Letters To A Young Artist Book Review: 5 Lessons Every Creative Needs
It’s time for a Letters To A Young Artist book review! I truly loved this book by Anna Deavere Smith. Just like I think every artist should see the Alicia Keys exhibit, I also believe that every artist should read this book. If you don’t have the book yet, I gotchu. Today, I am going to go through 5 lessons I learned from this book that I feel like every creative needs:
1. Sharing You Creativity Is About Service
Can I be vulnerable for a second? This week I feel like I lost the plot around the purpose of creating. I started to make it about “me, me, me, me” instead of about helping others. I got caught in the hamster wheel of comparison. Seeing people’s content online and wondering why mine wasn’t as good as theirs. Comparing numbers. Being dissapointed when my views were low. Aka I lost the plot. Then I read a quote in the book on page 203 that said
“Are you becoming an artist because you want the world to look at you? Or are you becoming an artist because you would like to use your ability to attract attention – and the ability to get people to look at your work – in order to cause them to see themselves and the world differently through you?”
Wow. That snatched me up and reminded that sharing my creativity was never supposed to be about my ego and uplfiting me. It was always supposed to be about uplifting others. So my challenge to you is – how will you use your creativity to serve someone today?
2. Your Creativity Is A Gift. Treat It Like So
When you receive a gift from someone what do you do with it? Do you throw it away? Or do you express thanks and then use it? I started thinking about this because on page 36 she quoted a professional dancer, Judith Jamison who said “This gift and I believe it’s a gift. if I forget it’s a gift it will go away”.
I had to add this in this Letters To A Young Artist book review because this quote reminds me that our gifts are meant to be used. As she said in the book, we are meant to be immersed in our gifts. We were not given gifts by God to hide. We were given them to be used. Use your gift and watch it grow. Don’t and watch it die.
3. Cultivating Creativity Requires Disicpline
Not gonna lie – I have HATED messages about discipline. Especially because often time it takes away social contexts. For example, if someone is financially constrained, dealing with trauamatic situations, etc. It creates a narrative of “you don’t care enough. you are lazy.” I’ve come to realize that narrative can be more harmful than helfpul. But there was a quote on page 173 that stuck out to me –
“Faith requires discipline. And a lot of imagination”.
I feel like this definition of discipline is different. It’s about continually growing & cultivating the gift of creativity – no matter what. No matter if people are liking your posts or not, no matter if people are complimenting your singing voice, your writing, etc. Discipline is about going forward even if you don’t receive the validation to do so. Faith is discipline plus dreaming of what could be in the future.
4. Detach Your Creativity From Your Self-Esteem
I can’t believe I almost forgot to share this quote on page 28 in this Letters From A Young Artist book review:
“You can’t base your self-esteem on how well your work is selling or on how well it’s received”.
This week I haven’t been doing this. When videos or posts did not do well or when I lost followers I thought, “Is there something wrong with me? Is it my voice?” Or even after singing in public, if people don’t compliment me I think “Oh that didn’t do well. Ugh I am not good at anything”. Raise your hand if you can relate. But this quote challenges that. It’s basically saying how well your art does in other people’s eyes has nothing to do with who you are. My therapist also encouraged me to start thinking about believing in the beauty of my work regardless of whether others do. Basically, before I share my art/creativity I should think, “I like this. It doesn’t matter what others think”. Easier said than done. But maybe the only applause we need is our own instead of others
5. Do It Afraid
My youtube video tomorrow is about this concept of “doing it afraid”. There is a part in the book where she talks about chains we may deal with as artists. There is the chains of racial prejudice, fear, poverty, wealth, etc. Oftentimes we let these chains prevent us from moving forward. But she challenges that. On page 158, she says,
“Our chains are a real part of our caft. But always, our passion must be greater than the chains”.
This week I have been ridden with the chains of anxiety, chains of not feeling good enough, chains of fears, etc. Me writing this article is me actively fighting against the chains.
So I am ending this Letters To A Young Artist book review with this one question. What chains are stopping your creativity and how are you actively creating despite those chains?
