The Creative Act
A Way of Being
by Rick Rubin · first published 2023
67% recommend22% neutral11% critical
Why HN recommends it
Short, Taoist- and Zen-flavored chapters on cultivating creativity, intuition and inspiration. Suits engineers, musicians and side-project makers; dip in anywhere, like koans, for a perspective shift.
Common criticism: Some find it repetitive and padded, with chapters that could be cut
Summarised by Claude from recommending comments
“I set out to write a book about what to do to make a great work of art. Instead, it revealed itself to be a book on how to be.” —Rick Rubin Many famed music producers are known for a particular sound that has its day. 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 th
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This reminds me of Rick Rubin's new debut book, The Creative Act: A Way of Being, that came out recently. It contains a lot of musings on different ways to cultivate creativity, among many other related topics. He discusses ideas to avoid pruning creative branches…
on “How to find out what you want to do creatively” ↗If you enjoyed reading this, I recommend checking out The Creative Act by Rick Rubin. Reading that book has changed my approach towards work and it has become more relaxed and I have learned to tap deeper into my intuition when engineering.
on “My product is my garden (2020)” ↗Yes, a great profile. I recognised many patterns described by Rick Rubin in his book The Creative Act: A Way Of Being. There are Seeds, often lying dormant, Experimentation, selective exposure to others, change of context, and even the precise Impro prompt "Yes, and..." I highly recommend TCA, and not…
on “Piranesi, Borges, and the Labyrinths of Time” ↗Just finished The Creative Act: A Way of Being by Rick Rubin, a tremendously accomplished music producer. It's a beautifully written guide to artistic work, but also a manual for a mindful life. Savor every page packed with insight,…
on “Ask HN: Any interesting books you have read lately?” ↗I loved The Creative Act: A Way of Being. The book is organized into short chapters, each about a certain part of the creative process or perspective of the author. While I don't agree with everything shared, the crisp and clear…
on “Ask HN: Any interesting books you have read lately?” ↗I'm reading "The Creative Act" by Rick Rubin. It's been such a wonderful perspective shift on what it means to be creative, and it includes a ton of lovely insights on the process of being creative itself. I can't recommend it enough.…
on “Ask HN: Any interesting books you have read lately?” ↗…pattern than highly repeatable line work. Software engineering is an inherently creative pursuit, especially when paired closely with a dynamic product function. Definitely recommend Rick Rubin's book The Creative Act for a detailed glance into how wildly off the attempt to systematize and measure productivity is, in a creative context. https://www.amazon.com/Creative-Act-Way-Being/dp/0593652886
on “Why is it so hard to measure productivity?” ↗…that I read, "Thinking in Bets" and "Quit", were both entertaining and insightful. https://www.annieduke.com/ And tho' I thought it could have half the pages, I found inspriation from Rick Rubin's "The Creative Act". https://www.theguardian.com/books/2023/jan/10/the-creative-a... If you have a creative side and haven't yet read "The War of Art" then read that instead of the Rubin book. It's shorter and that focus…
on “Ask HN: What book(s) changed your routine(s) in 2023?” ↗Highly recommend The Creative Act: A Way of Being by Rick Rubin. He has at least two beautiful chapters on this subject: Completion p191 The Experimenter and the Finisher p205 The last sentence of Completion: We can't wait to finish,…
on “Lessons from a never-ending personal project” ↗I’m listening to “the creative act - Rick Rubin”, the audiobook is narrated by him and he has such a soothing voice , highly recommended
on “Ask HN: What are you reading Feb 2024” ↗…literature :) Two books I like about art: The Hand - How Its Use Shapes the Brain, Language, and Human Culture by Frank R. Wilson https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/191866/the-hand-by-... The Creative Act: A Way of Being by Rick Rubin. This one speaks about how anything you do can be considered a form of art. A book with positive vibes. https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/717356/the-creative...
on “Ask HN: Where are all the touch-based art forms?” ↗Both, but the lyrics and music have to be good. Good book if you’re interested in this and art in general, has a black circle on a gray cover, currently found all over the place: The Creative Act: A Way of Being by Rick Rubin (producer of Beastie Boys, Red Hot Chilli Peppers, etc) Some good albums with excellent music and lyrics: Aurora, The Gods We Can Touch Neil Young, On the Beach Tori…
on “Music vs. Lyrics” ↗I’ve been really enjoying Rick Rubin’s “The Creative Act: A Way of Being” because of how he reframes creativity and the act of creation. Don’t wait for creativity to happen. Cultivate it. Make it happen. > I lack the creativity to come up with "just for fun"…
on “Ask HN: How can I find something worthwhile to do?” ↗…accept that the sooner I will find a way to the other side, and nothing is getting done before then. Reading about Taoism and Zen has helped. In terms of productivity, I have appreciated the book The Creative Act: A Way of Being by Rick Rubin. It's an attempt to apply Taoist ideas in a modern context, but where a Taoist text would say "the sage does XYZ," Rubin says "the artist." It's about finding a way to continue…
on “What you learn by making a new programming language” ↗See The Creative Act: A Way of Being - Rick Rubin He has a couple chapters on finishing. It is also the part of the creative process that he has modified most over his career. You can feel the tension in his very articulate…
on “Finish Your Projects” ↗