Big Magic: Inspirational Quotes for Creatives

I am excited for Elizabeth Gilbert’s new book, Big Magic: Creative Living Beyond Fear to come out in a few short months.  I have been following Elizabeth Gilbert’s ‘Motivational Mondays,’ where she quotes from her forthcoming book.  Below are a few of my favorite quotes from Elizabeth Gilbert’s new book!

“Let inspiration lead you wherever it wants.  For most of history people just made things, and they didn’t make such a big freaking deal out of it!”

“Most of their lives, most people just walk around saying: No, No, No, No, No.  Then again, someday you just might say yes.”

“Keep your eyes open.  Listen.  Follow your curiosity.  Ideas are constantly trying to get our attention.  Let them know you’re available.”

“One of the oldest and most generous tricks that the universe plays on human beings is to bury strange jewels within us all, and then stand back to see if we can ever find them.”

“If you’re alive you are a creative person.”

“Don’t abandon your creativity the moment things stop being easy or rewarding — because that’s the moment when interesting beings.”

“You have extraordinary treasures hidden within you.  Bringing forth those treasures takes work and faith and focus and courage and hours of devotion.  We simply do not have time anymore to think so small.”

“What is a creative living?  Any life that is driven more strongly by curiosity than by fear.”

“Be brave.  Without bravery, you will never know the world as richly as it long to be known.  Without bravery, your life will remain small — far smaller than your probably wanted your life to be.”

“What is creativity?  ‘Creativity is a crushing chore and a glorious mystery.  The work wants to be made, and it wants to be made through you.'”

“Possessing a creative mind is like having a border collie for a pet; if you don’t give it a job to do, it will find a job to do — and you might not like the job it invents.”

“But it’s a terrible master-because the only thing your ego ever wants to reward, reward, and more reward.  Always remember this: you are not only and ego; you are also a soul.”

“This is how I want to spend my life — collaborating with forces of inspiration that I can neither see, nor prove, nor command, nor understand.”

“Fear is always triggered by creativity, because creativity asks you to enter into reals of an uncertain outcome.  And fear hates an uncertain outcome.  This is nothing to be ashamed of.  It is, however, something to be dealt with.”

“If I am not actively creating something, then chances are I am probably actively destroying something — myself, a relationship, or my own peace of mind.”

“You own reasons to make are reason enough.  Create whatever causes a revolution in your heart.”

“Passion can seem intimidatingly out of reach at time — a distant tower of flame, accessible only to genius, and to those shoe are specially touched by God.  But curiosity is available to everyone.”

(Top image via Elizabeth Gilbert)