Creativity: A Short and Cheerful Guide
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- Create Date：2022-08-20 07:52:32
- Update Date：2025-09-06
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- Author：John Cleese
- ISBN：1529157528
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Summary
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We can all be more creative。 John Cleese shows us how。
Creativity is usually regarded as a mysterious， rare gift that only a few possess。 John Cleese begs to differ， and in this short， immensely practical and often very amusing guide he shows it's a skill that anyone can acquire。 Drawing on his lifelong experience as a writer， he shares his insights into the nature of the creative process， and offers advice on how to get your own inventive juices flowing。
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'Humorous and practical 。。。 Whether you're hoping to write a novel or paint a masterpiece， you're sure to feel inspired' OK Magazine
'His candor is endearing 。。。 An upbeat guide to the creative process' Kirkus
'A jovial romp 。。。 Cleese fans will enjoy， and writers and other artists will breeze through， picking up a few nuggets of wisdom along the way' The Festival Review
'A sincere and thoughtful guide to creativity， and a very useful book' Graham Norton
'Wise words on the serious business of being silly' Sunday Business Post
We can all be more creative。 John Cleese shows us how。
Creativity is usually regarded as a mysterious， rare gift that only a few possess。 John Cleese begs to differ， and in this short， immensely practical and often very amusing guide he shows it's a skill that anyone can acquire。 Drawing on his lifelong experience as a writer， he shares his insights into the nature of the creative process， and offers advice on how to get your own inventive juices flowing。
____________________________
'Humorous and practical 。。。 Whether you're hoping to write a novel or paint a masterpiece， you're sure to feel inspired' OK Magazine
'His candor is endearing 。。。 An upbeat guide to the creative process' Kirkus
'A jovial romp 。。。 Cleese fans will enjoy， and writers and other artists will breeze through， picking up a few nuggets of wisdom along the way' The Festival Review
'A sincere and thoughtful guide to creativity， and a very useful book' Graham Norton
'Wise words on the serious business of being silly' Sunday Business Post
Reviews
Kathy England
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Quick read to remind us that creativity can be learned。 What Cleese calls the unconscious mind， I would call the subconscious。 Didn't really learn anything new， but it was a fun， quick read。 Quick read to remind us that creativity can be learned。 What Cleese calls the unconscious mind， I would call the subconscious。 Didn't really learn anything new， but it was a fun， quick read。 。。。more
Toni Lijic
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A keeper！
Susan Oleksiw
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It took me a while to appreciate John Cleese's brilliance because as a society/culture we think seriousness is more highly regarded than humor or lightheartedness。 Studying Cleese's work disabused me of that illusion。This guide is barely 100 pages but Cleese zeroes in on the process of drawing out our creativity and developing it， understanding and using it。 He doesn't waste words on saying anything two or three times in different ways。 He gets to the point， makes it， and moves on。 I find myself It took me a while to appreciate John Cleese's brilliance because as a society/culture we think seriousness is more highly regarded than humor or lightheartedness。 Studying Cleese's work disabused me of that illusion。This guide is barely 100 pages but Cleese zeroes in on the process of drawing out our creativity and developing it， understanding and using it。 He doesn't waste words on saying anything two or three times in different ways。 He gets to the point， makes it， and moves on。 I find myself thinking back to various points he makes long after I've finished the little book。 Highly recommended。 。。。more
Elf
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A whole lot of books have been written about ‘Creativity’ in recent times。 Creativity and Innovation go together these days。 And Innovation leads to Prototyping and Productisation followed by Commodification。 In this sense， the successful discovery of where creativity resides， how to harness it， and take it to a place of profit is， in our times， the key to economic success and fame。 Hence， the outpouring of all sorts of books to be read by all sorts of wannabe ‘creatives’。 These exhortations and A whole lot of books have been written about ‘Creativity’ in recent times。 Creativity and Innovation go together these days。 And Innovation leads to Prototyping and Productisation followed by Commodification。 In this sense， the successful discovery of where creativity resides， how to harness it， and take it to a place of profit is， in our times， the key to economic success and fame。 Hence， the outpouring of all sorts of books to be read by all sorts of wannabe ‘creatives’。 These exhortations and efforts at discovering creativity and exploiting it have been extended to almost all fields of human activity though creativity may need to be figured out differently for different domains。I’ve read several of these books on creativity over time having been involved in the business of trying to motivate artists， designers， media folks and other sundry animals to be creative in their life and enterprises。 Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi’s FLOW: The Psychology of Optimal Experience and Creativity: The Psychology of Discovery and Invention are among my favourites when it comes to some heavier reading。 I really enjoyed Betty Edwards “Drawing from the Right Side of the Brain” and Ann Lamott’s Bird by Bird。 On the business side of it， there was Tim Brown’s Change by Design， Seth Godin’s The Practice: Shipping Creative Work， and John Maeda’s The Laws of Simplicity。 But a most delightful and simpler book on the subject I found recently was John Cleese’s Creativity: A Short and Cheerful Guide。John Cleese has always been a favourite actor， comedian and screenwriter。 I especially admire the way he disses political correctness， wokeism and cancel culture and for sounding the alarm that this political approach will destroy creativity in its efforts to manipulate and control human thinking and artistic endeavours。 Whoever has watched the movies The Life of Brian， Monty Python & The Holy Grail， Monty Python’s Meaning of Life， A Fish called Wanda， Pink Panther 2， and Fawlty Towers will know the power of satire， irreverence， black humour， suppressed rage， and social critique that Cleese brings。In his book on creativity， Cleese keeps it simple。 It’s a small book in terms of pages but packs a punch。 He speaks of the creative mindset， the process of creativity， the potboiling of ideas in the unconscious， the meanderings and iterations， the necessity of deadlines and ultimately the shaping or forging of the final work of art or piece of writing。 The book is strewn with some examples of how the creative process has worked in his life and that of others。 The book is peppered with tips and insights。 Some of it is generic and some specific。 In the end， the whole book is a delightful flow。“You can teach creativity。 Or perhaps I should say， more accurately， you can teach people how to create circumstances in which they will become creative。”Cleese speaks of how he learnt to be creative with the Footlights， a group of people who “put on little shows on the club-room stage， performing sketches and monologues and musical items。” He tells of how he came upon writer’s blocks and the ways and means whereby to get beyond them。 If one struggles with a creative issue， the mind continues to work on it unconsciously and the results appear if one pushes aside the pressure to be immediately productive and abandons creeping fears and anxieties。 The intelligent unconscious can hone one’s creativity and skills if one practices and practices and practices。There’s a problem with the unconscious。 “You can’t order it about or hit it with a stick。 You have to coax it out in all sorts of strange and crafty ways。 And be clever about interpreting what it does tell you。” You have to become familiar with the language of the unconscious。 It “is not verbal。 It’s like the language of dreams。 It shows you images， it gives you feelings， it nudges you around without you immediately knowing what it’s getting at。” Cleese then gets into the concept of “Hare Brain， Tortoise Mind”。“The leisurely “Tortoise Mind，” for all its apparent aimlessness， is just as “intelligent” as the much faster “Hare Brain。” He quotes Guy Claxton: “Recent scientific evidence shows convincingly that the more patient， less deliberate modes of mind are particularly suited to making sense of situations that are intricate， shadowy or ill defined… tortoise mind…This type of intelligence is associated with what we call creativity， or even ‘wisdom。’ ” And another aspect of creativity is that those who want to tap it are accustomed to ‘play’， the “childlike ability to get enjoyably absorbed in a puzzle: not just to try to solve it … exploring， not knowing where they’re going， and not caring either。”There is a discomfort in being creative。 “Leaving a question unresolved， just leaving it open， makes some people anxious。 They worry。” And then there are internal and external ‘interruptions’ that must be dealt with so that the person can get back into the ‘zone’ of creativity。 “After an interruption， it can take eight minutes for you to return to your previous state of consciousness， and up to twenty minutes to get back into a state of deep focus。” He goes on。 “The biggest interruption coming from your inside is caused by your worrying about making a mistake。 When you’re being creative there is no such thing as a mistake。”But the creative person is still bound by deadlines and the demands of work and the specific requirements of the industry or domain he or she is caught up with for a living。 So the creative person creates boundaries of time and space to be creative。 In this process， he says “Let these new notions of yours slowly become clearer， and clearer， and clearer。 Real clarity will eventually emerge。 When a new idea of yours has become pretty clear， is to bring in your critical， analytical， fact-seeking mind to assess it。” At this point， Hare Brain can and must kick in and others must be drawn into the process to assess the work。The creative person often has to “go backwards and forwards between the creative mode of thinking and the analytical mode of thinking until， finally， you get to something that’s a bit special。 This back-and-forth process is called iteration。” The book ends with a section on ‘Hints & Suggestions’ for those who are taking a creative deep dive。 I found this book to be succinct and cheerful。 I recommend that you get it for your shelf。 Read it and then gorge on John Cleese’s films to see how he works with the creative process to create cultural products that are outstanding。 。。。more
Bakunin
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A quick and fairly fun read。 Contains some advice on how to be creative （but mostly anecdotal）。"When you're being creative there is no such thing as a mistake" （love this one although its hard to put into practice） Creative people continue playing as they become adults i。e。 they continue exploring alternatives without expecting an immediate answer or reward。 Creative people procrastinate decisions in order to maximize options and possibilities。 This does not mean that they don't have deadlines b A quick and fairly fun read。 Contains some advice on how to be creative （but mostly anecdotal）。"When you're being creative there is no such thing as a mistake" （love this one although its hard to put into practice） Creative people continue playing as they become adults i。e。 they continue exploring alternatives without expecting an immediate answer or reward。 Creative people procrastinate decisions in order to maximize options and possibilities。 This does not mean that they don't have deadlines but they wait until the last minute before they are forced to decide what to do。 。。。more
Heather
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Such a short sweet book about creativity。 Take your time， play， and trust the process。
Andrew
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A decent little book that reads like an addendum to McGilchrist。 The main message of the book is simple: you can learn to be creative and teach it to others; not in the sense of forcing the horse to drink the water， but in telling others what preconditions are necessary for creative insights to emerge。 Cleese starts by identifying the unconscious， the hare brain （as opposed to the tortoise mind） as the true source of creativity。 We’re constantly puzzling over things and mulling things over， even A decent little book that reads like an addendum to McGilchrist。 The main message of the book is simple: you can learn to be creative and teach it to others; not in the sense of forcing the horse to drink the water， but in telling others what preconditions are necessary for creative insights to emerge。 Cleese starts by identifying the unconscious， the hare brain （as opposed to the tortoise mind） as the true source of creativity。 We’re constantly puzzling over things and mulling things over， even if we’re not aware of it。 （Contra Chater of course， but I think it’s an alternate way of saying the same thing。） But obviously， because it’s only able to throw out answers and speaks in riddles and parables， instead of concrete language， you need to coax it out in crafty ways， rather than brute force your way through。 He recounts an experiment by Donald MacKinnon， who studied the habits of creative and uncreative architects。 There were only two differences between them: the first was the creative ones knew how to play and the second was that the creative ones deferred making decisions for as long as they were allowed。 Play refers to that unstructured way of thinking where there is no right or wrong and pursuits are enjoyed for their own intrinsic sense of purpose。 How do you play？ Remove any form of interruption; remove thoughts of “oh no， this is wrong！”; create boundaries of time and space where you’re able to go wild in thought。 Just sit there and let the thoughts come to you， unbidden。 There’s a real lack of clarity during the creative process; let any thought slowly coalesce， as a planet does in the early stages of a solar system until a new idea emerges！ Don’t kill it （judge it） too soon like a little ugly duckling; even if it’s terrible， it can still morph into something beautiful。 Once your idea is formed enough， then assess it critically and judge it harshly with a mind to improve it。 Iterate these two steps; hop from left brain to right brain， continually creating and tearing down， creating and tearing down， until you’re left with the finished product。 。。。more
Daniel Lyddon
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Insightful and impactful in its simplicity and shortness of length。 One book that I'll likely go back to time and again when I want to understand my creativity better。 Insightful and impactful in its simplicity and shortness of length。 One book that I'll likely go back to time and again when I want to understand my creativity better。 。。。more
Ethan Petuchowski
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Great guy， unnecessary book。
Julie Akeman
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Clever and witty， and a hint of dry sarcasm this is a perfect pick you up if you are having a dry spell。 And also the lemurs are cute。
Jennifer
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More like 3。5 stars。 Brilliant creative mind shares pearls about creativity。 Reads like a casual essay and tangentially cites wisdom from dedicated research。
Hugh_Manatee
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Fantastic and spot on with what I have taught my students over the years。 An incredible summation of the （largely） unconscious process and how to access it。
Gabriela De Toni
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agora é colocar em prática haha
Kate Bystrova
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Like sitting down to a cup of tea with a kind， experienced acquaintance who'll hear all your struggles and reassure you that， "it's all alright， this is the way it's meant to happen。 Now， here's how you make it even better。" Much of the advice in this book suggests you daydream， play， and nap your way to greater creativity – something I can certainly get behind – and ultimately leaves you with a few concrete 1-2-3s of advice to follow， all in the course of an unpretentious 100 pages （in what loo Like sitting down to a cup of tea with a kind， experienced acquaintance who'll hear all your struggles and reassure you that， "it's all alright， this is the way it's meant to happen。 Now， here's how you make it even better。" Much of the advice in this book suggests you daydream， play， and nap your way to greater creativity – something I can certainly get behind – and ultimately leaves you with a few concrete 1-2-3s of advice to follow， all in the course of an unpretentious 100 pages （in what looks like single-spaced 14 pt text）。A feel-good read full of wisdom from the one and only John Cleese。 Go read it。 。。。more
J Potts
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very interesting
Andy
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A quick， breezy read but with some important gems。 Beyond just being inspirational， this book， short as it is， undergirds a positive approach to practical creativity。 Worth reading if you spend any time on creative pursuits。
Rhys Plum
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Expected better Basil
Conrad Keely
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Cheerful and informative。 Only， too short - I wish it had been twice as long！ I think it takes a real creative such as John Cleese to talk about the subject with any authority。 These lessons coming from someone else， like your average self-improvement author， might have seemed hollow and unsubstantiated， but coming from the real deal meant that these observations were made by someone who had actually made a life out of being a creative innovator。
Peter
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A bit slight
JAAFAR Dackan
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I really like how straightforward John Cleese is， He doesn't spend 100 pages on one idea or any of that bs， nice and short。 I really like how straightforward John Cleese is， He doesn't spend 100 pages on one idea or any of that bs， nice and short。 。。。more
Pamela
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Cute little book， more tailored to writers and how they can fight through mental/creative block than how to kick start being creative in general， I felt。 Also felt like it ended a little abruptly， but otherwise it was a nice book that I definitely heard in John Cleese’s voice。 3。5/5
Giovanna Castano
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This should be compulsory in order to write a thesis
Emil Olai
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Short and insightful 🤌
William Jeanes Memorial Library
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I'm not sure I'd even call this a book， it's more like a long article-however， it has lots of interesting thoughts in it。 In a way， it's a better book on creativity and more inspiring it than most books out there as there's less to read before you can get creative。-Patron K。K。 I'm not sure I'd even call this a book， it's more like a long article-however， it has lots of interesting thoughts in it。 In a way， it's a better book on creativity and more inspiring it than most books out there as there's less to read before you can get creative。-Patron K。K。 。。。more
C
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This isn’t really a novel it took only an hour to listen to from the author himself。 I feel like this one just talks about the idea of creation and upon his last chapter is when he started digging into the entire writing process briefly and then ended the novel。
Luis
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Short read， which is good since all the fluff gets cut down。 Simple and clear to understand。
Chris Maats
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It is just that: a short and cheerful guide。 I like how it explains very practically the process。 I recognized a lot of what he describes without having figured it out yet completely， so this was insightful。
Sam
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Short and cheerful！
Gile
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A testimony of a creative man。
Tiago Vieira
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