Books by Inspiring Artists to Keep You Motivated All Year
Right about now is when many people let go of their New Year's Resolutions. But that doesn't have to be you! Here is a list of books by and about artists to fill your head throughout the year and keep you motivated and inspired.
You have goals for the year and want to stick to them. But right about now it’s easy to lose motivation.
One remedy is to fill your head with inspiring stories from artists that you admire.
Look, I get it, reading is not always as convenient as doomscrolling, but it is way more nourishing.
I asked over a hundred creatives and artists who are all active in their field and have been for years. These are the three dozen books that inspire them and have stayed with them. Do you have some you’d like to add to the list? Comment below!
A quick note about this list:
Links go to bookshop.org instead of Amazon. The authors get a higher royalty fee, bookshop.org helps indie bookstores throughout the country, you get a nice book, and Downstage Media gets a small fraction of the sale. Many people benefit. You know who doesn’t benefit? Jeff Bezos.
Let’s dive into the top 5 on the list: my favorites or most recommended books on the Inspirational Books by Inspirational Artists list.
Whether or not you spent the 90s in an acapella group, there is plenty to be gained by reading Ben Folds’ memoir, A Dream about Lightning Bugs: A Life of Music and Cheap Lessons. Folds discusses how he picked up piano later in life than one would think from the virtuoso and dives deep into his creative process. He seems especially bent on writing for younger artists, although what he has to say about creativity and finding your voice is valuable for artists at any stage of their careers.
Lin-Manuel Miranda’s Twitter feed - in the years leading up to and just after Hamilton opened on Broadway - was a ray of sunshine. He’d start the day with something motivational, and end it with something pithy and inspirational. And it was just, well, nice.
This book is a collection of those tweets, with illustrations by Jonny Sun. Easy to pick up and put down when you need a pick me up.
3. Just Kids
Just Kids was the most recommended book of the 39 books that made the list (although I’m adding to the list all of the time, so leave a comment with your recommendation) It’s Patti Smith’s recounting of her relationship with the photographer Robert Mapplethorpe and covers a quintessentially creative time in New York’s history. According to Bookshop.org, “It serves as a salute to New York City during the late sixties and seventies and to its rich and poor, its hustlers and hellions. A true fable, it is a portrait of two young artists' ascent, a prelude to fame.”
4. Born a Crime
Trevor Noah’s critically acclaimed book, Born a Crime, was another of the most recommended books in the highly unscientific survey I conducted (I asked hundreds of artists and creatives on Facebook). When it came out in 2019 it was named on the best books lists of the year by The New York Times, USA Today, San Francisco Chronicle, NPR, Esquire, Newsday, and Booklist. In Born a Crime, Noah discusses his growing up in apartheid South Africa and how it shaped him and his comedy throughout his life, eventually helming The Daily Show.
5. Born to Run
Look, here’s the deal. Downstage Media is based in New Jersey. So, I can’t overlook Bruce Springsteen. Also, Born to Run kicked off Bruce Springsteen’s elderstatesman era. After it came out in 2017 he went on to turned it into a Broadway show, won a Tony, and co-hosted a podcast with Barack Obama. This book was the start of him going from legend to icon. Another book that was highly recommended by creatives and artists, often with the caveat that you don’t have to know or like or his music to enjoy his book.
Motivational slumps hit all of us. Sometimes they fall in mid-January, sometimes not. One way to get through them, though, is to learn from inspiring, creative people. By understanding their struggles and how they got through them, it can help you push through your own obstacles. And in the meantime, get a deeper understanding of their creative process so you can understand your own.