Showing results by author "Steven Pressfield" in All Categories

People who have read my books, particularly “The War of Art” and its cousins, have a vague idea of the odyssey of a particular solitary guy, wracked with guilt and riven by self-doubt, as he struggles toward his destiny as a writer. But they have only the scantiest conception of the particulars of that journey. These particulars I’m hoping may be of use to others as they wrestle with their own version of that same odyssey. So let me try to strip it down. Let me tell the parts I normally leave out.

NATIONAL BESTSELLER In this “powerful, historically accurate novel” (The New Yorker), the sole Spartan survivor recounts the bloody and epic battle of Thermopylae that decimated his fearsome society. “Vivid and exciting . . . Pressfield gives the reader a perspective no ancient...

Think of The War of Art as tough love...for yourself. Since 2002, The War of Art has inspired people around the world to defeat "resistance"; to recognize and knock down dream-blocking barriers and to silence the naysayers within us. Resistance kicks everyone's butt, and the desire to defeat it is equally as universal. The War of Art identifies the enemy that every one of us must face, outlines a battle plan to conquer this internal foe, then pinpoints just how to achieve the greatest success.

There's a mantra real writers know but wannabe writers don’t. And the secret phrase is this: "Nobody wants to read your shit." Recognizing this painful truth is the first step in the writer's transformation from amateur to professional.

Told by Alexander the Great himself, this “sharp and colorful” (Washington Post Book World) novel presents a stunningly intimate account of the battles, the loves, the triumphs, and the tragedy of a man who conquered the world, from the bestselling author of Gates of Fire. “Simply superb...

We are all warriors. The Warrior Ethos is intended not only for men and women in uniform, but artists, entrepreneurs, and other warriors in other walks of life. The audiobook examines the evolution of the warrior code of honor and "mental toughness".

Are you losing your "war of art"? Are you being defeated by a tendency to procrastination, self-doubt, fear, distraction, and perfectionism? Are you self-sabotaging your loftiest artistic entrepreneurial dreams? The antidote is in nine words: Put your ass where your heart wants to be. Can you shift your artistic identity—your "ass"—from the shallow, fearful, superficial ego to the wise, loving, fearless self? Can you commit to your dream for the long haul and for keeps? Steven Pressfield delivers the tough-love inspiration to help you make this life-altering transformation.

On our artist's journey, we move past resistance and past self-sabotage. We discover our true selves and our authentic calling, and we produce the works we were born to create. You are an artist too - whether you realize it or not, whether you like it or not - and you have an artist's journey. Will you live it out? Will you follow your muse and do the work you were born to do?

Autumn 1942. Hitler's legions have swept across Europe; France has fallen; Churchill and the English stand isolated on their island. In North Africa, Rommel and his Panzers have routed the British Eighth Army and stand poised to overrun Egypt, Suez, and the oil fields of the Middle East.

The follow-up to his best-seller The War of Art, Turning Pro navigates the passage from the amateur life to a professional practice.

Could you be getting in your way of producing great work? Have you started a project but never finished? Would you like to do work that matters, but don't know where to start?The answer is Do the Work, a manifesto by best-selling author Steven Pressfield, that will show you that it’s not about better ideas, it’s about actually doing the work. Do the Work is a weapon against Resistance - a tool that will help you take action and successfully ship projects out the door.

2,300 years ago an unbeaten army of the West invaded the homeland of a fierce Eastern tribal foe. This is one soldier’s story . . . The bestselling novelist of ancient warfare returns with a riveting historical novel that re-creates Alexander the Great’s invasion of the Afghan kingdoms in...

In the Depression year of 1931, on the golf links at Krewe Island off Savannah's windswept shore, two legends of the game - Bobby Jones and Walter Hagen - meet for a mesmerizing thirty-six hole showdown. They are joined by another player, a troubled war hero called Rannulph Junah. But the key to the outcome lies not with these golfing titans but with Junah's caddie and mentor, the mysterious, sage and charismatic Bagger Vance - for he is the custodian of the secret of the Authentic Swing...

Are you starting a new book/album/business venture? Open The Daily Pressfield and start rolling. Each chapter begins with a picked quote from The War of Art, Gates of Fire, Pressfield's Writing Wednesdays blog, and other P-field sources. The second half of each chapter is Steve's commentary on that passage. The Daily Pressfield is a year's worth of kicks-in-the-butt and pats-on-the-back, structured to counsel, support, and guide you-day-by-day-from the start of your project to its successful completion.

The Peloponnesian War, one of history’s most pivotal conflicts, comes to vibrant life in this “unabashedly brilliant, epic, intelligent, and moving” (Kirkus Reviews) novel from the bestselling author of Gates of Fire. “Pressfield’s battlefield scenes rank with the most convincing ever...

If you've listened to his books The War of Art and Turning Pro, you know that for 30 years Steven Pressfield (Gates of Fire, The Afghan Campaign etc.) wrote spec novel after spec novel before any publisher took him seriously. How did he finally break through? Ignoring just about every rule of commercial book publishing, Pressfield's "first" novel not only became a major best seller (over 250,000 copies sold), it was adapted into a feature film directed by Robert Redford and starring Matt Damon, Will Smith, and Charlize Theron.

Jerusalem and the Sinai desert, AD 55. In the turbulent aftermath of the crucifixion of Jesus, agents of the Roman Empire receive information about a pilgrim bearing an incendiary letter from a religious fanatic calling himself Paul the Apostle to insurrectionists in Corinth. What's in the letter could bring down an empire. The Romans hire a former legionary, a solitary man-at-arms named Telamon to intercept the letter and destroy the courier. But once he meets the courier, Telamon experiences an extraordinary conversion.

Spain in the 1500s. The Iberian Peninsula is fractured, faiths collide, and war brews. Into this world rides Telamon―soldier, killer, eternal outcast―drawn into a brutal conflict between Portuguese invaders and desperate Andalusian defenders. But he is not alone. Traveling with him through time and lifetimes are others―comrades, lovers, enemies―each reborn in a new guise, all of them entangled in a tale of cosmic justice.

Told by Alexander the Great himself, this “sharp and colorful” (Washington Post Book World) novel presents a stunningly intimate account of the battles, the loves, the triumphs, and the tragedy of a man who conquered the world, from the bestselling author of Gates of Fire. “Simply superb...

In Steven Pressfield's richly imagined, vividly detailed story, golf legends Bobby Jones and Walter Hagen are joined by a local unsung opponent, the troubled war hero Rannulph Junah. Their match is thrilling competition, but the key to the outcome lies with caddie Bagger Vance, who carries the secret of the Authentic Swing.