The Key to Creativity

Readers of Stolen Focus and Quiet will appreciate this wide-ranging and passionate investigation into creativity: Why and when it strikes us, and how to transform workplaces, classrooms, and societies for creativity to flourish.

After a cycling crash leaves her head spinning, journalist Hilde Østby finds herself suddenly bursting with creative energy—which makes her wonder: What's the secret to human creativity? Where do ideas come from? And most importantly: in a society that praises productivity and pace, how can we nurture, rather than suppress, our creative impulses?

Using Alice's Adventures in Wonderland as her inspiration, Østby takes readers tumbling down the rabbit hole of ideas. The Key to Creativity features:

• Interviews with powerhouse creatives—like journalist Michael Pollan, novelist Maja Lunde, and artist Tracey Emin—and decodings of their creative regimens.
• The cultural history and science behind our "aha" moments, our inner critics, and our idle thoughts.
• Information on how to foster your creative potential: Østby shares how we can cultivate more creativity in our lives through prioritizing daydreaming and valuing productivity less.

With the charm of Alice exploring Wonderland and meeting its curious inhabitants, The Key to Creativity invites us to imagine a world where daydreaming is encouraged and even our strangest ideas have value.

Hilde Østby is the coauthor of Adventures in Memory, and a novelist and journalist published to critical acclaim. She has a master’s degree in the history of ideas, and she lives in Oslo, Norway.