Issue 51: Who Gets to Be an Authority on Creativity?
Thoughts on The Creative Act, my week in review + a mini link roundup
You’re reading Worth Mentioning, a newsletter about creativity, motherhood, and discovery. Sunday issues include either a personal essay or a feature; this week is the latter and next Sunday will be an essay. So glad you’re here!
In this issue you’ll find…
📸 A short update on the week (featuring: mid-winter break!)
📚 8 takeaways from The Creative Act by Rick Rubin (and my thoughts on how to approach creative self-help books)
👩💻Mini link roundup (h/t my open tabs and recent screenshots)
My kindergartener was on his mid-winter break this week, and between trying to get work done and managing my preschooler’s schedule, we were able to find some pockets of time for school-free fun. We went to the coast to hunt for shells and critters in the tide pools and found over a dozen starfish (which never ceases to be thrilling to me). We went on a hike near our house, and visited the cat bookshop; we got lots of kitten cuddles and I scored my book club’s April read. The kids and I drove an hour down to my hometown to celebrate my godson’s 6th birthday. Their Mimi (my mom) also visited for an overnight stay, exploring Sebastopol, eating ice cream, and sipping cocktails (and mocktails for the littles). Grateful to have had some one-on-one time with my big kid annnnd also grateful school starts back up tomorrow.
I read The Creative Act by Rick Rubin in January for my book club. The self-help tome for creatives had been on my TBR for awhile, so I was excited to have an excuse to bump it up on the list. The book has gotten mostly positive reviews, along with some pans for essentially regurgitating truisms from other writers or being too banal and pretentious (somehow at the same time). One review states, “Like reading fortune cookies for hours at a time” - which, honestly, is not wrong! The thing is, personal development books around art and creativity are going to have a bit of the ick-factor no matter how you slice it—after all, you’re reading a book on how to connect with the touchstone of your deepest calling all the while there are wars being waged, you have an inbox full of passive aggressive emails from your boss, bills are due, the baby is crying, dinner needs to be made, and you still haven’t sent your mom a birthday card.
When you think about it, it’s slightly absurd we even pick these books up with the urgent obligations of modern day life competing for our attention. But I think that’s exactly the point of these books—to pull you from that mundanity and offer a wider view of why we’re doing it all in the first place: to forge connection (with ourselves and the world) through art, to find meaning in the ordinary, and to, frankly, put the bullshit of everyday life in perspective.
For anyone who is interested in creativity or who spends some amount of time pondering who they are, why they’re here, what they’re meant to do, these books are one of the best ways to access that deep thinking—especially when feeling stuck or uninspired. Books like The Creative Act may feel trite but triteness often reflects a truth in its simplicity and repetition. Rick Rubin is one of the biggest names in music production: a founder of several record labels, and having worked with some of the greatest musical artists of our time. Say what you will, but the man knows creativity. I think when reading these kinds of books, we’re better served not to discard the whole thing because of unoriginality in concept, but to place more emphasis on the singularity of delivery. What about this book works for you in a way that others have not? What one sentence struck you? What concept finally made sense that has previously eluded you? Critiques can be found in even our favorite books, but before we throw the baby out with the creative bathwater, I think it’s worth pausing to see if there’s something there worth exploring after all.
1. Make the unseen seen
“The act of creation is an attempt to enter a mysterious realm. A longing to transcend. What we create allows us to share glimpses of an inner landscape, one that is beyond our understanding. Art is our portal to the unseen world.”
2. Experimentation is forward progress
“All art is a work in progress. It’s helpful to see the piece we’re working on as an experiment. One in which we can’t predict the outcome. Whatever the result, we will receive useful information that will benefit the next experiment.”
3. Unfruitful work is never wasted
“If we remove time from the equation of a work’s development, what we’re left with is patience. Not just for the development of the work, but for the development of the artist as a whole. Even the masterpieces that have been produced on tight timelines are the sum of decades spent patiently laboring on other works.”
4. Test everything, dismiss nothing
“To dismiss an idea because it doesn’t work in your mind is to do a disservice to the art. The only way to truly know if any idea works is to test it. And if you’re looking for the best idea, test everything.”
5. Your work is a reflection of a singular time and place
“Art is a reflection of the artist’s inner and outer world during a period of creation. Extending the period complicates the artist’s ability to capture a state of being…this can be because they have changed or the times have changed. The result can be a loss of connection and enthusiasm for the work over time.”
6. Don’t stockpile your ideas
“A river of material flows through us. When we share our works and ideas, they are replenished. If we block the flow by holding them all inside the river cannot run and new ideas are slow to appear…the recognition of abundance fills us with hope that our brightest ideas still await us and our greatest work is yet to come. We are able to live in an energized state of creative momentum, free to make things, let them go, make the next thing, and let it go.”
7. Let go of the outcome
“When we sit down to work, remember that the outcome is out of our control. If we are willing to take each step into the unknown with grit and determination, carrying with us all of our collected knowledge, we will ultimately get to where we’re going. This destination may not be one we’ve chosen in advance. It will likely be more interesting.”
8. To create is to connect
“This is the call to self express, our creative purpose. It’s not necessarily to understand ourselves or to be understood. We share our filter, our way of seeing, in order to spark an echo in others. Art is a reverberation of an impermanent life.”
For more thoughts on creativity, you might enjoy these issues from the archive:
These Custard Oats with Berry Compote - sounds fancy but actually seems manageable?!
Curious about Facile’s Clove Lip Jelly, hailed as a tinted lip moisturizer (via
)My Pediatrician Friend is a $20/month service that gives you text access to three pediatricians (also moms!) from 7am-10am every day. I would 100% have paid for this in those early postpartum months!
Goodnight Moon postage stamps!
This open link on my phone: The Best Adult Board Games According to Cool People (lol why?! but also, maybe?!)
This crewneck sweatshirt has a very similar look to the Richer Poorer version, at 1/4 the price.
I get so many IG ads for MUMS swedish candy and let me just say, the algo is hitting on this one.
If I was a responsible, organized, adult human I would grab this colorful, simple undated weekly planner in a hurry.
“Better Sources of Inspiration Other Than Pinterest” by
(Emily is clearly much younger than me with much more free time, but this inspired me nonetheless! Real life is RWI.)Someday I will own this absolutely perfect library card charm (though the thought of picking a single book gives me anxiety!)
My 3yo daughter is insistent that she needs this cat dress for spring.
And lastly, this poem (via
)