Download Steal Like an Artist 10 Lessons on Creative Expression. My impression of the book “Steal Like an Artist” by Austin Kleon

I will say right away that reading the above book brought a lot of positive emotions, and the scale of this mass was so great that I wanted to throw out all the impressions of what I read on 10 pages, no less. Well, okay, I’ll move on to presenting my thoughts briefly.

KKH got rid of the obsessive thought of being an artist in one or another area of the creative profession does not mean at all that he will be worthy of being called one only if he creates something unusual, without stealing a couple of other good ideas from anyone. Quite the contrary, competent transformation of borrowed ideas, styles, tricks from other creators gives a completely new creative product. And it will not be considered some pathetic copy of the masterpiece of its brilliant predecessor.

In order not to be unfounded, I will give an example from my life. Probably many of us are familiar with the oppressive feeling of our unoriginality, that now it is hardly possible to do something, make something unusual, something that no one has done before. Surely such thoughts often occur to many people. So, I’m no exception. I consider myself one of the people who are very interested in various creative directions. About a year ago, I became interested in scrapbooking, looked at a lot of information on the Internet, master classes, and subscribed to several print publications on this type of creativity. I thought, now I’ll see what and how and start creating something super unique, because I have enough imagination. But no, that was not the case. After reading 5-6 magazines on scrapbooking, a thought passed through my head in disappointment, dejection, which I want to quote (it comes out twice: the first time it was done by the author of the book KKH) “... there is nothing new under the sun.” What, in fact, disappointed me so much and cut my wings? Much. Take, for example, master classes on creating calendars. I’ve seen so many different options for creating them that it would seem that what else I could come up with to distinguish myself from other scrap craftswomen. But! Using the acquired knowledge in this type of creativity, i.e. scrapbooking and knowledge from another type of creativity (I can’t reveal which one yet), the idea to create an original calendar was immediately born. My new idea for creating a calendar “... is just a vinaigrette, or a mixture, of previous ideas.” More than ever, this quote from the book can be summed up in the above situation from my life.

I got the impression that the author of the book had penetrated my brain and was answering my questions, expressing valuable thoughts about which I was tormented by doubts. Take this quote for example: “Collect books, even if you don’t plan to read them right away... “there is nothing more important than an unread library.” One habit I have is to buy books from time to time, which, as it always seems to me at the time of purchase, I will come home and immediately start reading. But in reality, it sometimes takes a while for many books to get their turn. And for some reason I always feel somehow embarrassed in front of myself. They say I bought it, but I don’t use it. But, as they say, everything has its time. I know for sure that there will certainly be a turn for each of the purchased books.

Despite the fact that the book is very easy to read, written in accessible language and many of the ideas were already known, I personally learned a lot of new things: for the first time I learned that the folder was for stolen goods (or as I would call it “for inspiration” ") in the jargon of newspaper reporters sounds like "deceased". In general, the content of the book KKH is presented with a dose of good humor. I can’t help but note that I’m pleased with the interspersed quotes from famous personalities and links to books.

Chapter entitled “Don't wait until you understand yourself. Get to work!” instills confidence in a novice creator, artist, craftsman.

“You may be scared to start. This is fine." - I agree that the feeling of fear and self-doubt, or rather in what you do, visits very often. In this case, I don’t mean that I’m afraid to take on this or that business; on the contrary, I try and do it with great pleasure. It's about another fear, the fear of showing off your creations through blogging. For a very long time I didn’t dare to have one, I was hampered by the thought that it wouldn’t be possible to do it beautifully, well, I was afraid of seeming funny. But once you start, even if the first published text and photos are far from perfect, but over time, when you get into the habit of publishing your work, you acquire the skill of doing it better. Well, very few people will succeed right away; for this you need to get better at it.

Chapter “Try to do everything with your own hands.”

I would like to endlessly give examples and continue to praise the book of KKH. In a word, I recommend it to everyone. This book will be useful to everyone whose work is related to creativity and to those whose profession has nothing to do with it. The profession may not be creative, but the approach to it is quite possible, it’s just that everyone adapts all 10 tips specifically for themselves.

A person may feel that he wants to create something special, a piece of art, or perhaps write a book. But with creative activity everything is not so simple. Sometimes it’s impossible to create something original, something exactly your own. Then disappointment sets in and doubts arise about your talent. But the author of this book, Austin Kleon, believes that there is no need to rush to conclusions. He is a creative artist himself, he used to be a web designer and copywriter, and now he has become an artist and writer. He once gave a lecture at one of the universities in New York and gave students advice on creative self-expression. Later, he decided to publish a book with a more detailed description of them, and now readers can study it.

This book is a guide for any creative person. It provides recommendations, illustrations, exercises and examples. The author says that you should not refuse other people’s advice, because any person giving advice can already judge their mistakes. Don’t be afraid that you can’t come up with something completely new; you can come up with an unusual design or present the idea in some other way, and this is already a big step. The most important thing is that the book gives an understanding that the main thing in creativity is to be yourself and do what you feel, what your soul strives for. You just need to not be distracted by doubts and fears. The book motivates and inspires; it will be useful to everyone whose activities are in one way or another connected with creativity.

On our website you can download the book “Steal Like an Artist. 10 Lessons in Creative Expression” by Austin Kleon for free and without registration in fb2, rtf, epub, pdf, txt format, read the book online or buy the book in the online store.

A well-known bestseller called “Steal Like an Artist: 10 Lessons in Creative Self-Expression” written by Austin Kleon. The author provides 10 lessons on creative expression. One of the ideas of the book is to be yourself and don’t strive to become a genius. Creativity surrounds us on all sides and is accessible to everyone. Austen encourages readers not to lose their self and to follow their own interests. And it doesn't matter which path you take. Don't be afraid, create and develop. The book is full of illustrations and notes, which allows you not to get bored and keep your imagination in good shape.

Who will the book help?

This famous manifesto will help aspiring artists, sculptors and writers, as well as those who want to discover their creative qualities and bring creativity into their personal lives and work.

10 lessons on self-expression, what are they about?

Steal like an artist
Take action and don't expect to figure yourself out.
Write a book that you would read yourself
Do creativity with your hands, one thought is not enough
Determine the level of importance of hobbies and completed projects
The work needs to be done to the highest quality, share ideas with people
Get out of the house, travel and experience new places
Make friends, ignore enemies, strive for kindness
Save your energy, but don’t quit what you started
Use all the resources you have right now and don't wait for a better moment

take a walk, let your thoughts fall into place;
buy a folder and store stolen ideas there;
register for an online library or sign up for one closest to your home;
buy a notebook and write down all the nonsense from your head;
give this book to your friends;
Keep a blog, communicating with different people will benefit you.

Excerpts from the book “Steal Like an Artist”:

Quotes from the book “Steal Like an Artist”:

“Do strange things. Your tools are like Lego pieces

“Originality is depth + breadth of sources”

“Steal from yourself. Dreams are memories"

The New Year holidays have come to an end. I devoted almost all my time to my family and I have the warmest memories from this New Year. I dedicated one of my quiet evenings at home to reading a wonderful book - “Steal Like an Artist” by Austin Kleon.

I literally devoured it in one sitting. And now I’ll throw away all the rules for writing reviews and just share with you my impressions of this wonderful book.

In Austin Kleon, he generously shares with us ten lessons about creative expression that he learned from a decade of trying to figure out exactly how art is created.

In this article, I will literally retell this amazing book in my own words, and also add examples from my life and experience. I will be glad if you are interested.

So, lesson one

Friends, do you know where artists get their ideas from? According to Austin Kleon, they are stealing them. By the way, he’s not the only one who thinks so. In fact, if you look around, you won't be able to find anything completely original. Everything has already been invented before us...

Our genetics simply conveys this idea perfectly. Each of us is a remix of our ancestors. We receive a set of genes from each of our parents, yet each of us is unique.

In addition to the genes of our parents, we are also influenced by a huge number of factors - our friends, teachers, the books we read, the films we watch, the music we listen to.

There is definitely a person in your field who has achieved serious success and who arouses your admiration and maybe even love. Make it a point to study the path and work of this person.

Then study in detail the stories of three people whom your idol admired in turn. Even if these masters lived a long time ago, they left us their legacy, which is described in their books, pictures, works...

If you want to be ahead, constantly learn! And Google everything: your dreams, fears, problems... From this sea of information, you will eventually draw your own picture. And of course, read constantly! Real, living books, sign up for the library!

Be sure to bring a notepad and pen! I have already lost so many ideas, forgetting that they just need to be written down. Sometimes they pour on me like a river, and sometimes they simply knock me off my feet and even take my breath away from their scale.

But if you don’t write them down, they instantly disappear into thin air just as they appear in my head. The notebook is already lying next to me and several ideas are written down in it...)))

You need to have a special folder for ideas. And it doesn’t matter what it will be: real or virtual. The main thing is not to lose ideas that come to mind in the most magical way.

Lesson two

Have you heard anything about “imposter syndrome”? Here is what medicine says about this: “Impostor syndrome is a psychological phenomenon in which a person is unable to accept his own achievements.”

It seems to a person that he does not know enough, that he is not yet ready to share his knowledge with other people.

The most interesting thing is that almost everyone feels this. If you wait until you mature and become a true master of your craft, in the end, you will never start.

Cast aside doubts, stop soul-searching and finally get down to business, and not endless thoughts about what is too early for you...

YOU ARE ALREADY READY - GET TO WORK!

Here's what Austin himself says:

Don't steal the style itself, borrow the underlying mindset. If you simply skim the surface of someone else's work without understanding its origins, your work will always be just fakes.

Try right now to draw 10 identical stars or circles on a piece of paper. Did it work?))) Of course not! Man is not capable of making perfect copies and thank God!

Lesson three

Whenever you don't know what to do next, just ask yourself, “What story would be better than this?”

GO AND DO IT. Paint the picture you would like to see; start a business that you would like to manage; write a book you would like to read...

And don't delay! Get started immediately after reading this article!

Lesson four

Sitting in front of a computer for days kills. Austin Kleon thinks so and I agree with him. You definitely need to do something with your hands. Austin has two desks in his office: digital and analog.

There should be no gadgets or digital devices on the analogue floor - only notepads, pens, pencils, etc. That is, what helps you create. But on the digital table there is already a computer or laptop and other electronics.

I thought about it and realized that I also have a strong desire to do something with my hands. I usually write down interesting ideas in a notebook by hand.

I have such a strong feeling that when I simply record an idea on a laptop, it seems to dissolve and lose its former brightness and attractiveness.

Lesson five

Have you heard anything about productive procrastination? In my understanding, this is nothing more than a change in activities. The author of the book recommends working on several projects at the same time. If you get bored with one, go to another.

You'll be surprised, but it's often the side projects you do for fun that can become the most successful in your life. By the way, the most interesting ideas come to my mind when I'm idle. For example, I walk on the seashore or while jogging at the stadium.

And if before I wanted to learn something every free minute, I downloaded some audiobook or webinar to my phone and listened to them while walking with my child, but now I’ve moved away from that.

I just like to wander around in silence - it’s at such moments that the magic happens and cool ideas appear in my head out of thin air.

Austin writes that a person must have a hobby that brings joy. Think about what you really like to do?

For example, I love to do handicrafts and do it with pleasure. At the same time, I understand perfectly well that I do not intend to make money with my hobby. It helps me switch gears, get distracted and just relax.

Lesson six

Fame formula from Cleon Austin
“Do your job well and share it with people”

It's actually simple. Become a true professional in your niche, an expert who knows almost everything about his topic. Of course, this is a lot of work, but there are no easy ways here.

And share your knowledge, experience, valuable developments with other people. Create your own group on VKontakte or any other social network that you like best. Start your blog and share your values with people who share them.

And don't worry about someone stealing your ideas. I personally have a very philosophical attitude towards this. While someone spied on something and stole it from me, I already came up with something new)))

I read an interesting quote in the book. It is a little rough, but, in my opinion, quite accurate:

Don't worry about someone stealing your ideas. Even if they're really good, you'll have to shove them down people's throats

Howard Aiken, computer pioneer

Just create and create and don’t worry about the fact that someone can steal your idea!)))

Lesson seven

We live in an amazing time - a time of enormous opportunities that the Internet provides. I am sincerely surprised and don’t understand how these opportunities can be ignored.

It doesn't matter where you live or what you do. With the help of the World Wide Web we can find like-minded people all over the world. We can communicate with whoever we want, learn from whoever we want and do what really lights us up.

And of course, our environment greatly influences us. Over the past three years, I have met a lot of people who are incredibly interesting to me.

The geography is simply impressive - different cities, different countries... In real life, what I do is understood and perceived by very few.

There are a lot of these amazing and interesting people on the Internet and my circle of online communication is constantly growing.

100 years ago Franz Kafka wrote an amazing phrase:

You don't have to leave the house. Sit at the table and listen. Don't even listen - wait. Don't even wait, just sit quietly alone. And the whole world will offer itself to you.

But you should not take this phrase literally...))) It is imperative to leave the house. Walking, wandering, traveling - all this gives new impressions, new acquaintances, new ideas and thoughts.

Lesson eight

In fact, this rule has worked, works and will work at all times - you just need to be a good person and that’s it!

People are drawn to those who are sympathetic, kind, and humane. It has always been this way. Stay close to talented people, try to be useful to them and make friends with them.

There is a wonderful Russian proverb: whoever you get along with, you will gain from it. I completely agree with her.

I only have idiots next to me, I learn a lot from them.

Ouestlove, drummer

Do you want to be a jerk? Be friends with idiots!))) No matter how rude it may sound, this is exactly how it works.

You need to find the most talented person in your field and thoroughly study his work, subscribe to his newsletter, read and comment on his articles. Try to make friends with this person, become useful to him, maybe even work with him.

Personally, I did this very often and continue to do it now. If I like the project and the author of the project, I do not hesitate to write and offer cooperation. Naturally on favorable terms for him!)))

Help people! Don't expect anything in return! Provide links to sites and blogs of people you are interested in on your resources, talk about them on your social media platforms, send your subscribers links to their interesting articles.

And be sure to take action! Without action there is no result. By and large, nothing happens without action. And be prepared for the fact that not everyone will like what you do. It is quite possible that you will be criticized, maybe even insulted.

The secret is to simply not notice it all - to ignore it, in other words. And this is only possible if you are too busy with your business.

And a few words about dark times... Absolutely all people have them. How to experience them? It’s very simple - collect laudatory reviews and in moments of despair and when you want to throw everything to hell - just re-read them. This is exactly what Austin Kleon advises to do. I do this myself.

When it’s hard and sad for me, I re-read sincere letters from complete strangers to me, in which they thank me for the knowledge that I share, and the charge of motivation and self-confidence that they receive from me. This is incredibly inspiring and gives strength to move on, no matter what.

Lesson nine

Here's what Austin Kleon himself writes about himself:

I'm a boring person, I work nine to five, I live in a quiet suburb with my wife and dog. That romantic image of a brilliant creator, obsessed with drugs, hanging around and sleeping with everyone, has long gone out of fashion. This is for supermen and those who want to die young. The point is simple: creativity requires an enormous amount of energy. By wasting it on nonsense, you will leave nothing for creativity.

Therefore, my friends, take care of yourself!)))

We need to learn how to manage money wisely, because money is not what we earn, but what we save.

How often do we make completely unnecessary purchases, dictated to us by the far-fetched “needs” of consumer society. In his book, Kleon urges not to borrow and spend money very carefully and wisely. I agree with him.

And, of course, you shouldn’t do rash things and quit your main job. It will provide for your life, give you new acquaintances, new ideas and, of course, set a certain regime.

Personally, I am not one of those people who rushes headlong to change something in their life. Only after completing several online courses on remote work, I decided to leave my main job and earn money exclusively remotely.

At the same time, I was completely confident that freelancing would feed me and provide me with a standard of living no worse than it was offline.

And, of course, you need to say a few words about the daily routine. Here's what Austin himself says about this:

Having and sticking to a schedule can be even more important than having plenty of free time.

Many people cannot work remotely for the simple reason that they are not able to organize their day.

When working for hire offline, they are subject to the schedule dictated by their employer. Organizing their day on their own is an impossible task for them. There seems to be a lot of time, but it is wasted in vain.

Ideally, the main job should pay well, not be “hard labor” and leave energy for your project in your free time. Finding such a job is not easy, but it is possible.

Another great idea I read in this book is to get yourself a calendar. Writing one unique post a day to your VKontakte group is a completely feasible task that anyone can cope with. But doing this 365 days a year is already a challenge for many.

So, a calendar can become an attribute that will help you plan your work, set clear and specific goals and work very persistently towards them. The idea is great and I will definitely use it.

There is also great advice in the book - to start a logbook in which you can note all the things you do during the day. And these don’t have to be work- or business-related matters.

What book did you read today, what movie did you watch, what new funny thought did your child express - anything that touched or amazed you. I'll try to keep a logbook like this and see what comes of it...)))

And of course, you need to find your soulmate and take this search very seriously. By and large, this is the most important decision in our lives. I think that hardly anyone will argue with this statement.

Finding a person who will be your friend, partner and love of your life is great happiness and great luck.

Lesson ten

Today, each of us receives such a huge amount of information that many people have the illusion that their resources and capabilities are unlimited.

Actually this is not true! You need to learn to understand what you need to get rid of, be able to discard everything unnecessary and concentrate on what is most important. My personal experience is that this is very difficult to do, but I try.

So I “retold” to you those 10 lessons of creative self-expression that a very young artist, Austin Kleon, gave us. “So what now, after reading the book?” - you ask…

If you're really curious about "WHAT NOW?" watch this short video that I specially recorded for you, my dear readers.

I would be very grateful if you write in the comments which of the 10 lessons of creative self-expression from Austin Kleon seems the most significant to you.

Ten tips from AUSTIN KLEON's book "STEP LIKE AN ARTIST", in which the author analyzes how to create something new using the experience and developments of people of the past.

This book was born out of a lecture that Austin Kleon gave at New York University. He gave students ten pieces of advice that he wished he had received when he was an aspiring artist. The text of the lecture hit the Internet and began to spread at incredible speed.

1. Steal like an artist

When an artist is asked where he gets his ideas, the honest artist answers: “I steal them.” There is only what is worthy of being borrowed and what is not.

There is nothing original. When people call something original, they simply haven't figured out where it came from. Every artist knows that nothing comes out of the void(like a physicist, by the way). When you stop trying to be completely original and start paying attention to other people's work, you stop trying to create something out of nothing.

Let you be consoled by the fact that even the idea that you stole was also stolen not in its pure form, but embellished and reworked. And that's okay.

The book contains quotes from David Bowie, Andre Gide, from the Bible - this should make it clear that even this advice was not invented recently, but has existed for a long time.

An analogy with genetics is given. You carry the traits of your parents, but you are a unique individual.

The same thing happens with ideas. Two already existing ideas give birth to a third, unique, inimitable one.

Of course, when we talk about borrowing, we do not mean plagiarism or theft of entire passages, paragraphs, plots or dialogues. You should be interested in the idea.

2. Don't wait to figure it out. Get to work!

Many people make the mistake of believing that they cannot give anything to the world until they understand themselves and understand how the world works. You are already ready. Get down to business.

If you are scared, here is a consolation for you - everyone is scared.

Play creativity until you start creating. Pretend to be an artist, writer, designer until you really become one.

Learn by copying. This is how great artists learn. They copy thousands of times until fine art becomes their second self, and only then they begin to create amazing things. However, when copying, always think about how to improve your copy.

Add to it, play with meaning and ideas. Besides, the human hand is not capable of creating a perfect copy; you will still do everything a little differently. Even the Beatles started out doing covers.

It is important to understand two things.When copying, it is important to decide who to copy and what to copy.

Whom- everything is simple here. Whatever you like.
What- don’t steal the style as such, steal the way of thinking.

Besides, if you steal from one, you will be called a plagiarist; if you steal from many, you will be called a creative person.

The next step to a breakthrough in any creativity is imitation. After copying, it is she who comes. It is the failure to copy your ideal that makes you unique. And now you no longer imitate, but transform.

3. Write a book that you would want to read yourself

Best advice: write not about what you know well, but about what you want. Write music that you want to listen to, pictures that you want to look at.

4. Use your hands

The further you are from the computer, the better the ideas become. Writing becomes a purely physical process when you write on a computer. It is important to feel the ink, lay out the papers on the table and sort through them.

Art that comes only from the head cannot be truly good. Involve your body in the work, you should feel it completely. Use your hands.

5. Use side projects and hobbies

Very often, it is from third-party projects that masterpieces emerge. They may seem insignificant at first, just a game - this is largely why they shoot.

Hobbies are even better. A hobby is purely for oneself, not for someone else. Therefore, you relax, do not feel fear and are ready to do any stupid things, to go very far in your fantasies.

After all, no one will judge you, this is your world. And so you think, and an amazing idea grows out of your hobby and begins to acquire muscles.

6. Do something good and post it where people will see it.

Soon after completing your education you will realize thatthe world doesn't care about your ideas. It's cruel, but that's how it is.

You need to take two steps.

First- create a project. It's difficult, but remember all the other tips and you'll be able to get it done.

Second- place the project where people will see it. Just 10 years ago this was a huge problem, but now it is not. Post it where it can be appreciated.

Just two simple steps.

7. Geography no longer rules us

You can be happy where you live, and that's great. What's even better is that the people you decide to create projects with may live on the other side of the globe.All life is random.

8. Be a good person

The main thing is not to become famous and rich, but to be happy and surrounded by people who value and love you.The golden rule worked before, but now it works even better. Speak well of people, it can't be too much.

9. Be boring

When you are doing a project, be boring and boring, because the work needs to be done. The rest of the time you can be whatever you want.

The image of a bohemian artist using drugs is either fictitious or does not bring any pleasure to those living such a lifestyle. Live simply , start a diary.

Art requires gradual work. Write at least a page a day and you will write a whole book in a year. And you will have a lot of time for entertainment and reasons to enjoy life.

10. Creativity - rejection of unnecessary things

This is especially important in our age of information technology. We have so many temptations that it is very easy to succumb to them and live an aimless life.

Dedicating yourself to something means giving up other things. This is true for art as well. Understand what you need to include in your life and what you need to let go of.published . If you have any questions about this topic, ask them to the experts and readers of our project .