This inspirational guide to unlocking creative thinking draws on the author's experiences with sixteen prominent contemporary artists who have made prints at San Francisco's legendary Crown Point Press: Robert Bechtle, Sol Lewitt, Shahzia Sikander, John Cage, Tom Marioni, Pat Steir, Chuck Close, Dorothy Napangardi, Wayne Thiebaud, Richard Diebenkorn, Nathan Oliveira, Richard Tuttle, Peter Doig, Laura Owens, Fred Wilson, and Hans Haacke. Author and Crown Point Press's founder, Kathan Brown, presents thirteen 'magical secrets' - creative strategies exemplified by the different approaches to art-making taken by artists she has worked with. Sophisticated and yet straightforwardly explained, the magical secrets help the reader understand fundamental strategies such as how to creatively use the physicality of materials or how an artist may enter a mental state that encourages creative connections. Clear explanations of print-making processes and stunning reproductions help to illuminate the secrets. An accompanying DVD features Brown's popular 'Magical Secrets' lecture. At once authoritative and inspiring, "Magical Secrets" offers a deeper understanding of the creative impulses in us all.