EyebrarianPrize winnersGet the app

Books › Make Good Art

Cover of Make Good Art

Make Good Art

Neil Gaiman

100 pages

A pocket-sized shot of creative adrenaline that feels like a warm, encouraging conversation with a wise mentor.

Where to buyBooks like this

What it feels like

Reading this feels like sitting down for a cup of tea with a wise, slightly eccentric mentor who believes in you more than you believe in yourself. It is a brisk, visually dynamic experience, thanks to typography that dances across the page and mirrors the rhythmic, conversational flow of the prose. The atmosphere is deeply intimate and relentlessly hopeful, acknowledging the very real terrors of imposter syndrome and spectacular failure before gently pushing you past them. It doesn't offer rigid rules, but rather a warm, energizing permission slip to make mistakes and break boundaries. Perfect for anyone staring down a blank page or a life transition, it leaves you feeling creatively invincible and eager to get to work.

Mood
  • uplifting
  • hopeful
  • energizing
  • intimate
Tone
  • encouraging
  • earnest
  • wry
  • conversational
  • inspiring
Pace
brisk
Themes
creative resilience · embracing failure · imposter syndrome · artistic integrity · the power of imagination
The writing
Conversational, rhythmic, and deeply accessible, elevated by striking, playful typography that turns the words into visual art.
The arc
Moves from relatable vulnerability and career uncertainty to a soaring, empowering call to action.
Who it's for
Anyone facing a creative block, graduating students, or artists needing a gentle but firm push to keep making things.

About the book

In May 2012, bestselling author Neil Gaiman delivered the commencement address at Philadelphia's University of the Arts, in which he shared his thoughts about creativity, bravery, and strength. He encouraged the fledgling painters, musicians, writers, and dreamers to break rules and think outside the box. Most of all, he encouraged them to make good art. This book, designed by renowned graphic artist Chip Kidd, contains the full text of Gaiman's inspiring speech.--From publisher description.

Description from Open Library.

Books like Make Good Art

See why they match