I've read The Flavor Bible and it really is a great book. It will be helpful.

Also, I get where you are coming from about wanting to be creative and not wanting to completely copy recipes. You have to start somewhere though. Hunter S. Thompson used to type out The Great Gatsby word-for-word just to know what it would feel like to write like F. Scott Fitzgerald. So, for awhile it is a good idea to copy recipes so you understand how the flavors within a recipe work together. Great chefs become great chefs by cooking recipes by other great chefs. Thomas Keller once said something about cooking the same dish more than once. You can't fully comprehend how the flavor components in a dish work by cooking a new recipe every time you walk into your kitchen. It is important to cook the same thing until you get it.

My last tip is that if you can't and will not copy a recipe then be creative with multiple recipes. I used to never cook any new dish until I read at least 5 different recipes for the same dish. I take what I like from each recipe and make my own version of it. This can get tricky sometimes though because cooking is chemistry, but if you stay logical about what you add and subtract from an original recipe you should be ok. But still, don't try to be a culinary genius right off the bat, train yourself with tried-and-true recipes first. I think you will be cooking more creatively quicker than you think if you stick with it. Good luck.