Read This: Steal Like an Artist by Austin Kleon
Nov 04, 2019
“Start copying what you love. Copy copy copy copy. At the end of the copy you will find yourself.” -Yohji Yamamoto
This book, Steal Like an Artist: 10 Things Nobody Told You About Being Creative, by Austin Kleon not only gives you permission but encourages you to steal from the artists you love. He’s not talking about plagiarism here! He’s talking about using art you love as a starting point and then twisting, bending and filtering through your own mind & heart to make something wholly unique.
Through quotes, graphs, thoughtful philosophy and his obvious wealth of experience as an artist, Kleon demonstrates that this idea of “theft” is something every artist throughout all of history has done. He shows that there is really no such thing as true originality and the more you embrace the “art of stealing,” the more inspired and original you will actually be.
We are HUGE fans of this book and this idea. In fact, we do this all the time in our own writing. We take a beat, a phrase, an arrangement idea, a rhyme scheme, a melody, etc. Then we repurpose it, alter it, add to it and subtract from it until it’s something new. When we are unsure of where exactly to start, this is our go-to.
We also use this tool A LOT in our workshops and the results always feel unique and sincere.
chart by Austin Kleon
True, pure originality is another one of those unhealthy myths that we are often raised with.
We are taught that REAL artists are born with their talent shooting out of them like laser beams. You have it or you don’t. And it comes only from deep within you. Anything other than that is a rip-off.
The truth is we are “stealing like artists” all the time, even if it’s subconsciously. We’ve all grown up hearing the same classic songs, using the same Western scales and chord patterns. The music we’ve grown up with is in our blood, and it informs everything we write, whether we know it or not.
So why not do it on purpose?
“You don’t get to pick your family, but you can pick your teachers and you can pick your friends and you can pick the music you listen to and you can pick the books you read and you can pick the movies you see. You are, in fact, a mashup of what you choose to let into your life. You are the sum of your influences. The German writer Goethe said, "We are shaped and fashioned by what we love.” - Austen Kleon
We can’t recommend this book enough. In addition to some really life-altering advice, his drawings are superb and make for a really fun, easy and light-hearted read. This is a great one to keep on your coffee table and open up to a random page whenever you need a creative pick-me-up.
So grab a copy on Amazon and get busy stealing!
Happy Writing,
Allie & Bess
Cover photo credit: Clayton Cubitt
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