1,001 Ways to Be Creative: A Little Book of Everyday Inspiration By: Barbara Ann Kipfer | Book Review

1,001 Ways To Be Creative

By: Barbara Ann Kipfer

Genre: Self-help, Nonfiction, Creativity

Rating: 5 stars

Publisher: National Geographic

Release Date: March 27, 2018

Synopsis:
Best-selling author Dr. Barbara Ann Kipfer is back with a new, beautifully illustrated book that will help you break free from to-do lists and find time to think and live more creatively. The third entry in Kipfer’s successful 1,001 Ways series, this interactive list book will inspire anyone looking to unleash their creative genius.

In today’s overscheduled world, there is often little room for creativity in our daily lives. 1,001 Ways to Be Creative shows you how to set your brain free, and will help you find the time and energy to play, dream, imagine, breathe, and explore. This inspirational book of lists offers a treasure trove of ways to bring a little creativity into your life, including ideas for innovative things to do, practical tips, and thought-provoking quotes. Interactive prompts inspire art projects, storytelling, innovative thinking, seeing like an artist, and more. With this energizing book by your side, your next Big Idea could be just around the corner!

Thoughts:

Just grazing though this book sparked it’s own independent burst of inspiration. I intended to only pick out 20 creative spurs that caught my eye right away. However, I quickly became so immersed with the passages and ideas that I lost track of how many I marked down to try.

There really isn’t any one way of approaching these ideas based on a person’s creative venture and like the author states in the introduction, you really can just skip around in this book until you find the best ideas that speak to you. For now, here are some of my favorites (with quotes):

#523: The first step to controlling you destiny is to imagine it.

#600: Can you play any song on an instrument? Try to expand your repertoire. — Considering it’s been a while since I picked up my guitar and viola or even touched my keyboard, this one put a few things into perspective. I need to play more.

#596: Use popular culture to inspire your work. —This one jumped out at me because doing this takes me outside of my comfort zone when it comes to how I approached my creative projects, so this would definitely be an interesting one for me.

#557: Choose a creative project with the express purpose of learning something about yourself.

Quote: “They’re only crayons. You didn’t fear them in Kindergarten, why fear them now?” Huge MacLeod

#492: How would you like to contribute creatively to the world during your lifetime?

#1: Play.

#5: Do not look for an audience, admiration or validation right away. Create for yourself first.

#171: Failing is a part of any creative pursuit. (Another one to always keep in mind and that’s okay.)

#785: Write a story about stowing away on a trip to an imaginary place.

#851: Come up with a pseudonym for you mysterious artist self.

#725: Use seven words to say something beautiful or profound.– I loved this one because it reminded me of my haiku phase.

#850: If money were no object and you could take a few years off, what would you do?

#726: Control and predictability squash creativity—Sooooo important to remember.

#781: Start reading every book you own. —Kinda already doing this one ^_^

#622:

Describe you favorite teacher. Chances are her or she inspired you in some unforgettable way. — I’ve had a lot of favorites teaches in my life, but when I came across this, I was sure that there was one teacher from high school who wasn’t directly a teacher of mine, but one who inspired me the most and helped teach me a lot about the world and the kind of person I wanted to be in it.

#925: Customize a crossword puzzle for someone, providing clues that only you two could know.

Quote: “Great Artists make the roads; good teachers and good companions can point them out. But there ain’t no free rides.” – Ursula K. Le Guin

#968: Imagine yourself as an Ant pushing a breadcrumb

#888: Write a plan of action for a business you want to start.

Quote: “You Can’t use up creativity. The more you use, the more you have.” Maya Angelou

As you can see, it was easy for me to get carried away. This book is simply a treasure and has easily become a staple book for me for those days when I am in need of small bursts of creative inspiration and ways to change my perspective.

I would recommend it to all the other creative minds out there as well to have this book on their shelves. 1,001 Ways to Be Creative is a part Barbara Ann Kipfer’s 1,001 ways series and I look forward to checking out the others too.

About the Author:
Dr. Barbara Ann Kipfer is the author of 14,000 Things to Be Happy About and the Page-a-Day calendars based on it. She has written more than 60 books, including 1,001 Ways to Live Wild, The Order of Things, Self-Meditation, Instant Karma, 8,789 Words of Wisdom, The Wish List, and 4,000 Questions for Getting to Know Anyone and Everyone,and she edited Roget’s International Thesaurus. She holds PhDs in linguistics, archaeology, and Buddhist studies. Dr. Kipfer is the Chief Lexicographer of Temnos and has worked for such companies as Answers.com, Ask Jeeves, and Dictionary.com.