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Wired to Create

Is it possible to make sense of something as elusive as creativity?

Based on psychologist Scott Barry Kaufman’s groundbreaking research and Carolyn Gregoire’s popular article in the Huffington Post, Wired to Create offers a glimpse inside the “messy minds” of highly creative people. Revealing the latest findings in neuroscience and psychology, along with engaging examples of artists and innovators throughout history, the book shines a light on the practices and habits of mind that promote creative thinking. Kaufman and Gregoire untangle a series of paradoxes – like mindfulness and daydreaming, seriousness and play, openness and sensitivity, and solitude and collaboration – to show that it is by embracing our own contradictions that we are able to tap into our deepest creativity.

With insights from the work and lives of Pablo Picasso, Frida Kahlo, Marcel Proust, David Foster Wallace, Thomas Edison, Josephine Baker, John Lennon, Michael Jackson, musician Thom Yorke, chess champion Josh Waitzkin, video-game designer Shigeru Miyamoto, and many other creative luminaries, Wired to Create helps us better understand creativity – and shows us how to enrich this essential aspect of our lives.

Reviews

“Together, [Kaufman and Gregoire] have created a satisfying overview of creativity research that is likely to provide nuggets of wisdom to even the most seasoned creative spirit. Readers looking for tips on how to increase creativity will find plenty here.”
—The New York Times

“With cutting-edge science and timeless wisdom, Carolyn Gregoire and Scott Barry Kaufman shine a light on the habits, practices and techniques that can help us tap into our deepest creativity.”
—Arianna Huffington, New York Times-bestselling author of Thrive

“Wired to Create is an empowering manifesto for creative people. Endlessly relatable and chock-full of wisdom, Kaufman and Gregoire’s study of the creative personality will have you saying over and over again, ‘This is Me!'”
—Susan Cain, Quiet Revolution co-founder and New York Times bestselling author of Quiet

“Through science and storytelling, Kaufman and Gregoire reveal the inner workings of the creative mind. It all adds up to a fascinating and instructive read.”
—Robert Greene, New York Times bestselling author of Mastery

“There are numerous books telling readers what they can do to become more creative.  For the most part, the suggestions are made up: They have no basis in scientific fact.  This book is unusual and perhaps unique not only in explaining what creativity is, but also in showing scientifically how people can unlock and develop their creative talents.  If you are interested in unleashing your own creativity, you will want to read this book!”
—Robert J. Sternberg, author of Successful Intelligence 

“At last there is a book on creativity that is both accessible, engaging, and highly readable that does not sacrifice scientific rigor in the name of communication. Filled with stories and anecdotes, this is a must-read.”
—James C. Kaufman, author of Creativity 101

“More than ever we need creativity in our lives and to answer the pressing challenges of our times. Scott Barry Kaufman and Carolyn Gregoire paint a brilliant portrait of the many faces of creativity: a fusion of seemingly contradictory mental states that can be limpid and messy, wise and crazy, exhilarating and painful, spontaneous and yet arising from sustained training. Fascinating all the way.”
—Matthieu Ricard, humanitarian and Buddhist monk, author of Altruism

“This book will create a shift in the approach to creativity; how it is fostered in childhood and continued throughout our lives. It is a fascinating read and an important scientific contribution on how creative people use the whole brain, and find ways to deal with the joy and struggles of living creatively.”
—Bo Stjerne Thomsen, Ph.D., Director, Research & Learning, the LEGO Foundation

“Wired to Create is both broadly entertaining and deeply informative. Few books on creativity integrate the two so well!
—Dean Keith Simonton, Editor, The Wiley Handbook of Genius

“This book brings a very fresh perspective to a field that has, inexplicably, been struggling to ‘create’ new ideas for several decades. With scientifically based research on imagination, daydreaming, intuition, and mindfulness, it opens up new avenues of thinking about this critical human capacity. It is a must read for both scientists and anyone else interested in the ‘inner world’ of creativity.”
—Rex E. Jung, Ph.D., editor of the forthcoming Cambridge Handbook of the Neuroscience of Creativity