The Creative Habit
– Twyla Tharp

One of the world’s leading creative artists, choreographers, and creator of the smash-hit Broadway show, Movin’ Out, shares her secrets for developing and honing your creative talents—at once prescriptive and inspirational, a book to stand alongside The

Artist’s Way and Bird by Bird. [From: Amazon.com]

Many people in the information economy are creative workers. Writers. Programmers. Photoshop wizards. Bloggers. Photographers. Analysts. Business people. Engineers. And many more. We all use the creativity locked within our minds to achieve amazing things. Things that inspire and inform the people around us.

“Creativity is an act of defiance.”

The author of The Creative Habit, Twyla Tharp, has the credibility to write a book like this. She’s a choreographer and dancer, a creative career if there is one, and she’s been amazingly successful at it, racking up a pile of Emmy and Tony awards on her mantle. Her general philosophy, as presented in this book, is that creativity is a habit, a product of preparation and effort, and not necessarily just a God-given gift that only some people have.

She spends the book laying out this philosophy in great detail. Does it work? Is there meat here that creative workers can take and apply in their own lives? I think there’s quite a bit, so let’s dig in. [From: Thesimpledollar.com]

“Art is the only way to run away without leaving home.”

Perhaps the leading choreographer of her generation, Tharp offers a thesis on creativity that is more complex than its self-help title suggests. To be sure, an array of prescriptions and exercises should do much to help those who feel some pent-up inventiveness to find a system for turning idea into product, whether that be a story, a painting or a song. This free-wheeling interest across various
creative forms is one of the main points that sets this book apart and leads to its success.

“Life is about moving, it’s about change. And when things stop doing that they’re dead.”

The approach may have been born of the need to reach an audience greater than choreographer hopefuls, and the diversity of examples (from Maurice Sendak to Beethoven on one page) frees the student to develop his or her own patterns  and habits, rather than imposing some regimen that works for Tharp. The greatest number of illustrations, however, come from her experiences. As a result, this deeply personal book, while not a memoir, reveals much about her own struggles, goals and achievements. Finally, the book is also a rumination on the nature of creativity itself, exploring themes of process versus product, the influences of inspiration and rigorous study, and much more. It deserves a wide audience among general readers and should not be relegated to the self-help section of bookstores. [From: Barnesandnoble.com]

Now watch this video: TIME: 18:21

Conversations with Norma Kamali
– Twyla Tharp – Choreographer, Author & Dancer