Deep Dive with Ali Abdaal  cover image

Deep Dive with Ali Abdaal

Bonus Episode: Originality, Writing and Career Fulfilment with Brandon Sanderson

May 20, 2022
Brandon Sanderson, a prolific fantasy author known for works like Mistborn and The Stormlight Archive, shares insights into his writing journey and the creative process. He discusses the importance of passion and persistence, revealing how he overcame initial struggles and found joy in writing. The conversation covers balancing creativity with structure, the complexities of striving for bestseller status, and practical tools for crafting stories. Sanderson also emphasizes making work fun, encouraging writers to align their creative pursuits with their true passions.
52:11

Episode guests

Podcast summary created with Snipd AI

Quick takeaways

  • Human creativity is driven by recombination, where existing elements are mixed and combined to create something new.
  • To foster your own creativity, try breaking down something you love to its fundamental elements and understand why you appreciate it.

Deep dives

The importance of recombination in human creativity

Human creativity is driven by recombination, where existing elements are mixed and combined to create something new. Our brains are not equipped to imagine completely novel creations, but rather excel at recombining existing ideas and elements. This process is fundamental to how we create and is an important aspect of human creativity.

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