The Creative Act: A Way of Being

I think the author should have took their own advice and make some severe cuts in this book. It felt like a lot of common advices (I don't know but reading "just do it" advices don't work that much on me so that's that...) wrapped into a lot of American new-age talking (have you tried meditation? meditation is great! You should try meditation!). While a lot of the advices are really interesting, I had a really hard time getting through this one and it felt it could have been at least half shorter and be more interesting (and less preachy).

It feels absolutely stupid to call a book about creativity by perhaps the most successful music producer of the last century bad, but holy shit is it not for me.

I'm not sure exactly when I began reading it. Several folks in a movie community I'm active in began reading it more or less as a devotional, and I started it in this way. I quickly found the writing exceedingly annoying, and the lessons overwritten and cliche.

This is nearly 400 pages of the same basic thing over and over again, dressed up in different decoration. Sometimes conflicting with itself (which I don't care about much). It is written in the same tone of voice as instructional tarot cards and horoscopes: incredible authority without any connection to anything. Gaping generalities and astounding assumptions.

I kept thinking, “this sounds like so much pseudoscientifical nonsense,” but of course it isn't scientific and isn't trying to be. It is really more pseudo-religious or pseudo-metaphysical. After more or less every ‘area of thought' there is a little broken out piece of text that sort of languishes on the page. The spacing is broken up to add some extra... Something. Here's one:

“Is it time for the next project
because the clock or calendar
says it's time,
or because the work itself
says it's time?”

Wow! Deep!


Much of the text of the book exists only to add length to basic thesis statements that really stand alone. The added scaffolding does nothing but subtract and annoy. I wonder how this book came to be, and I wonder how exactly Rick and Neil Strauss collaborated on this. Who is responsible for all this pretension and preaching? It seems so counter to Rubin's personality. It has a religious feel, but in the way that you hear a Recent Convert talk. It's one of the most grating things I've read in recent memory.

There are a few parts that I liked, mostly the thesis statements. If you stripped away all of the superfluous gobbledygook, I feel like there's some good stuff here. I had the thought about 250 pages in that there are probably blogposts about this book that are better than the book.

“The work reveals itself as you go.”

I like that! This is actually quite good. It is also one of the standalone things unencumbered by a bunch of scaffolding written by someone on a pay-by-word contract.

To be fair, my hackles were raised at the very start. Rubin (or Strauss, I guess) talks about “receiv[ing] direct transmissions from the universe,” and this sort of thing I am deathly allergic to. I was also really annoyed with some of the early rather privileged ‘wisdom' the book proclaims. Rubin has had a pretty exceptional life with a net worth of some $300, so some of this external/internal experience talk (around page 60) is rather easy for him to say.

There is also a passage on page 39 that simply blew me away — in the wrong direction:

“A helpful exercise might be opening a book to a random page and reading the first line your eyes find. See how what's written there somehow applies to your situation.” (A quick interruption — see how this mirrors religious writing and fortune telling nonsense??? My mom used to read the Bible like this.) “Any relevance it bears might be by chance,” (it is) “but you might allow for the possibility that chance is not all that's at play. When my appendix burst, the doctor who diagnosed it insisted that I go to the hospital immediately to have it removed. I was told there were no other options. I found myself in a nearby bookstore. Standing out on a table in front was a new book by Dr. Andrew Weil. I picked it up and let it fall open. The first passage my eyes went to said: if a doctor wants to remove a part of your body, and they tell you it has no function, don't believe this. The information I needed was made available to me in that moment. And I still have my appendix.”

Don't take medical advice from this guy. Probably not from the nutjob book he picked up, either.

Rubin's creative guidance is both inspiring and practical in equal measure, and his voice is the perfect presence to prepare one for contemplative creativity. A beautiful and deliberate book that belongs on any creative person's bookshelf and just as often their nightstand.

yoda

This book contains some utter bullshit, but on the whole it made me feel invigorated and inspired.

Just bought a physical copy so I can read it again with a pen in hand

I don't often have strong negative feelings about books but this one was not for me. Maybe I'm the wrong audience. It was so long and somewhat repetitive. The order didn't make much sense to me. Also not particularly groundbreaking. The appendicitis anecdote early on was super weird and off putting and unnecessary and I don't know what editor allowed it to remain in the final draft. It really made me skeptical of the whole rest of the book. This did not feel like it needed 400 pages. Perhaps the author should take his own advice and cut it down to the essence and see how that turns out.

A philosophy book disguised as a design book.

This is a book that makes you think.
I think you might not fully understand it if you don't know Rick Rubin

Rick Rubin looks at creativity and the making of art as dispassionately as it is possible to be. Rubin is highly regarded as a cultivator of creativity and art in the music world.

Somehow this book takes the pressure off the trying part of making art and centers the focus on listening to the universe and capturing what arrives at one's door.

Thoughtful, simple and actionable advice!

DNF, 58%.

Although some of this came off as a little too full of itself, it was an overall good reminder to be less precious about both what we create and the process with which we create it.

Meh. If you have “poetic” inclination to your creativity then this book might work for you better than it did for me. I have more of an engineering orientation to creativity which entails a more explicit deconstruction to practice versus “feeling the vibe”.

Its fine, some insightful things. I feel like this is more of a reference manual than a book to be read cover to cover in a sitting

Thanks Rick.

This is what I assume reading those “You Are A Badass” books is like.

The book has come highly recommended by many, and while I'm a fan of Rick Rubin in general, I must admit that this book left me quite underwhelmed.

The book was line after line after line of superficial inspirational quotes that were interspersed with inspirational quotes written by others. While these are undoubtedly profound teachings, their representation in this book felt like a repackaging rather than a fresh perspective.

I know where he's coming from, but the focus on musicians seemed limiting, sidelining other forms of creativity.

Also what the hell was up with the audiobook version? Chiming bell at the end of each chapter is something you expect in a cultist book, not a serious read.

In reading this book there were no aha moments, a few head-nodding moments, and a whole slew of head-shaking, frowny moments.

Too much ‘go without it how it feels.'

Not near enough ‘sit down, get over yourself, and work.'

Both yin and yang are of course necessary, but it would be hard to overemphasize the importance of unassuming grit, that simple, clear-minded work which actually gets it done. As this book proves, though, it is very easy to overemphasize the touchy-feely.

Creating is more akin to what the stonemason does. As artists we're less interested in what the forest spirit does, dancing about in flowing, sheer robes.

A literal must read on creativity. This will be a reread for me with regularity.

“On their deathbeds, people don't think about their work or their life experiences or the items remaining on their to-do list. They think about love and family.”

There were strokes of solemn guiding words, illuminating and calming mantras. But at times, repetitive and redundant.

I stumbled upon this book while scrolling through my library's reading app. Attracted to the simple cover design and title—and not noticing the name of the author—I borrowed it. I expected to read a few pages and return it, as this is a common pattern with ebooks and me; instead, I was immediately hooked.

Rick Rubin's short chapters on artists and creativity were truly inspiring. The book was filled with such wisdom, and spirituality while never feeling overly preachy—though maybe that's because I fully believe in everything he wrote.

I also started listening to the audiobook a couple of days ago, and I slowed down his voice to make it feel like more of a meditation. I appreciate how he uses a singing bowl to end each section. That's a sound that always puts me at ease.

I am definitely going to purchase a physical copy for my bookshelf. I'm filing it in with my favourite books of all-time.

Absolutely beautiful.

Update June 27, 2024: I am now the proud owner of a copy of this book. #WorthTheWait #OnlyBuyMyFavouriteBooks #UseTheLibraryForEverythingElse

4.5