About the Book
From one of today’s leading creative minds comes a book for modern rebels about how to find success―without losing your edge. Written for uncompromising creative thinkers and aspiring change-makers, The Art of Creative Rebellion encapsulates insights and wisdom collected over a life of creative and professional success.
In a frank, reflective and insightful series of letters to young free thinkers, John S. Couch shares the knowledge he wishes he’d had at the beginning of his own career journey. With refreshing irreverence and candor, he does more than urge young iconoclasts and non-conformists to follow their passions―he lays out the uncompromising principles they must cultivate in order to thrive in a world that seems to reward conformity.
Filled with honest self-reflection of his own missteps, Couch mentors his readers through the steps of finding their courage, embracing discomfort, and nurturing creative habits that strengthen their true self and power their careers.
Above all, The Art of Creative Rebellion is a guide to shaping a life, career and reality that nourishes the spirit and feeds the soul―with no compromises or apologies.
About the Author
Widely recognized as one of the great creative minds of our modern world, John S. Couch is a prolific artist and designer working as an Entertainment and Technology Specialist focused on cross-platform content strategies. He is currently Vice President, Product Design for on-demand video service Hulu, where he lead its successful 2017 Hulu Experience redesign across mobile, living room and web platforms. His first job out of college was curating an art show in London of Beat writer William Burroughs’ “Shotgun Paintings” (as implied, shotguns and exploding cans of spray paint were involved). In classic young starving artist mode, he ambulated to Paris, Vienna and Tokyo before finally settling in San Francisco. He launched his design career at Wired Magazine, where he shared an office with Douglas Coupland (“Generation X”) and developed a love for technology, design and tech. Fluent in Japanese, he helped launch Wired Japan before moving to LA, where he took on leadership roles at The Museum of Contemporary Art (MOCA), CBS and eBay, finally landing at Hulu. Couch lives with his wife and daughter in the Santa Monica Mountains, California, where, in addition to his day job, he writes every morning before sunrise and paints every evening.
The Art of Creative Rebellion:
How to champion creativity, change culture, and save your soul
Page Two Books, January 21st, 2020
978-1-989025-94-9 print
978-1-989025-95-6 ebook
256 pages
Paperback with flaps
$19.95 US / $24.95 CAD / $14.99 GBP
Digital formats
9.99 US / 9.99 CAD
Publicity Information
Publicist contact
John S. Couch
hello@john-couch.com
Press Release
Rebelling Creatively with Designer John Couch
Author Photo credit
Grace Oh
Downloads
praise for the art of creative rebellion
“John S. Couch lays out a compelling and inspiring ‘how-to’ for kickstarting your life into a world of creative ideas. His approach inspires genuine belief that this elusive trait known as creativity can actually be cultivated by any one of us.”
Tim Kring, Screenwriter and Creator of Heroes
“John S. Couch is a refreshingly honest truth teller who shares his experiences with us and brings us along for the ride. Grab this book whenever you need to jump-start your creative engine.”
Maria Giudice, Founder, Author, Coach, Consultant, Co-author of Rise of the DEO
“How do rebels build teams that foster everyone’s individuality, and encourage dissimilar people to collaborate without demanding conformity? The Art of Creative Rebellion offers practical advice for creating order without too much control or chaos.”
Kim Scott, Author of Radical Candor
“Creativity is personal. This account of creativity is personal and that is what makes it such a valuable read. If you aspire to be creative, or remain creative, then dive into this book and learn how personal choice and intense passion translate into excellence and achievement.”
Tim Brown, Chair of IDEO and Author of Change by Design
“This is a rigorous call to take creatively honest action! It is about untethering ourselves from daily shrinkage in our creative labors. The Art of Creative Rebellion is a generous testament to the importance of creativity as a life practice and moral commitment. John S. Couch eloquently offers truth, wisdom and wit while conveying how your work can (and really must) override predetermined expectations and output measurements. John puts his extraordinary life, attained perspectives and creative leadership in service to being infinitely useful to others.”
Kristy Edmunds, Executive and Artistic Director, Center for the Art of Performance at UCLA
“It’s so easy, so predictable to travel from the freedom of a child to the conformity of an adult. If you want to buck that trend, it won’t happen accidentally. This is the book to help you plan and deliver on a life that’s courageously and creatively lived.”
Michael Bungay Stanier, Bestselling Author of The Coaching Habit
“The ideals and creative dreams of your youth haven’t been choked out by the constriction of corporate culture—they’re waiting to be reclaimed through a small act of conscious rebellion. John S. Couch shows us how to clear the distractions and reconnect to the spark within.”
Aarron Walter, VP of Design Education, InVisionApp Inc
“John S. Couch delivers a kindly roadmap for the individual creative soul. His fluid and engaging writing style confidently guides the reader to step up, stand their ground and achieve; all for a life well lived. Bravo!”
Bonita Pietila, Producer/Original Casting, The Simpsons
“John has built not just the primer for a creative job, but an exercise routine for a joyful soul.”
Jonathan Miranda, Strategist and Hopeful Futurist, Salesforce
“The Art of Creative Rebellion is a masterful koan on the essence of design. Like a true Zen teacher, John S. Couch writes with a poetic brush and sharp sword. This book is a call to arms for designers who seek to make a meaningful impact in an evolving world. I love this book!”
Michael Margolis, CEO, Storied, and Author, Story 10x
“John S. Couch wants to give his younger self the wisdom of a career in design among the top-level technocrats who shape our reality. While his time machine is on backorder, he’s written it all down in this book, so the rest of us can benefit as well. I’m looking forward to consulting John’s book often to get a fresh poke in the ribs and a gentle kick in the ass!”
Stefan G. Bucher, Narrative Brand Designer, 344 Studio
“I wish I’d have had The Art of Creative Rebellion as my bedside mentor as I started my career. John S. Couch challenges us at each turn to be more creative, more truthful and more honest with ourselves, our families and our colleagues.”
Sanford R. Climan, Entertainment Media Ventures, Inc.
“This book has the power to re-energize, reaffirm and reboot; a resounding carpe diem to save the soul and bring creativity back into the future of design.”
Albert Shum, CVP of Design, Experiences & Devices Group, Microsoft
“The Art of Creative Rebellion doesn’t simply teach you how to keep the creative juices flowing during a lifetime of work; it also shows you how to navigate and survive the corporate world with your creative life force intact.”
Thomas Rigler, 2019 Emmy-Winning Director, Executive Producer, and Nonfiction Showrunner, Rigler Creative
“John S. Couch is like the Forrest Gump of design—he’s been involved in nearly every interesting moment of change in digital design history and has been generous enough to capture it for the benefit of others.”
Jen Panasik, Managing Director, IDEO
“A glimpse into the mind of a creative leader, The Art of Creative Rebellion offers a starkly honest assessment of what it means to live courageously in the business of design.”
David Albertson, Albertson Design
“John S. Couch’s manifesto is the perfect inspiration for creatives of all types—from artists to writers, to entrepreneurs and scientists. We all have a creative rebel within us, and John shows the way to awaken our inner creators and makers.”
Tim Chang, Partner, Mayfield Fund
“The success of the human species depends on our ability to unlock creativity and solve the planet’s grandest challenges. The Art of Creative Rebellion is the definitive guide for those who desire to solve the unsolvable, think the unthinkable and manifest the impossible.”
Dr. Daniel Cordaro, Chief Equanimity Officer, The Contentment Foundation
“John knows what you’re going through. The Art of Creative Rebellion is smart, helpful and filled with empathy and humor.”
Elan Lee, Creator, Exploding Kittens and Throw Throw Burrito