The Creative Act

Many famed music producers are known for a particular sound that has its day and then ages out. Rick Rubin is known for something else: creating a space where artists of all different genres and traditions can home in on who they really are and what they really offer. He has made a practice of helping people transcend their self-imposed expectations in order to reconnect with a state of innocence from which the surprising becomes inevitable.

Over the years, as he has thought deeply about where creativity comes from and where it doesn't, he has learned that being an artist isn't about your specific output; it's about your relationship to the world. Creativity has a place in everyone's life, and everyone can make that place larger. In fact, there are few more important responsibilities.

The Creative Act is a beautiful and generous course of study that illuminates the path of the artist as a road we all can follow. It distils the wisdom gleaned from a lifetime's work into a luminous reading experience that puts the power to create moments - and lifetimes - of exhilaration and transcendence within closer reach for all of us.

Short-listed for Waterstones Book of the Year 2023 (UK) Nominated for Grammy Award for Best Audio Book, Narration & Storytelling Recording 2024 (United States)

“You'll probably read this extraordinary book four times. The first time, you'll gobble it up. The second time, you'll savour it. The third time, you'll take notes in the margins. But the fourth time, the fourth time it will be part of you as you create the work you were ready to ship”

'' - SETH GODIN

'A gorgeous, delicious and wildly practical interrogation of the creative process. A master of his craft, Rubin supplies rich insights, sound advice, helpful suggestions and supreme comfort to anyone living to create, or endeavoring to live creatively.' - JJ ABRAMS



'Rick Rubin is the definition of a creative genius and he has put his wisdom in one place and it is possibly the most inspiring book on creativity I have ever read. The Creative Act is up there with Anne Lamott's Bird by Bird and Stephen King's On Writing...The advice in here is brilliant... For those wanting to feel some new life and confidence in their creative bones, this book is a godsend.' - MATT HAIG


'I am reading The Creative Act and truly loving it. I want my kids to read it. I want everyone to read it. It is a manual for creativity and creative thinking. A reference book for now which will continue to be of service in the future. Much needed.' - MIKE D, THE BEASTIE BOYS


'This book is a companion to anyone on the creative path; for me, Rick Rubin's attention, consideration, ideas have dug themselves down deep into my consciousness and grown with my work, so that over time, I have found myself in the shelter of a huge resplendent tree, and remembered that it all started with a word or two from a person who really, really listened. May it start something similar in you.' - KAE TEMPEST

Rick Rubin is a nine-time GRAMMY-winning producer, named one of the '100 Most Influential People in the World' by TIME and 'The most successful producer in any genre' by Rolling Stone. He has collaborated with artists from Tom Petty to Adele, Johnny Cash to Red Hot Chili Peppers, Beastie Boys to Slayer, Kanye West to The Strokes, System of a Down to Jay-Z.

From the legendary music producer, a master at helping people connect with the wellsprings of their creativity, comes a beautifully crafted book many years in the making that offers that same deep wisdom to all of us. Many famed music producers are known for a particular sound that has its day and then ages out. Rick Rubin is known for something else: creating a space where artists of all different genres and traditions can home in on who they really are and what they really offer. He has made a practice of helping people transcend their self-imposed expectations in order to reconnect with a state of innocence from which the surprising becomes inevitable. Over the years, as he has thought deeply about where creativity comes from and where it doesn't, he has learned that being an artist isn't about your specific output; it's about your relationship to the world. Creativity has a place in everyone's life, and everyone can make that place larger. In fact, there are few more important responsibilities. The Creative Act is a beautiful and generous course of study that illuminates the path of the artist as a road we all can follow. It distils the wisdom gleaned from a lifetime's work into a luminous reading experience that puts the power to create moments - and lifetimes - of exhilaration and transcendence within closer reach for all of us.

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