Rubin begins The Creative Act with a disclaimer of 17 lines written in verse form. It begins, “Nothing in this book / is known to be true. / It’s a reflection on what I’ve noticed—Not facts so much as thoughts” (i). These opening lines prepare readers for the subsequent “78 Areas of Thought” that comprise the text by suggesting the inherent uncertainty within the artist’s process of creation. Throughout the book, Rubin plants lines of verse at the end of chapters that correspond to the respective contents of each part and act as transitions from one area of thought to the next.

Chapter 1 goes on to define an artist. To Rubin, an artist need not work in traditional arts such as painting, cinema, literature, and music. Instead, anyone who brings “something into existence that wasn’t there before” is an artist (2). In fact, everyone lives as an artist by actively participating in the process of creation. According to Rubin, self-expression is not a life choice, but a way of being. Rubin concludes with a short verse passage that reads, “There’s a time for certain ideas to arrive, / and they find a way / to express themselves through us” (10).