Review: Creative Quest
Creative Quest is a look at the nature of creativity as seen through the perspective of the author (Questlove, real name: Ahmir Khalib Thompson) who is a popular music producer and musician in many circles.
WHO WOULD ENJOY READING IT?
Musicians might get the most value out of this since the author was straight-forward with his creative process as well as his mistakes. Other people who consider themselves creative might benefit from the compilation of the writer's philosophy of creativity.
WHAT I LOVE ABOUT IT
Questlove's sincerity comes through in this book. There is no ego, no bragging, no unnecessary namedropping (a trait common to celebrities of all kinds)... just a sharp focus on the topic. This makes the lessons of this book shine through without me getting hung up on the personality of the writer.
MEMORABLE PASSAGE
"Near the beginning of the process of writing this book, I found an article online. It was called 'Why Weird People Are Often More Creative.' The article suggested that most people function by filtering out the majority of information in their field. But a certain group of them cannot or do not. They permit themselves a wider range of ideas, even ones that might not apply to the situation at hand. The Harvard psychologist Shelley Carson calls this weirdness 'cognitive disinhibition,' and thinks that it’s at the heart of all creativity. If we’re always discarding our thoughts to fit in with what’s acceptable, or correct, or accurate, we’re not going to have ideas that leap away from the ideas that are already there."That’s the first point. Encourage your own cognitive disinhibition. You don’t have to wear a meat dress, but try to always be inspired by something surprising—or to surprise yourself by always being inspired. There are endless examples. Each of them is an act of creation."
Many thanks to Ecco Press (HarperCollins) for review copy.
