After I shared the 2024 Reading Challenge for Creatives last week, a couple of people asked for a list of suggested books. Here they are! (Please note: this post contains affilate links)
A couple of caveats: the term “creative” covers people who do a wide range of activities in a myraid of ways, so the books below are about general creativity or aimed at a generally creative audience. I will be seeking out books that are more specific to the kinds of things I like to do and make, and I encourage you to do the same for your craft(s) too if you want. This list is also a working list for my own reference and contains some titles that I have yet to read but that look interesting/useful, so I can’t vouch for all of them 🙂 Finally, the latter months of the year are a little thin right now as it’s still early days. I will add more titles related to those themes as I (re)discover them.
What are you planning to read this year? Leave a comment and share your suggestions! Alternatively, you can follow along on Instagram and share your favourite reads there.
January: Creative Identity
- Create Anyway – Ashlee Gadd
- The Crossroads of Should and Must – Elle Luna
- It’s Never Too Late to Begin Again – Julia Cameron
- The Gift – Lewis Hyde
- A book about an aspect of your creative identity (this could include memoir, biography, poetry, advice, etc.)
February: Health and Self-Care
- Atomic Habits – James Clear
- Set Boundaries, Find Peace – Nedra Glover Tawwab
- Burnout – Emily Nagoski
- Resilience – Mark McGuinness
- A book about an aspect of self-care you’d like to focus on this year
March: Working Environment
- Â The Creative Habit – Twyla Tharp
- Stolen Focus – Johann Hari
- A book about making your working environment as appealing and productive as possible
April: Time and Energy
- 4000 Weeks: Time Management for Mortals – Oliver Burkeman
- The Way We’re Working Isn’t Working – Tony Schwartz
- Mind Management, Not Time Management – David Kadavy
- Find Your Unicorn Space – Eve Rodsky
- Essentialism – Greg McKeown
May: Community and support
- Belong- Radha Agrawal
- Steal Like an Artist – Austin Kleon
- Show Your Work – Austin Kleon
- The Artist’s Way – Julia Cameron (N.B. this is a guided 12-week course)
June: Daily Routine
- Manage Your Day-to-Day – Jocelyn K Glei
- The Power of Daily Practice – Eric Maisel
- Daily Creative – Todd Henry
- Daily Rituals: How Artists Work – Mason Currey
- From Chaos to Creativity – Jessie Kwak
July: Mindset
- The War of Art – Steven Pressfield
- The Long Game – Dorie Clarke
- Turning Pro – Steven Pressfield
- Overcoming Creative Anxiety – Karen C. L. Anderson
- Big Magic – Elizabeth Gilbert
- Start Ugly – David duChemin
- Motivation for Creative People – Mark McGuinness
August: The Past
- The Power of Regret – Daniel Pink
- The Creative Cure – Jacob Nordby
- Why Smart People Hurt – Eric Maisel
- A book of your choice related to an aspect of your past and/or creative experience
September: Growth and Learning
- Finish What You Start – Peter Hollins
- Make Your Art No Matter What – Beth Pickens
- Mastery – Robert Greene
- A book of your choice based on improving your craft
October: Money
November: Life Outside Your Creative Work
- The Listening Path – Julia Cameron (N.B. This is a six-week programme)
- Dare to Lead – BrenĂ© Brown
- A book of your choice about whatever you feel drawn to (apropos of this month’s theme, it doesn’t have to be related to your creative work)
December: Reflection and Planning
Photo by Christin Hume on Unsplash
