- Paperback: 192 pages
- Publisher: Warner Books; Reprint edition (April 2003)
- Language English
- ISBN-10: 0446691437
- ISBN-13: 978-0446691437
- Product Dimensions: 12.7 x 1.3 x 20.3 cm
- Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars See all reviews (25 customer reviews)
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 146,529 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
The War Of Art: Winning the Inner Creative Battle
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More About the Author
Product Description
Product Description
What keeps so many of us from doing what we long to do? How can we avoid the roadblocks of creative endeavour be it starting a business, writing a novel or painting a picture? THE WAR OF ART is nothing less than Sun-Tzu for the soul. In this inspirational and engaging book, bestselling author Steven Pressfield helps people overcome what he terms 'resistance' and so release the individual's abilities whether a diet programme, spiritual advancement, a business venture, writing a novel or any other life goal. It's inspirational, practical and entertaining - emphasising the need to recognise and overcome the obstacles of ambition and how to acquire creative discipline. From the book: 'There's a secret that real writers know that wannabe writers don't, and the secret is this: It's not the writing part that's hard. What's hard is sitting down to write.' Whether an artist, writer or business person, this inspirational, entertaining, and no-nonsense book will inspire you to seize the potential of your life.
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
About the Author
Steven Pressfield is the author of international bestsellers THE LEGEND OF BAGGER VANCE, GATES OF FIRE, TIDES OF WAR and LAST OF THE AMAZONS. He lives in Los Angeles.
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
Inside This Book
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First Sentence
The following is a list, in no particular order, of those activities that most commonly elicit Resistance: 1) The pursuit of any calling in writing, painting, music, film, dance, or any creative art, however marginal or unconventional. Read the first page
Front Cover | Copyright | Excerpt | Back Cover
The following is a list, in no particular order, of those activities that most commonly elicit Resistance: 1) The pursuit of any calling in writing, painting, music, film, dance, or any creative art, however marginal or unconventional. Read the first page
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Front Cover | Copyright | Excerpt | Back Cover
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
57 of 58 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Great tactical advice for any would-be artist or writer,
By
This review is from: The War of Art: Winning the Inner Creative Battle (Hardcover)
This book is superb. Everyone who has ever tried to improve their lives or start a new venture will know that the main problem is not the money or the time; it's the motivation. Deep in our psychology we have a hidden enemy, a devious little voice that tells us not to start or attempt anything because we'll automatically fail or we've got better things to do. This little creep is usually the reason diets fail or books don't get written. Until I read War of Art I just thought I was a procastinator or at best just lazy. But Pressfield has given this enemy a name: Resistance.Pressfield's book is without a doubt the most intriguing and genuine motivational book out there to date. It's written in plain tongue with no technical rubbish or pen-in-hand techniques that nobody would want to even try. It's staright talk; we've got an enemy, fight it! I couldn't put it down. Read it in a day. By the end of it I felt I could achieve anything and like some weirdo bible thing I have tuned to it since whenever I feel like I want to do something because most of the time I know I won't do what I want without a good push. Steven Pressfield's War of Art is that push. It's the compass that guides you toward success.
14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Resistance is Futile,
By
This review is from: The War of Art: Break Through the Blocks and Win Your Inner Creative Battles (Paperback)
The War of Art (nice title) is based on the premise that there is something called `resistance', which prevents artists or anyone doing anything to better themselves from getting on with the task. Resistance manifests itself in lots of different ways, but ultimately in work not getting done. Split into three parts, each comprised of several pages which are often nothing more than a pithy paragraph, The War of Art isn't heavy reading. The first part of the book identifies the problem; the second part of the book identifies the qualities of the professional who does not succumb to the problem. These parts are witty, concise, and quite inspirational. In common with some other reviewers here, I was expecting far more practical advice about how to overcome `resistance'. What War of Art effectively boils down to is an impassioned call to arms from a hotheaded military leader against a ruthless and bloodthirsty enemy. That's well and good, "but what about the tactics?" says the poor grunt about to charge the enemy guns. "Well, there aren't any. Good luck, give `em hell..."If parts one and two are good as far as they go, the third part of the book jumps off a very high pier. It's largely concerned with the author's loopy religious and philosophical ideas, which, if you didn't know better, would place him somewhere around the early 20th Century, before Freud's ideas found common currency, before World War I made people rethink the idea of progress. Back then, the best explanation for irrational drives in our lives was probably something like bad demons and good angels, which is what the author of The War of Art has settled on as the most likely explanation. To be fair to Pressfield, he does say you can call it what you like; I called it `wishful thinking'. Of course the author is entitled to his beliefs, but since the book begins with a no-nonsense call to arms against irrational beliefs about the artist, you might, like me, look back from page 166 and find yourself a long way from home.
12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Will knock writer's block to pieces & get you back to work,
By
This review is from: The War of Art: Break Through the Blocks and Win Your Inner Creative Battles (Paperback)
Are you creative, yet are facing writer's block? Read this book and it'll shake your block loose and help set you free!In this slim volume Stephen Pressfield discusses the inner naysayer we all have within us, also referred to as an inner critic by most writers.This book helps you identify and defeat the negative self talk any creative person must deal with. It does so in a serious tone, sprinkled with lots of humor. For example, the heading of one of his essays is "How To Be Miserable" - it was an essay that had me chuckling. It also had me nodding my head as I recognized myself in what he wrote. Written using a variety of short essays, this book is easy to pick up and read at any point. I read it from the first page to the last, in order. You don't necessarily need to do that to benefit from Stephen Pressfield's wisdom about the inner struggle creative people face from day to day. Read from beginning to end does have it's advantages though -- the author takes aim at resistance, procrastination, rationalization, and finally at the end winning the war. When we win the war of art we are free to create, free to be truly happy. This is one of the best books I've read on the subject. It helped me identify my own foibles then smash the blocks holding me back. I saw myself in each page and triumphed along with the author. This is an excellent book for any creative person. I highly recommend it.
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