10 things worth sharing this week
“Time is not a butler,” 2014 Hey y’all ,
First a reminder: I’m Q&A-ing with Tom Hart next Tuesday at 1PM central.
I wrote a lot this week, so today’s letter is kind of packed. I used to hold back with blogging, scheduling posts and such, but my approach lately is to just “ spend it all, shoot it, play it, lose it, all, right away, every time .” More is always on the way.
Here are 10 things I thought were worth sharing this week:
Some advice from 20 different artists: Don’t worry about style .
YouTubers Colin and Samir asked me to talk about plagiarism, and the interview turned out to be this kind of perfect 20-minute summation of a lot of my thoughts about creative work .
On the topic of avoiding plagiarism, here’s a great post about how to use reference images: ” How to learn to draw anything .” (Also great: my friend Dave Gray on how to know what to draw .)
The film critic Roger Ebert died ten years ago . I wrote about what his work meant to my work, and how he was a writer who draws! (From the archives: writing advice for artists and visual thinkers .)
“Do you know how many books I had published when I was 40? Zero.” A walk through James Hannaham’s Brooklyn . (A happy belated to Isaac , who’s just a handful of months older than me: I’m turning 40 in June. A reader approaching middle age …)
Hence, a listener approaching middle age: Every new Deerhoof is a cause for celebration, but this is their first with all-Japanese lyrics and it sounds incredible. The new Depeche Mode sounds great at full volume in the studio. I also like the new Yo La Tengo album , especially the quieter songs, like “ Aselestine .” And for those who aren’t already amplified to rock, here is a Guided by Voices primer . (Finally, one of my favorite records, Yasuaki Shimizu’s Kakashi has finally been reissued on vinyl — you can get it bundled with his album Kiren on Bandcamp for $40.)
The highlight of the week: Meg and I got to meet a screech owl in person . (Includes photos!)
Pizza night blockbuster: How did it take me 21 years to see Lilo & Stitch ? Absolutely delightful. It is so satisfying to me when I see something and I think, “This is so unlike everything else… how did this even get made?” And the answer turns out to be: “It’s not like everything else because it wasn’t made like everything else .”
RIP musician and composer Ryuichi Sakamoto . (Here he is playing piano for the isolated .) RIP music executive Seymour Stein , who signed Madonna and Talking Heads. (Check out this Sire Records comp from 1987.)
Ten lessons I’ve learned from a year of riding my bike .
Thanks for reading! This newsletter is a completely reader-supported publication. If you love it and want to support my work, the best ways are to buy my books , hire me to speak , or become a paid subscriber :
xoxo ,
Austin
PS. I just got word that Steal Like an Artist is going into its 30th printing with over a million copies in print. Mind-blowing. Thank you to everyone who has read it and shared it with others. Many have told me it changed their life, but the life it really changed was mine . Very grateful.
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