Austin Kleon

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  4. Cannot tell you how much I love this – thank you! I’m long past college myself, but this advice is still great at any age.

  6. Well, when you put it that way! Writing a page per day seems a manageable way to produce that great work rattling around in my head. Thanks for sharing, Austin-

  9. Thank you for sharing your loot!

    I shall steal a few things and make them my own only to leave them on the grass in a crowded public park.
    I shall hide near by, dressed as a bush, and watch others steal them, too!
    I shall giggle and glow, while I doodle some sketches of the next generation of thieves.
    I shall chant something odd while I end a good day by artisticly carving your name into this budding branch of your family tree.

    /Valutha

  13. @Mir:

    On keeping a calendar: http://www.austinkleon.com/2008/10/26/get-yourself-a-calendar/

    On keeping a logbook: http://www.austinkleon.com/2010/01/31/logbook/

    I really avoid sketchbook fetish-izing, but for my logbooks, I use this Moleskine daily planner: http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/886293730X/wwwaustinkleo-20/ref=nosim/

    And the big calendar is a squared Moleskine cahier: http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/8883704991/wwwaustinkleo-20/ref=nosim/

    Of course, any notebook will do.

  14. Wow. I loved this. Its not just inspiring and well written, its practical and full of passion. Now I will steal this, I will use this, I will make good work and I will keep believing. Wow. I hope some of you will check out the website for my documentary that I’m working on.

    Thanks for sharing this Austin.

  18. I will be stealing these 10 things, and passing it on to everyone I know. There are a lot of people I know that would love to read this. Consider me a thief sir.

  19. I read this in the middle of attempting to draft a short story for the first time in about six months. Thank you. I know everyone else is thanking you, but thank you.

    I love being creative, but I’m terrible at it. I’ll work on that.

  21. after a long dreadful winter and needing a spark and some encouraging words. This couldn’t have come at better time..

    Thank you

  23. This article was a MUCH needed read for me today. Thank you so much for sharing it!! I think one thing I’d benefit from reminding myself more is “Don’t wait until you know who you are to start making things.”

  28. I’m a college freshman, and also a writer. One day I would like to write books and have them published and even make a career out of doing that. But I already knew I won’t have instant fame, and so I’m majoring in Secondary English. I plan to be a high school English teacher and write on the side and hope to one day be published and successful.

    This was really inspiring and you made a lot of good points. I’m keeping this blog favorited on my internet tabs and showing as many people as I can. Thanks for giving me some hope that I will succeed in my goals. :)

  29. ABSOLUTELY BRILLIANT! In so many ways I feel like you are “preaching to the choir” but overall this was an AMAZING read. So inspirational. I’ve been pushing this link out on my fbook wall and nestling this perfect little digital morsel into DMs to friends all day long! Thank you for sharing. Words cannot express how much I value the info you have thrown out there…I’ll definitely be looking at this again and again. OK…I need to stop now…I’m starting to sound over the top! THANKS and keep up the GREAT WORK!

    Mike

  34. fascinating article Austin,

    I haven’t read through the comments but I’m sure everyone agrees, this is really useful advice. Reading this also helped me set things straighter in my head, ’cause they were getting all jumbled up.

    cheers

  35. I will say, not all this advice works for everyone. #4, for instance, is impossible for me – I have a developmental disorder where I can’t actually form letters properly when I write, nor can I read what I’ve written once I’ve tried (Interestingly, I can still draw… but it takes me a very long time.)

    Getting my first computer was liberating. I’d been frustrated for years because I had all these things in my head, but I couldn’t put them out on paper at all. Suddenly, everything I had inside could be used. Even better, my parents bought me a little AlphaSmart 3000 for school – my grades went from a C average to A’s, because suddenly I could read my own notes and write papers that teachers could read.

  41. Gosh, this is one of the best articles/posts about creativity that I’ve read in a long time. Thank You so much for sharing this with me and the rest of the world.

  45. thank you so much……you just made me so happy..!!!…i’m sure it’s going to help me a lot, well, it already has….i don’t think anymore that it’s too late for me….thanks a lot

  46. Love it, so of course I’ll say what I liked for 2 seconds and then harp endlessly about my minor nitpicks.

    #5 is gospel.

    #4 is somewhat flexible — I use the computer to write, but rather than using my hands, I use my voice — reading it aloud as I write, every version, as soon as I write it. This makes it “real” in the way that handwriting does, and also helps with revisions.

    #9 is correct, but overstated. Artists must be boring MOST of the time, but “that whole romantic image of the bohemian artist doing drugs and running around and sleeping with everyone is played out,” is incorrect. Tons of successful 21st Century artists, in every field, have drug-soaked orgies, and did so at every level of their career. They just do it RARELY, because they work so hard. You say to “marry well,” and indeed a bad marriage can ruin an artists’ career and potentially the artist, but the idea that you have to be married is dumb.

  48. Thank You soooo much for sharing your stuff that is what makes
    the world go round, I am a student at Winchester School of Art, part of Southampton University uk

    Yep your right there I WILL NEVER HAVE SUCH A CAPTIVE AUDIENCE!!

    but I am enjoying every moment although sometimes painful
    NO PAIN NO GAIN the constant pressure but it is paying off, 1st year nearly done all gone so fast!! BIG THANK YOU

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