Big Magic: Creative Living Beyond Fear

by Elizabeth Gilbert

He told them that they must live their most creative lives as a means of fighting back against the ruthless furnace of this world.

Do you have the courage to bring forth the treasures that are hidden within you?

The universe buries strange jewels deep within us all, and then stands back to see if we can find them.

when I refer to “creative living,” I am speaking more broadly. I’m talking about living a life that is driven more strongly by curiosity than by fear.

And while the paths and outcomes of creative living will vary wildly from person to person, I can guarantee you this: A creative life is an amplified life. It’s a bigger life, a happier life, an expanded life, and a hell of a lot more interesting life. Living in this manner—continually and stubbornly bringing forth the jewels that are hidden within you—is a fine art, in and of itself. Because creative living is where Big Magic will always abide.

if you don’t have the courage, let’s try to get you some. Because creative living is a path for the brave. We all know this. And we all know that when courage dies, creativity dies with it. We all know that fear is a desolate boneyard where our dreams go to desiccate in the hot sun.

Let me list for you some of the many ways in which you might be afraid to live a more creative life:

You’re afraid you have ...

You’re afraid there’s no market for your creativity, and therefore no point in pursuing it.

You’re afraid somebody else already did it better.

You’re afraid you won’t be taken seriously.

You’re afraid that someday you’ll look back on your creative endeavors as having been a giant waste of time, effort, and money.

You’re afraid you don’t have the right kind of work space, or financial freedom, or empty

hours in which to focus on invention or exploration.

You’re afraid you don’t have the right kind of tr...

You’re afraid of unleashing your innermost demons, and you really don’t want to encounter your innermost demons.

You’re afraid you never had any best work to begin with.

You’re afraid you neglected your creativity for so long that now you can never get it back.

You’re afraid because nothing has ever gone well in your life, so why bother trying?

I was a sensitive and easily traumatized creature who would fall into fits of weeping at any disturbance in her force field.

I noticed that my fear never changed, never delighted, never offered a surprise twist or an unexpected ending. My fear was a song with only one note—only one word, actually—and that word was “STOP!”

Creativity is a path for the brave, yes, but it is not a path for the fearless, and it’s important to recognize the distinction.

Trust me, your fear will always show up—especially when you’re trying to be inventive or innovative. Your fear will always be triggered by your creativity, because creativity asks you to enter into realms of uncertain outcome, and fear hates uncertain outcome.

I’ve noticed that when people try to kill off their fear, they often end up inadvertently murdering their creativity in the process.

“Dearest Fear: Creativity and I are about to go on a road trip together. I understand you’ll be

joining us, because you always do. I acknowledge that you believe you have an important job to do in my life, and that you take your job seriously. Apparently your job is to induce complete panic whenever I’m about to do anything interesting—and, may I say, you are superb at your job. So by all means, keep doing your job, if you feel you must. But I will also be doing my job on this road trip, which is to work hard and stay focused. And Creativity will be doing its job, which is to remain stimulating and inspiring. There’s plenty of room in this vehicle for all of us, so make yourself at home, but understand this: Creativity and I are the only ones who will be making any decisions along the way. I recognize and respect that you are part of this family, and so I will never exclude you from our activities, but still—your suggestions will never be followed. You’re allowed to have a seat, and you’re allowed to have a voice, but you are not allowed to have a vote. You’re not allowed to touch the road maps; you’re not allowed to suggest detours; you’re not allowed to fiddle with the temperature. Dude, you’re not even allowed to touch the radio. But above all else, my

dear old familiar friend, you are absolutely forb...

am this, and I am that, and I am also this other thing, too! I don’t yet know exactly what I am, but I’m curious enough to go find out! Speak it. Let it know you’re there. Hell, let you know you’re there—because this statement of intent is just as much an announcement to yourself as it is an announcement to the universe or anybody else. Hearing this announcement, your soul will mobilize accordingly. It will mobilize ecstatically, in fact, because this is what your soul was born for. (Trust me, your soul has been waiting for you to wake up to your own existence for years.)

“Fake it till you make it” is the trick. “Dress for the novel you want to write” is another way of saying it. Seduce the Big Magic and it will always come back to you—the same way a raven is captivated by a shiny, spinning thing.

Or at least, I am against the preaching of passion. I don’t believe in telling people, “All you need to do is to follow your passion, and everything will be fine.” I think this can be an unhelpful and even cruel suggestion at times.