The Big Magic

I find the use of bright colours on book covers very intriguing. While I may never judge a book by its cover, I definitely judge an author by his or her book cover. I love the creative use of bright colours, without fear of getting it wrong and for this 'The big magic' will be my favourite book cover for a very long time.

'The big magic' is described by the author as a manual for creative living. It’s a 274 paged book divided into 6 parts namely: Courage, Enchantment, Permission, Persistence, Trust and Divinity which are the characteristics she believes one must possess for creative living.

Using quotes from each chapter, here are the  six lessons I take away from 'The big magic' 

1.    Fear is not to be thrown away, we all need a healthy amount of fear to protect us from actual dangers. In the realm of creative expression, we have to learn to travel alongside our fears because creativity is always ready to inspire and stimulate us only when we have the courage to say “Yes” to it.

2.    Every creative person has his or her own of tale of enchantment about ideas, for some ideas comes as hard labour while for others a fairy dust. These tales prove that the planet is inhabited not only by animals and plants and bacteria and viruses, but also by ideas. Ideas are energetic life forms made manifest to the world through human collaboration.  

3.   You don’t need anyone’s permission (not my parents, not an authority figure not even an institution) to be creative because you are already one. Creativity is the hallmark our species, we have the senses, the curiosity, the opposite thumbs, the rhythm, the language, the excitement and the connection to divinity for it.

4.     The people standing at the gates of our dreams are autonomous, they are just people just like us; whimsical and quirky. They are a little different everyday, there is no neat template that can predict what will capture anyone’s imagination but since the right moment is unknowable, maximize your chances. You must never surrender because thoes miraculous turns of fate can happen to those who show persistence in putting themselves forward in stubborn good cheer.

5.    Trust that your craft loves you in return just as you love it.

6.    Creativity is sacred, and it is not sacred. We toil alone and we are accompanied by spirits. Art is a crushing chore and a wonderful privilege. Only when we are most playful can divinity finally get serious with us. Make space for all the paradoxes to be equally true inside your soul and I promise you can make anything.

Liz Gilbert is a very witty writer, my first encounter with her work was her best selling memoire ‘Eat, pray, Love' and I went on to read ‘Committed’ which was more like it’s sequel. What I like most about her books is her voice; it so easy to listen to and its so easy to tell that she is very passionate about her work.