Why it’s essential

With her soothing narration, bestselling author guides listeners to find inspiration in the world and live a more creative lifestyle.

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What is Big Magic about?

Bestselling author Elizabeth Gilbert distills the powerful actions anyone can take to live a more creative life in a way that is equal parts imaginative and tangible. Whether your goal is to be a renowned painter or to experience more creative joy in your day-to-day life, this listen is sure to provide the blueprint for change.

Editor's review

Editor Madeline loves memoir, literary fiction that tackles the existential, and all the sapphic stories she can get her hands on.

It’s certainly no understatement to proclaim that by Elizabeth Gilbert changed my life. But what do I really mean by that sweeping statement? In this case, I would say more specifically that the book enhanced my life in a big, bold, and beautiful way. After hearing about this creative guide for years, I choose to listen to the audiobook narrated by Gilbert herself. 

At its core, Big Magic is about the deep-rooted satisfaction that can come from committing oneself to living a creative life. Gilbert describes this commitment as a sort of "eternal devotion" to one’s creative nature, honoring it in whichever way it can show up in your life. Using her own personal anecdotes and stories of people she has known, Gilbert drives home the message that you do not need to be a tortured soul to create art, that the outcome of your work is not commensurate with its importance, and, above all, that you can give yourself the permission you have been seeking to live a creative life. She expertly distills how she hones inspiration in her own life, how she leans into ideas so they don’t pass her by, and how she learned to release her own fear in favor of greater joy, curiosity, and creation. 

Gilbert is passionate and earnest in her convictions, and her message resonated with me deeply. By the time I had finished listening, my thinking had forever been altered around creativity, writing, and ultimately, life in general. It was just the perspective shift I needed at the exact right time, when the negative and "realistic" voices in my head were threatening to take over. Since listening, I began prioritizing my creative life, my writing time, and my inner world in a way I never previously believed possible. Needless to say, I’m a much more joyful and soulful person for it, and I am forever grateful to Gilbert for giving me the permission slip I needed when I wasn’t strong enough to sign it yet myself.