Great Books for the Growing Creative

There’s a plethora of great creative & crafting books on the market today.

As creatives we can easily get lost in consumption of book content, but as *growing* creatives we need to prioritize books that get us up off the couch and taking action!

When it comes to your creative journey, it’s all about making progress. As you look to build your library, look for books for the growing creative, which will help you make progress towards your biggest creative goals.

Pictured are all the physical books on my shelf that helped me grow as a creative. Some of these books are for inspiration (100 Things to Draw With a Triangle) or tactical research (A Field Guide to Fabric Design). Then there are those books meant to empower you as an artist or a creative.

Three Types of Creative Books

It seems that my books fall into one of three categories:

1. Tactical
2. Inspirational
3. Empowering

When it comes to your creative journey, it’s all about taking action and making progress. So look for resources and books for the growing creative.

Tactical

Tactical books are types of books one might use to learn a skill, e.g. hand quilting, or research a topic. The book, “A Field Guide to Fabric Design”, helped me design my own fabric line. If you are new to quilting, you might invest in a few books to help you learn new skills or make some beautiful quilts. If you want to make a beautiful rainbow quilt check out my book, Modern Rainbow Quilts. (Gotta mention my own books here! They are awesome! ?)

Inspirational

Where do you get your inspiration from? Inspirational books are those books we use to generate ideas for our own work, for example, “100 Things to Draw With a Triangle” helped me envision triangle quilt blocks and quilts for my own Modern Triangle Quilts book. These types of books serve as a reference for when we need inspiration for a new project. 

Empowering

And finally, there are those books that empower us as artists or boost our creativity. For example, for many of us (me!) it’s hard to give oneself permission to state “I’m an artist!”. Books, like “Big Magic”, walk you through that process of stepping into your artistic super powers. 

My List of Meaningful Books:

Here are a few of the books I found to be incredibly helpful to me as a growing creative.

Steal like an Artist & Show your Work by Austin Kleon 

These two short books are really wonderful for wannabe and newbie artists.

Many quilters and designers get caught up in derivative work. In Steal Like an Artist Kleon argues that we are and our art work is an amalgam of all our influences. We take all our inspiration, influences, and life experience and mix it all up and express it with our own voice. Though what we produce is inevitably “stolen”, we can make it our own and thereby original.

In Show Your Work, Kleon argues the importance of sharing your work publicly. Showing your work is important to grow as a creative and artist, but it can be scary! If you have hesitation when it comes to showing your work, check this book out! 

That Little Spark by Carrie Bloomston

Don’t wait for someone else to awaken your creativity! Take charge of your own creativity and discover your artistic voice with these creative exercises. Inside That Little Spark, you’ll find a workbook with exercises designed to help you step into a creative life with exercises and activities. 

As an established artist, I love it because it’s full of exercises that will help me be more creative and discover new things to explore.

Big Magic by Elizabeth Gilbert

My biggest takeaway from the book, Big Magic, is I don’t need anyone’s permission or a degree to say “I’m an Artist”. If you struggle with imposter’s syndrome, perfectionism, fear of failure, or any fear surrounding creativity, give this book a read or a listen. You’ll also find some tactical resources in terms of creative habits and exercises inside. 

Liberated Quilt Making II by Gwen Marston

Liberated Quilt Making II might be more of a tactical book, but through reading this book and making a medallion quilt I found permission to embrace my imperfections and make in ways *I* want to make. For example, I’m not detail oriented and I don’t like to pay attention to perfect piecing. That’s not fun for me! So I tend towards techniques that work with my maker personality. 

I share this book with you here because we don’t need to create like everyone else does. Create using your own maker personality. 

The Artist’s Way by Julia Cameron

The Artist’s Way is my next read! I bought it because it’s a must read creative classic. Personally, my next step as a growing creative is to invest time and energy establishing stronger artistic habits and practices, now that I’m not moving every year… lol. 

What’s on your shelf?

What types of books are on your shelf? If you are new to quilting, you might find yourself with mostly tactical books. If you are ready to step into designing your own quilts you might like to invest in inspirational and empowering books.

When it comes to your creative journey, it’s all about making progress. As you look to build your library, look for books for the growing creative, which will help you make progress towards your biggest creative goals.

Share a book that’s been influential for your creative journey in the comments section below!