Writing Creativity and Soul
Published by: KnopfRelease Date: October 21, 2025
Pages: 214
ISBN13: 978-0593804643
Buy the Book: Penguin Random House, Amazon, Apple Books, Barnes & Noble, Books-A-Million, IndieBound, Bookshop.org, Audible
Overview
- Published by Knopf October 21, 2025
- Instant National Bestseller
Part memoir, part philosophical investigation, part advice to aspiring writers, Writing
Creativity and Soul is a touchstone for the spirit, a work of profound pilgrimage that
will be of value to aspiring writers and anyone who hungers to lead a deeper and
more fulfilling life. “If you encounter writing infused with soul, you know it,” writes
Sue Monk Kidd. It feeds you somewhere inside . . . our internal revolutions, our
reach for our true selves, our struggle to write unsayable things with brave voices
comes about through a succession of brief, amazing moments. This is a book about
writing that is so much more—an exhortation to dive deeply into the creative
instinct, whatever form it happens to take, to nourish the imagination and cultivate
a practice of attention to the mysteries and yearnings of our own hearts.
Everything readers love about Sue Monk Kidd is in these pages: the warmth,
the fierce intelligence, the wit, and the search for beauty and meaning and wonder
in the world through the sacred act of storytelling.
Praise
“Part memoir, part words of encouragement for anyone who seeks to do creative work, this is a book that unfolds like the best conversation with the wisest friend you’ve ever had.”
- The Boston Globe
”A beautiful ode to creativity and the inner world of the writer and artist. This book offers a gentle journey through many of Sue Monk Kidd’s own inspirations. I read it in a single sitting and came away both inspired and deeply moved."
-Emma Gannon
"One expects to walk away from this title a little more in tune with the burning core of our own artistic selves, and a wish to share it with the world"
-Lit Hub
“VERDICT - Lyrical and poetic. Kidd’s monograph is a welcome addition for aspiring writers.”
-Library Journal (starred review)
"A gorgeous memoir of the creative life, designed to bring out the writer's voice in all of us."
—Kirkus (starred review)
"A lyrical read and a generous companion for writers especially those seeking depth in the process."
-Booklist
"The book flows easily, its rapid-fire chapters interspersing writing tips with pilgrimages to the homes of literary role models, examples from her books and others', and inspirational quotations. A trove for Kidd's fans, this accessible toolkit for budding authors is also suited to readers of Elizabeth Gilbert's Big Magic."
-Shelf Awareness
Excerpt
When I was a young writer of thirty and just setting out, I traveled to North Carolina to hear Maya Angelou give a lecture on writing. I sat on the sixth row of the large auditorium while the tall woman with the powerful presence spoke about the cost of carrying untold stories inside, about wielding a voice in the world, about writing that brings the reader alive. Her words stirred up every longing I had. I sat there like a snow globe turned upside down.