Steal Like an Artist

The older I get, the more introspective and introverted I become. Tonight is no exception. The last few weeks have been taxing on my mind, body, and spirit, so I retreat from the world,escape to the comforts of home, don my favorite flannel pajamas, curl up under the covers with a mitten kitten, disconnect from the virtual world for awhile, and read a few books cover to cover. My goal is to read 100 books in 2012. I'm in the 50-something range, which is still more than in past reading challenges, but the year is winding down.

While I was waiting to pick up Steve, I sauntered into the public 'bary and picked up a book entitled Steal Like an Artist: 10 Things Nobody Told You About Being Creative by Austin Kleon. The title piqued my interest, as my professor in my D511 Magazine Writing and Editing has been advising us to steal the words of writers shamelessly for the writer's toolbox. (There's a difference, mind you, between stealing ideas and plagiarism.) With plagiarism, a person is lifting someone's work directly and passing it as one's own. Using ideas and writerly techniques is completely fine. Writers do it all the time. Every time I use the word saunter, I am giving a literary nod to Thoreau.

Austin Kleon wrote a book of poetry called Newspaper Blackout and he has a website: http://www.austinkleon.com. I'm going to check out his other book and his website. I highly recommend this book.