I’m not sure how I first came across the work of Austin Kleon, but since I did, I have come to love his approach to creating and, in particular, his books. I’ve read Steal Like An Artist (2012) three times – in 2014, 2015 and 2025, Show Your Work! (2014) twice – in 2014 and 2025, and Keep Going (2019) twice – in 2019 and 2025. I also treated myself to a hardback edition of a special 10th Anniversary edition of Steal Like An Artist. He has now added a fourth book to his oeuvre, Don’t Call it Art (June 2026), which I’ve not read yet but surely will do soon.
It’s hard not to like Austin Kleon’s books as every aspect of them is quirky and charming… the neat, unusual, almost 15cm square size, the brightly-coloured covers, the way that regular printed text is interspersed with Kleon’s somewhat random handwriting (as per the covers) and clever, cartoon-like illustrations, and their satisfyingly uniform internal structure of ten short sections. Reading any one of these titles is a fun experience within which are embedded many nuggets of wisdom, stimulation and encouragement. An Austin Kleon book is almost guaranteed to leave you with the feeling that you have been given permission to throw caution to the wind and get creating, with words, images, musical notes or anything else that comes to mind.
To give a flavour of the books’ contents, I’ve listed the ten section headings (chapter titles) below each book cover and in most cases, included a quote from that section, a thought that I had in relation to it or just some random observation. This isn’t meant to be a systematic review of each book – think of it more as a partial view of the results of the collision between my Austin Kleon’s books and my brain!
- Steal Like An Artist. There are obvious issues that can arise with copying the work of others, although as a means of developing technique, direct copying can be very effective (it was how many of the master painters of history learned their trade). Consequently, Kleon’s exhortation to steal like an artist could be seen as entering difficult territory. But what Kleon is really driving at here is the value of exposing yourself to many different styles, sources and influences and then hoovering up ideas and little bits and pieces that you can then bring together in, or use as inspiration for, your own creative work. I particularly liked a quote from the French writer Andre Gide: “Everything that needs to be said has already been said. But, since no one was listening, everything must be said again.“
- Don’t Wait Until You Know Who You Are To Get Started. My key takeaway here is a reminder that action does not follow motivation, it leads it. As Kleon puts it ‘… you have to start doing the work you want to be doing.‘
- Write The Book You Want To Read. Here, the reader is given a simple instruction that is really a reminder that the best creative work is an authentic reflection on the inner workings of its creator, and not produced to meet the needs of others: ‘Do the work you want to see done.‘
- Use Your Hands. Kleon is a strong advocate of the idea that the best creative work involves some kind of physical labour. To encourage this, he suggests having two separate workspaces – one for physical work and one for digital work. This is something that I have utilised in my ‘home office’, where I now have a small desk where I do all of my computer-based work, and a bench where I mostly paint and create artworks.
- Side Projects and Hobbies Are Important. Unlike many writers on topics related to productivity, Kleon argues that it is good to have a lot of projects going at the same time. A key benefit of this approach, he notes, is that it enables you to bounce between them, something that he describes as ‘productive procrastination’. I love this idea in principle, and it’s certainly the way that I have always wanted to operate, but I’m not at all convinced that it works. My own experience is that if I allow myself to think that I can have many ongoing projects at the same time, I end up being unable to decide which project to work on and end up making progress in none of them. I guess that perhaps it’s a matter of scale – too many (or maybe just two) major projects and action paralysis becomes likely, but having lots of interesting and stimulating minor activities that you can dip into as the mood takes you could certainly be a path to a lot of fun creating.
- The Secret: Do Good Work and Share It With People. In the past I would have struggled with the latter part of this one, and I suspect this is the case for a lot of people. The problem lies with the word ‘good’ of course… As soon as you allow self-judgement to enter the fray there is every chance that you will judge what you have created as not being good enough – certainly not good enough to share with people. I think I would slightly adapt Kleon’s heading here, simplifying it to ‘Create and Share‘.
- Geography Is No Longer Our Master. Kleon’s idea here is that you don’t have to physically locate yourself somewhere inspirational. You can, instead, bring inspiration into your own space by surrounding yourself with books and objects that you love. This is certainly something that I do, as my work/creating space at home is full of books, artworks, and other special items… crammed full in fact!
- Be Nice (The World Is A Small Town). Within this section, Kleon stresses that it is important not to seek validation from external sources. Hmmm… this is definitely something that I struggle with, and to some extent, I can’t always see the point in doing anything if it isn’t noticed and given some kind of positive response by an audience. But, I recognise the merit of the idea – it’s much healthier to pursue an activity for the enjoyment that the process brings than using the response gained to the outcome of that activity as a measure of success.
- Be Boring (It’s The Only Way To Get Work Done). Just do it.
- Creativity Is Subtraction. The idea here is that creativity is much easier to develop when you place constraints on yourself. This is a point that I fully agree with. I think it’s far easier to start creating when you are faced with constraints – a small piece of paper, access to limited tools, a short period of time – than when you have everything available to you, and the results of the time spent creating under constraint are generally much more interesting too.
- You Don’t Have To Be A Genius. The main takeaway message of Show Your Work! is that it’s good to allow others in to see your creative process. Kleon again visits the idea that action leads motivation, and notes that it is only by taking action that you can know what it is you have within you to create. As he puts it: ‘The only way to find your voice is to use it.‘
- Think Process, Not Produce. Here we find Kleon giving another push to the idea of putting enjoyment of process above attainment of output. This is something I always have to remind myself (a point made very persuasively by Keiran Setiya in his excellent book Midlife).
- Share Something Small Every Day. I try to spend a little time every morning painting – time I refer to as my ‘art practice’. I’m not always successful, but I probably manage it for 5 out of 7 days most weeks. Whenever I can, I finish up my art practice session by posting the results of my efforts on my social media accounts, so I’d say that sharing something small every day is absolutely how I do things!
- Open Up Your Cabinet of Curiosities.
- Tell Good Stories.
- Teach What You Know.
- Don’t Turn Into Human Spam.
- Learn To Take a Punch. In this section I particularly liked this passage: ‘Keep your balance. You have to remember that you work is something you do, not who you are.’ I think this connects with the idea that it is important not to judge yourself on the basis of some perception of the quality of your work.
- Sell Out.
- Stick Around. The theme of continuous creative production is one that permeates much of Kleon’s writing. The challenge isn’t to produce one super-duper piece of creative work, it’s to be a person who creates on an ongoing basis. Kleon obviously likes this idea, so much so that he captures it in the title of his next book …
- Every Day is Groundhog Day. There is an obvious overlap here with Paul Hannam’s book The Wisdom of Groundhog Day which I like a lot. I also like the quote from Anne Dillard in this section: “A schedule defends from chaos and whim. It is a net for catching days” although my own experience is that I often tend to do whatever is not on my schedule rather than what my past self told my future self it wanted it to tackle.
- Build a Bliss Station. This is a revisit of Geography is No Longer Our Master from Steal Like An Artist… and why wouldn’t it be a good idea to make your working spaces places that you love to hang out?!
- Forget The Noun, Do The Verb. There’s a common piece of productivity advice to ‘verbify’ the tasks on your to do list. In this context, it’s a case of striving to be a person who creates rather than a creator, a person who is writing regularly rather than a writer, a person who enjoys painting rather than being a painter. Again, it’s all about process rather than output.
- Make Gifts. One of the nice things I’ve found since I started painting about two and a half years ago, is how much pleasure it gives when I gift someone a piece of my art. It’s not a one-way gift either – they seem delighted to have received the gift, but as the gift-giver it is also very satisfying to observe that delight.
- The Ordinary + Extra Attention = The Extraordinary. Kleon tells us that ‘You do not need to have an extraordinary life to make extraordinary work. Everything you need to make extraordinary art can be found in your everyday life.‘. My reading of this again takes me towards the territory of avoiding judgement and remembering that you don’t have to get all of the ducks into line before your start. It’s also a case of keeping your eyes and ears open so that you notice all of the wonderful things that surround you.
- Slay The Art Monsters.
- You Are Allowed To Change Your Mind. Good.
- When In Doubt, Tidy Up. It’s true, sorting out my workspace, or my headspace, is pretty much a sure-fire way of jump-starting myself into some kind of action.
- Demons Hate Fresh Air. How could I not like a section that quotes Henry David Thoreau? “Methinks that the moment my legs begin to move, my thoughts begin to flow.” Kleon suggests that going outside and moving around is an antidote to being in a funk of inaction… ‘But you get outside and you start walking and you come to your sense. Yeah, there are a few maniacs and some ugliness, but there are also people, smiling, birds chirping, clouds flying overhead… all the stuff. There’s possibility. Walking is a way to find possibility in your life when there doesn’t seem to be any left.‘ When I read this passage I am immediately put in mind of my poem Home.
- Plant Your Garden. Kleon gives us a good place to end here, with the following passage: ‘Whenever life gets overwhelming… think about your days. Try your best to fill them in ways that get you a little closer to where you want to be. Go easy on yourself and take your time. Worry less about getting things done. Worry more about things worth doing.‘ I think it would be quite hard to find a better manifesto for how to live one’s life.
