Join the Santa Barbara Public Library for a month of exploration into creativity and the creative process. SB Reads: Create! will use Elizabeth Gilbert’s book Big Magic: Creative Living Beyond Fear and our knowledgeable community of local artists to delve into this topic through a combination of book discussions, artist workshops, film screenings, and virtual author talk with Elizabeth Gilbert, herself. 

Free copies of Big Magic, in English and Spanish, will be available to pick up at the Library’s Sidewalk Service beginning on Saturday, October 31, and a virtual visit with author Elizabeth Gilbert will be held Wednesday, November 11. Click here to read our press release about SB Reads: Create! 

Santa Barbara Reads was made possible this year through the generous support of The Santa Barbara Public Library Foundation, California Humanities, California Arts Council, and the National Arts and Disability Center at the University of California Los Angeles. 

SB Reads: Create! Programming

Create! Workshops

Relief Printmaking for Beginners with Oliver Murray
November 6, 10, 13 at 4:00 pm

Journaling to Uncover Our Own Big Magic with Christina Gessler
November 7, 14, 21, December 5 at 10:00 am

The DNA of Rock ‘N Roll with Darrell McNeill
November 9, 16, 23, 30 at 5:30 pm

Art-Making Exploration for Teens with FoundCreate’s Emily Summers and Jason Summers
November 17, 18, 19 at 5:00 pm

Nichos Workshop with Bany Vargas, presented bilingually in English and Spanish 
December 2 at 5:30 PM

Connecting through Sign Language Programming

Facebook Live Connecting Thru Sign Language Storytelling Hour - November 14, 1:00 pm

“Silent House” a film by Hugo Martinez and Jonathan Reyes to premiere November 20 

“AQUAVAX” a film by Tirzah Farley and Emily Grigor to premiere December 6

Author Talk

In Conversation with Elizabeth Gilbert
Wednesday, November 11 at 6:00 pm  

Book Discussions

Creative Quest by Questlove
Saturday, November 21 at 1:00 pm

Broken Places & Outer Spaces: Finding Creativity in the Unexpected by Nnedi Okorafor
Thursday, December 3 at 5:45 pm

Big Magic: Creative Living Beyond Fear by Elizabeth Gilbert
Saturday, December 5 at 2:00 pm

This project was made possible with support from California Humanities, a non-profit partner of the National Endowment for the Humanities. Visit www.calhum.org.

This activity was supported in part by the California Arts Council, a state agency, and the National Arts and Disability Center at the University of California Los Angeles. Learn more at www.arts.ca.gov. 

Each year the Santa Barbara Reads program offers one title to the community with the goal that everyone will read the same book at the same time, sparking engagement and conversations about the themes in the book and how they relate to our lives.

For full program details view the Library's calendar of events. 

Santa Barbara Reads Previous Selections: