The Steal Like an Artist Journal: A Notebook for Creative Kleptomaniacs

by Austin Kleon

The next step in your creative journey.

How to use this journal
1. Carry it with you wherever you go.
2. Do at least one exercise every day.
3. Repeat the first two steps until the pages are full.

From the New York Times bestselling author of Steal Like an Artist, Show Your Work!. and Keep Going, an interactive journal and all-in-one logbook to get your creative juices flowing, and keep a record of your ideas and discoveries.

The Steal Like an Artist Journal includes page after page of ideas, prompts, quotes, and exercises are like a daily course in creativity. There are lists to fill in—Ten Things I Want to Learn, Ten Things I Probably Think About More Than the Average Person. Challenges to take. Illustrated creative exercises—Make a Mixtape (for someone who doesn’t know you) and Fill in the Speech Balloons. Pro and con charts—What Excites You?/What Drains You?

Includes an elastic band for place-marking and a special pocket in the back—a “swipe file” to store bits and pieces of inspiration. Because if you want to steal like an artist, you need a place to keep your loot.

Genres: Art, Nonfiction, Design, Self Help, Writing, Business, Journal

224 pages, Paperback

First published October 6, 2015

About the author

I’m a writer who draws. I make art with words and books with pictures. Author of Steal Like An Artist and other bestsellers. Visit my website: http://austinkleon.com/

Reviews

[Lizzy Miles · Rating 5 out of 5]

This isn't really a book that you read but a journal to spark creativity. I had read about it when it first came out but I didn't buy it. Then I saw posts on Instagram by the author of ways that he filled out different activity pages of the book. It looked fun and so I bought it. I have only done a few pages, but I really think it has potential to spark ideas. I'm grateful to the author for everything he puts out in the universe.

[Chadi Raheb · Rating 2 out of 5]

It's probably for the sake of attracting more readers, but the word "steal" in the title is misleading and ethically wrong. Kleon could use the word "borrow" instead; something like "The Art of Borrowing"; but oh no, why would he, when he could easily put more excitement in the book by repeating that knowing "how" to "steal" is an "art"?... Seriously?

There is no "original" work in the world. No one can claim that their fabulous work is with absolute zero inspiration. We almost always stand on the shoulders of other successful people to grow. That's not stealing; that's being motivated, and inspired. That's borrowing, and having the ethics at the same time is really important. Stealing -by all means- is for thiefs. Are you a thief? Do you like to be called one? Borrow instead! & mention the ones you've borrowed from!

I liked some of his points. He really did mean "borrowing" most of the times. I just have a problem with him not even knowing it. Maybe this is his writing style? Maybe he "steals" others' words "like an artist" and calls himself a writer? If I were to be a thief, I would’ve rather joined the "la casa de papel" or some white hackers projects where there is at least some dignity.


P.S.
Kleon could also choose a title like: "Steal Like Amazon".

[Adeyemi · Rating 5 out of 5]

A fun-sized book. The only reason this book isn't on your shelf should be that you lent it out or you are rereading it the nth time!

[blueisthenewpink · Rating 5 out of 5]

I think I have already finished reading this but not filling it. Even reading it gets the creative juices flowing, so completing all the exercises will definitely be a great journey. Probably very good for mental health as well. I don't like the pressure though, so I'll mark it as 'read' here. Read but not done.

[Catherine Craig (Angelic Light) · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a trio of audiobooks, which consist of Steal Like an Artist, which shows ways in which you can be more creative, Show Your Work, which shows different places you can advertise and show off your work, even when you don't feel ready to, and Keep Going, which shows you how to be more motivated to create and display your work.

I enjoyed listening to them, and I gathered a lot of tips that I will take away from them to help me in my work. I learned a lot of new things that I didn't know before.

Highly recommended!

Many thanks to the author, publisher and NetGalley for a copy of this set of books.

[MirandaLeest · Rating 5 out of 5]

Inspiratie overload! Leuk voor iedereen die wel wat creatieve inspiratie kan gebruiken. Ook leuk om cadeau te doen. Lees mijn volledige recensie op MirandaLeest

[Ryan · Rating 5 out of 5]

It's got great ideas. Great inspiration for stress relief or creative prompts for artistic purposes. Great for teachers. You can read the whole thing in about 5 minutes.

[Kayliegh · Rating 5 out of 5]

Love this journal. Encourages kleptomania in the best way possible.

[Magda Papaderou · Rating 5 out of 5]

πολύ ωραίο βιβλίο με ωραίες ασκήσεις που ακονίζουν τον μυαλό και εξασκούν την δημιουργικότητα σου για να μπορέσετε να κάνετε πράξη αυτά που θέλετε !!

[Cameron · Rating 5 out of 5]

Steal like an artist is a liberating book that gives you peace of mind when looking to copy other's works. Let's face it, almost everything you could ever think of has been done before by someone else. This book reiterates the theme of "don't reinvent the wheel" maybe... just... make it better. I love this notion because I do it all the time. Why struggle to do something that someone else has already done. Simply learn what they did and see if you can improve it.

You can take my word of it or you can read this summary from 1-Sentence-Summary: Steal Like An Artist gives you permission to copy your heroes' work and use it as a springboard to find your own, unique style, all while remembering to have fun, creating the right work environment for your art and letting neither criticism nor praise drive you off track.

[Lynna Goldhar Smith]

As a fan of Austin Kleon and as an avid journal keeper I had to admit that although, I love his philosophy this workbook was not for me. The exercises a bit too absurd. I guess the idea is to really prompt imagination but it had the opposite effect on this visual artist and writer. It's one of those things where I loved the book but not the work book. Some might love it though because this kind of thing is totally subjective. Creative imagination works differently in different people.

[Atlantis · Rating 3 out of 5]

Along the lines of the “Wreck this Journal” series this is a youthful and creative interactive journal for the zealous artist to further expand their minds or just as an outlet to stop them from driving their parents crazy! HA HA We purchased this as a gift to our daughter who loves art in its many forms.

[Mabeli Pujols · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really inspirational journal, it has to many different things that you can fill up or just blank pages that you can doodle or write something on

[Rosa Margarita · Rating 3 out of 5]

Al igual que el libro acerca de promocionar tu trabajo, es muy inspirador, te motiva a hacer las cosas más no te propone nada novedoso ni que no se te haya ocurrido antes.

[Sakshi · Rating 4 out of 5]

The writer is telling that there is a difference between copying and stealing. No artist creates their work in a vacuum: all art is influenced by the art that came before it. There are 10 tips in the books which are shared so as to why you should follow these ideas/tips but you must customise them as your art work. If the author would have mentioned how to work on a tip then it would have failed for someone in some particular situation. I read some reviews which say 'how' is not mentioned in the book so this is my thought for them. Because how is different in different situations. All you must focus on is 'why' you are doing something and that drives your inner self towards your end goal.

The most interesting part of this book comes when an assumption about a practice is broken down by the author. I like the way he narrates it that this is what the world thinks but this actually comes out when you do this mundane thing. Here are my 3 favorite lessons:

1. Where you fail to imitate your favorite artists is where you’ll find you own style.

2. Not giving up all of your hobbies and side projects when you start creating your art.

3.You have to dress for the job you want, not the job you have.

What is originality? Undetected plagiarism. In conclusion, if you are loving someone's work , go appreciate them, learn from them, see who is your hero's hero and so on! Keep learning, keep exploring! Never copy a single person. Follow many and you will find your original style!

[LucyInTheSky · Rating 3 out of 5]

Read a while ago, recently flipped through it again.

This is a fun book! But. Being a fan of Keri Smith for a long time this book felt very much like something I've seen before. Of course that's the whole point of stealing like an artist. And Keri Smith might have gotten her book ideas elsewhere as well. Guess it might not really matter in the end - as long as you honor the work that inspired you and put it into your own words, and give credit where credit is due.

But. (Yes, another one.) The feeling of lack in originality is not the (entire) reason why I'm giving this book not more than 3 stars. Are there pages that inspire me, get me going? Yes. Does this book inspire me to go out there and Steal like an artist? Not entirely. Looking at this book you might expect it is some kind of workbook accompanying Steal Like an Artist, but it's not entirely that. It is a fun book, though.

[Kim · Rating 5 out of 5]

I listened to this audiobook trilogy while driving which is how I tend to digest most nonfiction and self-help type books. I would say that it might be better to do your listening where you can actually make notes about ideas you want to explore further. These books and the format are like little bite-size pieces of information, easily digestible things, about how to be more creative, how to organize yourself, your life, and create a creativity practice that is sustainable. He quotes many famous individuals across the fields of creative endeavors and compiles them in a meaningful way with personal insights and stories. I can see how they evolved from tweets, to a blog, to these books.
After listening to the trilogy, I went ahead and checked out the 1st book in print so that I could take my time with some ideas it contained so that I can reflect more.

[Sherry Hale · Rating 5 out of 5]

A fun journal that makes staying in a creative mindset throughout the day easy! It's effortless design and inspirational (not cheesy) prompt pages turned my days into a scavenger hunt. I picked it up along with the original Steal Like an Artist book; it's the perfect pair and conveniently sized to take anywhere.

Don't forget to check out this journal's partner in crime...
Steal Like an Artist: 10 Things Nobody Told You About Being Creative

[Serena Gita · Rating 5 out of 5]

Buku ini menarik, idenya cerdas.
Intinya, mencari inspirasi itu nggak susah dan justru bisa didapatkan di sekitarmu. Bahkan bisa muncul dari hal-hal sepele sekalipun. Di buku ini, kita dipandu bagaimana cara menemukan ide yang menarik. Kita bebas corat-coret dan tulis apapun di sini. Panduannya cukup sederhana, misalnya menulis lagu favorit, mencatat hal-hal yang muncul saat istirahat atau habis mandi, menulis buku berdasarkan warna sampulnya, menulis obrolan saat nongkrong atau cukur rambut, dll.

[Stefanny Natalia · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sujujurnya ini buku udah lamaaaa banget carinya dan syukurlah masih bisa ketemu di web mizanstore. Dan buku ini adalah buku yang bukan untuk dibaca, tapi dikerjakan ahahhah

AKu sebenernya belum ngisi semua halaman dari buku ini. Tapi ngerjain tugas2 didalam buku ini bener2 nyenengin banget. Meski harus aku bilang, aku gak terlalu macem2in ini buku seperti di hias atau ditulis pakai font hand lettering dsb (kayak punya orang lain).
Bener2 murni ditulis biasa kayak lagi ngerjain PR wkwkkwkwk
5 stars untuk buku ini pokoknya (>__<)

[Aditya · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really inspirational journal, it has too many different things that you can fill up. It teaches you lessons that you should be learned for your better future. This book shows in which ways you can be more creative. You can read the whole thing in a few hours. I have a suggestion that it can be shortened and explained more briefly also I am a visual person who needs some scenes or drawings to understand the part more clearly.
it is like a simplified version of the author's handbooks to spark creativity.

[Pingo Rin · Rating 5 out of 5]

After reading three books written by Austin Kleon
I bought "The Steal Like An Artist Journal" as a Christmas gift to myself.

This interactive journal is full of creative prompts and exercises, it is like a simplified version of the author's handbooks to spark creativity.
I did some exercises from the book, and it helps to untangle the knots on my mind!

[Xhn1 · Rating 3 out of 5]

I actually did steal this book from a UPS store. I stole 'STEAL THIS BOOK' by Abbie Hoffman too, and I'd like to take this opportunity to recommend both. They're cute and helpful. Quick reads that don't really saturate or satisfy, but I guess that's why I like a cheap thrill. My favorite price so happens to be free. What, the world burns. Dance in the flames.

[Medusa · Rating 3 out of 5]

It’s okay. There’s some decent advice here. There are also quotes from turds like Yedolf and Dave Chappelle that could easily have been better sourced elsewhere that kinda had me scratching my head. I really like this author’s newsletters and share his fondness for typewriters, but this little book barely makes three stars for me.

[Mun · Rating 4 out of 5]

It's an amazing and an easy book that you can spend your night reading it. It's kinda of a motivation book that inspire your to do different things to go to be creative. It has many greats ideas about how you should work and move forward to creativity. Nice book I recommend to read it.

[Kit · Rating 3 out of 5]

I plan on using this for my Introduction to Design class. A lot of the examples are pretty basic; good for early beginners looking to explore different modes of creative thinking. Not so much for more experienced artists, though I appreciate the “artist genealogy” section.

[Thiago Vergara · Rating 2 out of 5]

Daria 3 estrelas porque dependendo do humor pode te animar a por a mão na massa. Mas como não gosto de livros de auto-ajuda que insistem em dizer o que vc deve fazer, que aliás é a tônica HJ em dia de muitas publicações em diferentes meios de comunicação, duas estrelas pelo esforço.

[Frances · Rating 3 out of 5]

I want to collect (and modify) journaling prompts to use as warm-ups for my creative writing class. There are some solid prompts in here, not as many as I’d hope for, but I appreciate the little inspiration I’ve pulled from this journal :)

[André]

O autor de "Roube como um artista", best-seller do The New York Times, oferece agora este diário interativo, um caderno para manter sua criatividade fluindo e registrar suas novas ideias e descobertas.

[Amr Salman · Rating 5 out of 5]

Really inspirational journal, it has so many different things that you can fill up or just blank pages that you can doodle or write something on, I think by the end of this journal I have some good creative ideas sparked