Creativity is contagious. Pass it on.
-Albert Einstein
Title: The Creative Habit: Learn It and Use It for Life
Author: Twyla Tharp
Synopsis: Master choreographer, Twyla Tharp, interweaves stories about what makes her creative life tick with advice and exercises to help others develop their own creative habit.
Why I read it: Because Caitlin Kelley wrote that it was one of her favorite books ever, which instantly made it a must-read. She described it as, “Kick-ass and inspiring in equal measure.”
You might like this if you liked: The War of Art: Break Through the Blocks and Win Your Inner Creative Battles
(Steven Pressfield)
Highlights: You don’t have to be a dancer to appreciate this book – she gives lots of examples from other creative walks of life, including the business world. That said, her descriptions of how she choreographs and teaches dance were fascinating. My favorite chapter was the one on failure. She used one of her own productions as a case study on failure and what to do about it. The rigor and brutal self-assessment/honesty with which she handled the topic were impressive.
Fun coincidence: One of Tharp’s methods to harness and organize creativity is by starting with a physical box because as she puts it, “before you can think out of the box you have to start with a box.” She devotes an entire chapter to the box and what she puts in it and why. In an entirely unrelated conversation, a friend recently invited me to craft an intention box with her – same idea as what I was learning from Tharp, but different verbiage. Crafty boxing fun will be had this week.
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March 14, 2013 at 3:01 am
michelleatplay
Excellent. All creativity comes from the same source even if we apply it to different mediums. Now I have a ‘me time’ book & a project. Great post!
March 18, 2013 at 1:30 am
Lunar Euphoria
…and the Source springs eternal. 🙂
I’m glad you liked the post. I hope you enjoy the book.
March 17, 2013 at 9:39 pm
Kathy
Cool! I never want to stop being creative. Thank you for sharing this, Lunar!
March 18, 2013 at 1:30 am
Lunar Euphoria
My pleasure. Thanks for popping in.
March 18, 2013 at 1:56 am
Dana
This looks awesome! I’m getting in touch with my creative side big time lately, so this book looks right up my alley. Just curious: how many books do you read in a given month? All your recent book reviews (and links to other reads) makes me wonder if I am SUPER SLOW in the reading department or whether you’ve stockpiled up some decent reading material over time and are just sharing it in spurts. 🙂
March 18, 2013 at 2:46 am
Lunar Euphoria
Yay! I’m glad it’s a book you may find useful.
I’m an avid reader. I used to be a normal person who read one book at a time, but then academia ruined me. Currently I’m in the middle of at least 6 different books. I honestly have no idea how many books I read in a month. I might start counting. I don’t write about everything I read, but I’m going through a phase where I like writing the quickie reviews, so that’s what I’m doing now. Speaking of…I have a couple more to post about. 😀
January 2, 2014 at 5:19 pm
Books I Read in 2013 | My Little Spacebook
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