I help folks tell their stories with pictures and words on the web.

Browse my blog and my books to see my work.

Read my bio, press, and ten reasons to hire me.

Hire me to speak or draw at your event.

Want to get in touch? Contact me.

I’m a writer who draws.

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Austin Kleon is a writer and artist. He’s the author of Newspaper Blackout, a best-selling book of poetry made by redacting newspaper articles with a permanent marker. New York Magazine called the book “brilliant” and The New Yorker said the poems “resurrect the newspaper when everyone else is declaring it dead.” His new book is called Steal Like An Artist — a creative manifesto based on 10 things he wish he’d heard when he was starting out. His work has been featured on 20×200, NPR’s Morning Edition, PBS Newshour, and in The Wall Street Journal. He speaks about creativity, visual thinking, and being an artist online for organizations such as SXSW, TEDx, and The Economist. He lives in Austin, Texas, with his wife, Meghan, and their dog, Milo. Visit him online at www.austinkleon.com.

I’m a writer, artist, author, and speaker obsessed with the art of communicating with pictures and words, together. I grew up in the cornfields of Ohio, but now I live in Austin, Texas, with my wife, Meghan, and our dog, Milo.

You can follow me on Twitter or join my mailing list.

To get in touch, drop me a line.

I wrote a book called Newspaper Blackout.

I’m probably best known for my Newspaper Blackout Poems—poetry made by redacting words from newspaper articles with a permanent marker. I started making them in 2005 when I was right out of college and facing a nasty case of writer’s block. The poems spread around the internet, and in April 2010, Harper Perennial published a best-selling collection, Newspaper Blackout. New York Magazine called the book “brilliant‚” and The New Yorker said the poems “resurrect the newspaper when everyone else is declaring it dead.”

My newest book is called
Steal Like An Artist.

When I was asked to talk to students at a community college in upstate New York, I sat down and wrote a talk based on a list of 10 things I wished I’d heard when I was starting out. The text and slides from the talk “rocked the creative world” (GalleyCat) and went viral—since it’s been online, the original blog post has reached millions of readers, gaining praise from all sorts of artists, including Rosanne Cash, who called it “brilliant and real and true.” I expanded the post into a book-length work, stuffed full of new writing and illustrations, released by Workman Publishing in March 2012.

I sell limited-edition prints of my art.

A 20×200 artist, my work has been featured on NPR’s Morning Edition, PBS Newshour, Oprah.com, Swiss-Miss, Kottke.org, and in fine publications such as The Wall Street Journal and The New Yorker.

See my work for sale →

I love to speak and teach.

I give talks and workshops on creativity, visual thinking, and being an artist online for folks such as SXSW, TEDx, The Economist, The Dallas Museum of Art, and The University of Texas.

Watch me in action →