here, not plagiarism—plagiarism is trying to pass someone else’s work off as your own. Copying is about reverse engineering… Remember: Even The Beatles started as a cover band.”

“You are the sum of your influences… Your job is to collect good ideas. The more good ideas you collect, the more you can choose from to be influenced by… Seeing yourself as part of a creative lineage will help you feel less alone as you start making your own stuff… You don’t want to look like your heroes, you want to see like your heroes… That’s what you really want—to internalize their way of looking at the world… It is the act of making things and doing our work that we figure out who we are.”

“You have to be curious about the world in which you live… Always be reading…. Don’t worry about doing research. Just search.”

“You’re only going to be as good as the people you surround yourself with… If you ever find that you’re the most talented person in the room, you need to find another room.”

“The manifesto is this: Draw the art you want to see, start the business you want to run, play the music you want to hear, write the books you want to read, build the products you want to use—do the work you want to see done.”

The author urges readers to “step away from the screen… You need to find a way to bring your body into your work… If we strum a guitar, or shuffle sticky notes around a conference table, or start kneading clay, the motion kickstarts our brain into thinking… The computer is really good for editing your ideas… but it’s not really good for generating ideas. There are too many opportunities to hit the delete key.”

Kleon points out the value of side projects and hobbies in sparking creativity. “By side projects I mean the stuff that you thought was just messing around. Stuff that’s just play. That’s actually the good stuff. That’s when the magic happens… I think it’s good to have a lot of projects going on at once so you can bounce between them. When you get sick of one project, move over to another… Practice productive procrastination.” The author quotes playwright Steven Tomlinson about having diverse interests: “Let them talk to each other. Something will begin to happen.”

“Creativity is subtraction.” The answer to information overload is to “figure out what to leave out” so you can focus on what’s most important to you. “It seems contradictory, but when it comes to creative work, limitations mean freedom… Establishing and keeping a routine can be even more important than having a lot of time.”

Kleon touches on the theme of his second book, Show Your Work. “If there was a secret formula for becoming known, I would give it to you. But there’s only one not-so-secret formula that I know: Do good work and share it with people. It’s a two-step process… Not everyone will get it… So get comfortable with being misunderstood, disparaged, or ignored—the trick is to be too busy doing your work to care.” That said, the author says to, “enjoy your obscurity while it lasts… There’s no pressure when you’re unknown. You can do what you want. Experiment. Do things just for the fun of it. When you’re unknown, there’s nothing to distract your form getting better.”

On a final note, Kleon writes, “Your mileage may vary… Feel free to take what you can use and leave the rest.”
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on March 5, 2017
This kindlebook of Steal Like An Artist; 10 Things Nobody Told You About Being Creative by Austin Kleon is a mentor type of guide in written form. However, despite the title, the author carefully explains the difference between what he means by the title in order to stay plagiarism-free. Good advice such as going to the library (fortunately there are multiple libraries in the area I reside), starting a logbook, choosing what to leave out, keeping your day job, keeping a praise file, the benefits and freedom in obscurity, and more are mentioned. Kleon also helpfully gives an explanation for why you want to encourage the writer in you to flourish/develop with little concern as to the outcome of your work andor how you are publicly judged (in his validation is for parking section). From my perspective, this kindlebook is also extremely helpful because sometimes there is going to be other people with the same first name as you andor interests who also write online. However, the way you gather ideas, what you like and dislike, your personality/temperament, how you glean inspiration as a writer etc. is going to differ from even another person who shares your first name, has similar interests etc. A kindlebook such as Steal Like An Artist; 10 Things Nobody Told You About Being Creative by Austin Kleon comes in to fill the need for resource inspiration ideas.
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on December 1, 2016
I had a little cry after reading this. I wish I had read it years ago. I know it wasn't written then, but even so. Light hearted it may be, but when you are an "artist" in a family of "scientists " - this book makes a whole lot of sense. I have struggled to make my view of the word heard in my world of "logic" - no more, I am doing things and behaving in ways and thinking like the Artists in this book. Great. I shall carry on now, freed & unapologetic - brandishing a copy of this book! Thankyou!
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on December 23, 2014
This book is worth reading if you're completely lost and you're struggling to find your artistic voice. But - that being said - there isn't much substance to it. The author repeats the same things over and over, just with different phrasing. The gist is "Borrow things you like from others, fail at perfect imitation, slowly gain your own style through this process." It's not a bad idea, but it isn't necessarily enough to write an entire book about.
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on March 12, 2017
As the author would no doubt agree there isn't much presented in this book you probably haven't read or heard elsewhere. It's a quick, easy read. Nothing particularly profound but a good reminder that creativity is in many ways something anyone can learn and apply to just about anything if you want. In a nutshell the philosophy can be summed up in the Nike slogan of 'Just Do It'. Then do it again and again until you are ready to move on or up, whatever the case may be.
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on May 3, 2016
A fantastic book and it probably took me an hour (tops) to read. For the win. Even though this book is a quick read, the sheer volume of encouraging and inspiring truth bombs makes me feel like it’s one that I could take a much longer time to study in-depth.
Some of my favorites are:
“You need to find a way to bring your body into your work.” Pg. 54
“If you have two or three real passions, don’t feel like you have to pick and choose between them.” Pg. 68
“When you open up your process and invite people in you learn.” Pg. 81
“Travel makes the world look new, and when the world looks new, our brains work harder.” Pg. 94
“If you ever find that you’re the most talented person in the room, you need to find another room.” Pg. 104
“Freedom from financial stress also means freedom in your art.” Pg. 123
The list goes on and on. He also mentions at the end of the book that you need to marry well. I can say that beyond a shadow of a doubt I’ve done that. Because he saw the artist in me before I saw it myself.
I’ll just say - read this. Whether you think you’re an artist (or even want to be) or not. This book will provide inspiration, kick in the pants truth, and motivation for wherever you find yourself in life.
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on March 16, 2017
Great, very short read that helps to inspire the artist in me, speaking as someone who is not an artist at all.

Also, some really poignant quotes from surprising sources. One such quote:

“We were kids without fathers, so we found our fathers on wax and on the streets and in history, and in a way, that was a gift. We got to pick and choose the ancestors who would inspire the world we were going to make for ourselves.” - Jay Z
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on March 25, 2015
Based on the reviews of others, I expected this to be an inspirational master piece. Not what I expected in terms of guidance and depth of content... more of a "coffee table" type book that you'd glance at for visuals/graphics and "cutesy" advice. As an artist, I did not really get much out of it. Had I thumbed through this at a book store, I would not have purchased it.
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