Creative License, The: Giving Yourself Permission to Be The Artist You Truly Are
When Danny Gregory's life was turned upside down by tragedy, he learned to cope by teaching himself to draw. The result was a complete transformation of his life, his priorities, his career, and the way he saw the world. In handwritten chapters full of his lush watercolor illustrations, Danny now offers readers a program for reconnecting to their own creative energies, using drawing as an example. He gently instructs us in the art of allowing ourselves to fail, giving up the expectation of perfection and opening our eyes to the beauty around us. The result is the permission to express ourselves fully and take part in the creative process without fear. Artist or not, readers of all stripes will find inspiration in this unique and beautiful book.Product Details
Editorial Reviews
About the Author
Danny Gregory is the author of Everyday Matters: A New York Diary; Hello World: A Life in Ham Radio; and Change Your Underwear Twice A Week: Lessons from the Golden Age of Classroom Filmstrips, which was named one of Amazon's Top 10 Humor Books of 2004. His weblog, Everyday Matters, is visited regularly by tens of thousands of creative aspirants from around the world. Danny has created illustrations for numerous books, magazines, and the New York Times. He is also an award-winning copywriter and creative director who has created global advertising campaigns for American Express, IBM, Ford Motor Company, Burger King, Chase, and AT&T. He was born in London, grew up in Pakistan, Australia, and Israel, is a graduate of Princeton University, and lives in Greenwich Village with his wife and son.
Customer Reviews
Brilliantly creative--I get it! 
Cheers for the creative genius in all of us. Frankly, I don't understand why some folks need to criticize creativity. Creativity is a highly personal matter. I get it Danny! Thank you!
This is the one I go to
I have been drawing for a few years now and have just about every book on the subject. When I need inspiration or encouragement this is the book I reach for every time. Gregory becomes a drawing coach. He holds your hand when you need as you start out and also admonishes you when you come up with lame excuses as to why you are not drawing. His drawings are free and without expectations. If you don't think there's enough drawing in the book, I think the whole point is to get you to start drawing and develop your own style, not copy his. Even if you don't draw, you will want to after reading this. I think this is a great gift for anyone who "needs something" in their life. This book helps open up new avenues to explore and one never knows what wonderful things you may find waiting.
Looked for artistic inspiration and found an unpleasant political agenda
I really, really wanted to like this book. I've lurked on Danny Gregory's Everyday Matters Yahoo group since Jan. 2008. I heard glowing reviews, I added his blog to my RSS feeds, I listened to all his podcasts, and I watched his videos. I was already aware of some of the book's shortcomings (his drawing instructions are a bit sparse, the hand-lettered text can be difficult to read, and his cartoonish style isn't everyone's cup of tea). Still, I thought it would be the push I needed to start creating beautiful illustrated journals.
"The Creative License" is such a colorful, warm, and inviting book that it was only on the second reading that disturbing bits started to fit together. I sensed a lot of hostility against Israel. It was only when I started paying closer attention to the scattered sketches of Jerusalem and reading the commentaries that everything fell into place. I had never thought to search his blog for Jerusalem and Israel. I did and I was stunned ("I have never liked this country much. I abhor its politics, its arrogance and its disproportionate impact on the global community").
Now don't get me wrong--everyone has a right to their own political beliefs and his blog is where it belongs. I just don't think it belongs in a book on creating illustrated journals and I'm disappointed that I paid good money for a book that makes me cringe. It's a pity because apart from this political agenda, the book is very useful. It does a good job of instilling enthusiasm and fostering creativity.
However, I should mention one drawing that particularly disturbed me, on page 175. It is a sketch of the Old City of Jerusalem that also appears in his blog, [....]. This view is from the Haas Promenade, to the south of the city. In the sketch, Danny Gregory has moved the security wall about 4 kilometers to the west, so that it appears to cut straight through the village of Silwan ("now the Israelis are constructing a new [fence], the Geder, which snakes across the landscape and prevents people from becoming suicide bombers, earning a living, or freely visiting their friends and family"). Is this what Danny Gregory means by "creative license"?
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