Release date: April 1, 2003
Rating: 4/5
Publisher: Warner Books
Book Summary:
Internationally bestselling author of Last of the Amazons, Gates of Fire, and Tides of War, Steven Pressfield delivers a guide to inspire and support those who struggle to express their creativity. Pressfield believes that “resistance” is the greatest enemy, and he offers many unique and helpful ways to overcome it.
Review:
Have you ever sat down with one of your best friends, and when you start your rant about your issues, they see right through you?
I won't lie, that's exactly how I felt with Steven Pressfield's The War of Art: Break Through the Blocks and Win Your Inner Creative Battles.
The foreword was written by Robert McKee, an author, and lecturer known for his Story Seminar. I remember resonating with the foreword and the candid nature that McKee wrote. In fact, after finishing the book, I returned to the foreword to reread it and found myself nodding with his analysis of Pressfield's work. McKee's synopsis and entry into the book were the perfect fit.
Throughout The War of Art, I felt "seen" in more ways than one. Not only was Pressfield's description of Resistance the nail on the head, but it personified something that I had personally been experiencing for a long time. Not only had Resistance been whispering lies, but it had also successfully won, more than once, against the need to express my thoughts creatively in music and in writing.
Through each chapter, I became more aware of the issues contributing to my writer's block. Was it the fact that I had no time, or was Resistance telling me there was no time to focus on my creative outlets?
I would recommend this to any struggling creative who doesn't feel like there's a light at the end of the tunnel that is their creative block.
