Show Your Work | Austin Kleon | Cliff Note Books
“Show Your Work!: 10 Ways to Share Your Creativity and Get Discovered” is a book by Austin Kleon that encourages individuals to share their creative process, not just the finished product. Published in 2014, the book provides tips and strategies for artists, writers, and other creative individuals to get their work noticed in the digital age.
Here’s a summary of the book’s ten main points:
You Don’t Have to Be a Genius: Kleon dispels the myth of the lone genius and suggests that creativity is often more about collaboration and communal effort. He advocates for a “scenius” environment, where great ideas are often birthed from a community of creative individuals.
Think Process, Not Product: Rather than focusing solely on the final product, Kleon emphasizes the importance of sharing the process. He argues that showing the behind-the-scenes of your work can engage others and create a deeper connection with your audience.
Share Something Small Every Day: Regularly sharing snippets of your work or your ideas, according to Kleon, can help build a following over time. It also keeps you in the habit of creating and sharing.
Open Up Your Cabinet of Curiosities: Sharing your inspirations, influences, and the things that fascinate you can also be a way of sharing your work. It gives people insight into your creative process and what makes you tick as an artist.
Tell Good Stories: Storytelling is a powerful tool for connecting with people. By weaving compelling narratives around your work and your creative process, you can engage your audience on a deeper level.
Teach What You Know: Sharing your knowledge, skills, and experience can help others and build your reputation as an expert. It also reinforces your own learning.
Don’t Turn Into Human Spam: While it’s important to promote your work, Kleon warns against being overly self-promotional or spammy. Instead, focus on building genuine relationships and contributing to the community.
Learn to Take a Punch: Putting your work out there opens you up to criticism. Learning to handle criticism, and distinguish between helpful feedback and destructive negativity, is an important part of the process.
Sell Out: Kleon encourages creatives not to be afraid of monetizing their work. You deserve to be paid for your work, and there’s nothing wrong with pursuing opportunities that provide financial reward.
Stick Around: Persistence is key. Keep showing up, keep sharing your work, and keep creating.
In essence, “Show Your Work” is a guide for navigating the digital age as a creative person. It’s about being open, being interesting, and being generous with your work and your insights.
QUOTES
“You don’t have to be a genius. You just have to be yourself.”
“What you want is to follow and be followed by human beings who care about issues you care about.”
“The minute you learn something, turn around and teach it to others.”
“You can’t count on success; you can only leave open the possibility for it, and be ready to jump on and take the ride when it comes for you.”
“Share what you love, and the people who love the same things will find you.”
“Don’t turn into human spam. If you want fans, you have to be a fan first. If you want to be accepted by a community, you have to first be a good citizen of that community.”
“If you want to get more comfortable sharing your work, one way to do it is to think about your process, your influences, the things you love, and where you’re coming from.”
“Be open, share imperfect and unfinished work that you want feedback on, ask lots of questions, and answer even more.”
“The world is changing at such a rapid rate that it’s turning us all into amateurs.”
“In the end, creativity isn’t just the things we choose to put in, it’s the things we choose to leave out.”
AUTHOR
Austin Kleon is a New York Times bestselling author known for his works focusing on creativity in the digital age. He was born in 1983 in Circleville, Ohio. He graduated from Miami University in Oxford, Ohio, in 2005, where he studied English and Religion.
Kleon’s work is centered around a unique blend of creativity, artistry, and digital culture. His first book, “Newspaper Blackout,” was published in 2010 and features a collection of poetry made by redacting words from newspaper articles with a permanent marker. This book was influential in popularizing blackout poetry.
Kleon’s second book, “Steal Like An Artist,” published in 2012, is perhaps his most well-known work. It argues that nothing is original, so aspiring artists should embrace influence instead of running away from it. The book became a New York Times bestseller and has been translated into over 20 languages.
In 2014, Kleon followed up with “Show Your Work!,” a guide to sharing creativity and getting discovered in the digital age. His most recent book, “Keep Going,” was published in 2019 and provides ten rules for staying creative, focused, and true to oneself.
In addition to his books, Austin Kleon has given talks on creativity at organizations such as Pixar, Google, and TEDx. He also maintains a popular blog and newsletter where he shares thoughts on creativity and the artist’s life.
As of my knowledge cutoff in September 2021, Austin Kleon continues to write and speak about creativity, sharing his insights with a global audience.