Creating a Life Worth Living A Practical Course in Career Design for Aspiring Writers, Artists, Filmmakers, Musicians, & Others Who Want to Make a Living from Their Creative wor

by Carol Lloyd

Dreaming is easy. Making it happen is hard. With a fresh perspective, Carol Lloyd motivates the person searching for two the creative life and a life of sanity, happiness and financial solvency. Creating a Life Worth Living is for the hundreds of thousands of people who bought Julia Cameron's The Artist's Way, but who are looking for more down-to-earth solutions and concrete tasks for achieving their goals.Creating a Life Worth Living helps the reader search memory for inspiration, understand his or her individual artistic profile, explore possible futures, design a daily process and build a structure of support. Each of the 12 chapters, such as "The Drudge We Do For Dollars" and "Excavating the Future," contains specific exercises and daily tasks that help readers to clarify their desires and create a tangible plan of action for realizing dreams. The book also provides inspiring anecdotes and interviews with people who have succeeded in their chosen fields, such as performance artist Anna Devere Smith, writer Sally Tisdale and filmmaker R. J. Cutler.The pursuit of one's dreams is one of the great joys in life but also one of the most terrifying. Creating a Life Worth Living is an invaluable road map for this journey, guiding readers as they take the first tentative steps that are necessary before they can fly.

Genres: Self Help, Nonfiction, Writing, Art, Personal Development, Business, Reference

Unknown Binding

First published August 2, 1997

Reviews

[Akemi G. · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this book more than ten years ago when a friend recommended it to me. Back then, I had a full-time corporate job. One of the good things this book did for me was to let me know that it's fine to have an unconventional life. Since then, I quit my job to work for myself -- in a weirdo industry (for some, at least) -- then I even quit that, and now I write full-time.

I don't have my copy of the book anymore, but another great tip was -- I think it was by a painter -- who said something like, "25% of the work I do are so horrible I myself don't ever want to see them again. Another 25% are pretty bad, too. Another 25% is fine; I can sell them. And then, there is this 25% that is so good that I don't know how I did it. But the trick is, in order to create my best 25% work, I must create my worst 25%."

I agree. If I let myself to be judgmental and avoid the shitty ideas, I stay in the safe middle 50%. And it takes great audacity to create the worst 25% -- only innocent children and brave artists can do that. But that is what it takes to get to the best 25% that is beyond myself. This has been the best advice on creativity I've ever read to this day. (And, of course, after creation comes editing -- I am a writer -- and plain dumping. I make sure no one will see my poor 25%.)

This is a great companion book for the famous The Artist's Way: A Spiritual Path to Higher Creativity, which I also read and loved (Here is my review). If you are a writer, you might also like On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft (My review.)

[Falynn - the TyGrammarSaurus Rex · Rating 4 out of 5]

A relatively quick read through, but I intend to go back and work through the exercises at a later date.

A good compliment to the Artist's Way. The latter mostly talks about the internal blocks to creativity, whereas this is more about putting the external building blocks into place to build a creative life.

My only negative, which is the same as for every book of this type I've ever read, is that it feels a little bit ableist. Entirely unintentionally I am sure! But no allowance is made for those of us who do have additional barriers to a creative life.

For example, discussing working to support your art, there is an extensive discussion of different types of work and how they might support or hinder your creative process. There is no consideration for those whose physical or mental health prevent them from working full time and pursuing their art simultaneously.

I'm not saying it's not difficult for anyone to do so, but there are additional challenges that have to be faced but remain unacknowledged.

I would love to one day read a book of this type which is specifically written for the chronically ill, the disabled and the non-neurotypical. Or even different books for different groups! We're all very different after all. Hopefully one day we'll get them.

[Van · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of the most valuable things I've ever read, Creating a Life Worth Living, provides practical exercises for building a creative life. One size does not fit all, and this book illuminates the different kinds of people who become artists and innovators. Becoming a creative person is itself an act of creativity, and calls us to think beyond the familiar rules and norms.

Lloyd does not rely on popular systems like the Meyers-Briggs Type Indicator to understand yourself and how you work. She has developed her own tools applicable to artists, through canny observation and thoughtful inquiry. As examples, each chapter profiles someone who has found their own eccentric way to live creatively.

I first read it in 1998 when it was new. It was like having a coach or mentor who encouraged me not to follow their path but find my own. I wasn't ready to follow through all the lessons. I've revisited the book several times over the years. Other books more specific to the craft of writing have guided me recently. However, Lloyd's book set the foundation, excavating my own values, desires, and ways of doing things. I have been more confident and better prepared to make choices.

I've become a connoisseur of self-help books, and this is the one I cherish most affectionately. I strongly recommend it for any young creative person, especially those who feel torn between what is expected and what seems important for them.

[Jocelyn Paige Kelly · Rating 5 out of 5]

At first I was a bit skeptical about what this book had to offer. There are a lot of self-help books out there aimed at helping people achieve their goals, and the fact that this is geared towards creative people made me raise a brow. However, I honestly have to say that this is one of the most helpful books I've read about the creative personality and gives practical advice about how to create a life that's meaningful and realistic. The book includes interviews with people who've achieved their goals and how they accomplished that explaining the sacrifices, payoffs, and learning experiences along the way. I found the chapter that focused on all the different types of creative personalities most helpful on a personal level as it helped me to see my own strengths and weaknesses in a way I had not considered before. I'd recommend this book to all creative people who wish to pursue a professional career.

[Viola Baldwin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Although a lot has changed since the book has been written, the essence of it is still relevant and the book is very motivating and inspiring to get started with a concrete plan for a more creative future.
I wasn't to keen on all the interview parts in it though, some were more interesting than others.
Definitely prefer this one over the so hyped "The Artist's Way".

[Jim · Rating 4 out of 5]

I found this book to be a great inspiration while preparing to change careers. Written in a simple style with fairly easy exercises to help you gain perspective on who you are and how to determine what you want to be/do. Recommended for those who are seeking positive changes in their life.

[Daisy · Rating 4 out of 5]

My friend wrote this book.

[Shauna · Rating 3 out of 5]

Alongside the super famous "the artists way" books of this type tend to have one or two pieces of solid, usable advice and about 200 pages of filler. The writing style was a little dry for my taste. And I have no intention if doing the exercises. The first half was good, and it began to lose me in the the second half. I would likely recommend it to beginners who are starting totally from scratch, on developing ideas and setting goals. If you are further along on your journey, pick up Twyla Tharp "the creative habit"

[Robin Davis · Rating 5 out of 5]

Well formatted course on finding your passion and setting a plan to achieve it. Really makes you think!

[Nora · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very useful and practical. What it says on the tin.

[Rapunzella · Rating 5 out of 5]

This story is incredible.

[Emily Davis · Rating 5 out of 5]

Yeah, so it's self-help-y. But it's HIGH-quality self help. And really well considered smart career guidance for artists and those who would lead a creative life. I have a kind of "Where has this book been all my life?" feeling about it. And that's not only because it was recommended to me by an artist that I have a crush on.
Or maybe it's just that it's the perfect moment for this book. Through reading it, I've come to re-think my creative priorities and feel re-energized and excited in a way that I haven't in a good long while. (At least since I went to grad school - and she sums up my grad school experience pretty handily, too. "That's the irony of graduate programs. Often people enter them hoping to find a ready-made support structure that will nurture the baby artist into adulthood, only to find a den of hyenas hungrily ripping up the carcasses of the young." ) I really can't recommend it highly enough. It's The Artist's Way for your career.

[Sasha · Rating 4 out of 5]

In brief... I was so happy to find this book. Out of the other books for artists (etc) that I've read, this is the absolute best--granted the others were mostly atrocious. The writer speaks as an intelligent person with a vivacious mind, speaking to the reader clearly as an equal. Her writing style is clever, interesting, and funny, while being authentic and reality-oriented. She really gets the artistic path, and what gets us to move forward in life in general, and so the book has real substance.

But not quiiite enough. There's just a feeling that the ideas start to taper off, after awhile, while the book keeps going. Instead one mucks through long, unrevealing lists of 'personality types.' It isn't just that the book should have been shorter, but that the whole program seems like it could use a little more substance.

Still, very worthwhile.

[Rebecca · Rating 4 out of 5]

I found this to be about as useful, but in a different way, as Zen and the Art of Making a Living. The two in tandem could probably give someone a lot to think about in terms of getting organized and actively pursuing goals. I like it much better than I like The Artist's Way (which is referenced in the book) because it feels enabling, wheres Cameron left me feeling like I needed to be a victim.

[Joe Basile · Rating 4 out of 5]

i recommend this book to so many people. its one of those self help artist books that really puts things in perspective. after reading it I decided to go to massage school to supplement my income and become a part-time artist. it contains interviews with artists in all disciplines and how they balance their life and art. its a practical guide for artists of all ages.

[Arnoldo Garcia · Rating 2 out of 5]

It's never too late to start to live how you wanna live. This is a practical guide for those too lazy (or too overloaded by surviving) under the current neoliberal regime. This was given to me -- I guess as a metaphorical "get your act together" subliminal message-gift -- and I promise to to use the exercises one day soon!

[Tristy · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is yet another book that truly changed my life. Lloyd gives permission to really dive down deep into your soul and excavate your life to find what you really want to do. She helps the reader let go of all the "shoulds" and get to the truest desires. Life really is about living authentically and joyfully and Carol Lloyd gets that. Love this book!

[E.v. Sage · Rating 5 out of 5]

I borrowed this book from the library, but now that I have read it, I'm going to have to go out and buy my own copy. This is one of my new favorites, right up there with Barbara Sher's Refuse to Choose. Full of interviews with creative professionals, tons of helpful guidance and tools, this book made me very very happy. And it can make you happy too, if you give it a read.

[Shawna · Rating 4 out of 5]

Practicing some of these techniques has been satisfying and helpful for me, "clustering," "the adventure book," and "listomania" in particular. An excellent book to keep around, and the interviews are interesting too.

[Geri Hoekz · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a how-to book but it's packed with great ideas on how to do what you love while simultaneously earning a living doing something else. Her section on types of "day" jobs and their pros & cons is especially unique and useful.

[Helen · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was looking for something that would help me explore and develop my creativity, broadly defined, and help me to define better what I want to do with it. This book is practical and open-ended. I'm not really finished with it, but I'll poke through it from time to time.

[Alika · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book won't create a miracle for you to live your artist's life in peace, but it will help you to get focused and prioritize and get clear on what it is you really want to do with yourself.

[Leilani Clark · Rating 3 out of 5]

A good book for practicing focus and discipline when attempting any kind of art.

[Carolina]

I'm doing the exercises that she proposes in the book... It will be a slow process but I'm willing to do.

[Lorraine · Rating 3 out of 5]

I learned what I loved is being closer to the earth. Growing food is only part of what goes into tending the garden. I am experimenting with organic biodynamic earth tending.

[Suzy Eynon · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love this book.