Don't Call It Art: 10 Ways to Create Like a Kid Again

Rediscover the joy of creating - with kid-inspired insights from the bestselling author of Steal Like an Artist

Feeling burnt out, distracted, and out of fresh ideas? In every creative person's life, there are times when you lose the energy, joy, and freedom you had when you were first starting out. From the recent art school graduate to the retiree searching for their creative third act, we all need help returning to the excitement, the sense of discovery, and the raw creativity of a child at play. Don't Call It Art is a creative liberation handbook for looking at the world with fresh eyes, unlearning what you've learned, and making new leaps in your life and work.

Since his breakout New York Times bestseller Steal Like an Artist, Austin Kleon has been one of the world's leading teachers of creativity. His books have sold nearly two million copies and translated into 30 languages. Now, in his most encouraging and inspiring book yet, Kleon shares ten rejuvenating lessons he learned from being a studio assistant to the artists closest to his heart: his two young sons. Kleon discovered that nurturing his kids taught him how to create the conditions under which his own - and everyone's creativity - can thrive.

Don't Call It Art offers inspiring advice for readers looking to free their creative spirit including:

- Permission to be bad
- Believe in magic
- Throw out the instructions
- You don't need a vision
- Think outside your head

Illustrated in Kleon's signature style of illustrations, quotes, stories and examples, Don't Call It Art is a blast of creative energy that will give you permission to play, make a mess, and venture beyond your imagination - and ultimately, to feel the unbridled joy of creating in your own unique way.

Author: Austin Kleon
Publisher: Tarcher
Published: 06/02/2026
Pages: 208
Binding Type: Hardcover
Weight: 0.85lbs
Size: 6.28h x 6.33w x 0.88d
ISBN: 9798217047888


Review Citation(s):
Publishers Weekly 04/20/2026

About the Author
Austin Kleon is the New York Times bestselling author of three previous books about creativity in the digital age: Steal Like an Artist, Show Your Work!, and Keep Going, along with Newspaper Blackout, a collection of poems made by redacting the newspaper with a permanent marker. He's been featured on NPR's Morning Edition, PBS Newshour, and in The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal. New York Magazine called his work "brilliant," and The Atlantic called him "positively one of the most interesting people on the Internet." He speaks at organizations such as Pixar, Google, Netflix, SXSW, TEDx, Dropbox, Adobe, and The Economist. In previous lives, he worked as a librarian, a web designer, and an advertising copywriter. He lives in Austin, Texas, with his wife and sons.