Steven Pressfield
Steven Pressfield
Steven Pressfieldis an American author, of historical fiction and non-fiction, and screenplays...
NationalityAmerican
ProfessionAuthor
CountryUnited States of America
art divide life pro turning war wrote
I wrote in the 'War of Art' that I could divide my life neatly into two parts: before turning pro and after. After is better.
mom mother artist
The artist and the mother are vehicles, not originators. They don't create the new life, they only bear it. This is why birth is such a humbling experience. The new mom weeps in awe at the little miracle in her arms. She knows it came out of her but not from her, through her but not of her.
pain men artist
The Gnostics believed that exile was the essential condition of man. Do you agree? I do. The artist and the addict both wrestle with this experience of exile. They share an acute, even excruciating sensitivity to the state of separation and isolation, and both actively seek a way to overcome it, to transcend it, or at least to make the pain go away. What is the pain of being human? It's the condition of being suspended between two worlds and being unable to fully enter into either.
artist awakening ruthless
The awakening an artist must be ruthless, not only with herself but with others.
artist issues mystery
The artist and the fundamentalist both confront the same issue, the mystery of their existence as individuals.
art rewards products
The professional has learned that success, like happiness, comes as a by-product of work. The professional concentrates on the work and allows rewards to come or not come, whatever they like.
real dedication artist
This is the other secret that real artists know and wannabe writers don’t. When we sit down each day and do our work, power concentrates around us. The Muse takes note of our dedication. She approves. We have earned favor in her sight. When we sit down and work, we become like a magnetized rod that attracts iron filings. Ideas come. Insights accrete.
art war two
I wrote in the War of Art that I could divide my life neatly into two parts: before turning pro and after. After is better.
art ambition practice
When we make our art a practice, when we make our workspace sacred and enter it daily with respect and high intention, then we elevate our actions (even if they're taking place within the profane arena of commerce) beyond ego and above gimme-gimme ambition.
inspiration artist waiting
...she (the artist, the writer) doesn't wait for inspiration, she acts in the anticipation of its apparition.
artist world trouble
The working artist will not tolerate trouble in her life because she knows trouble prevents her from doing her work. The working artist banishes from her world all sources of trouble. She harnesses the urge for trouble and transforms it in her work.
artist modest dictation
Artists are modest. They know they're not doing the work; they're just taking dictation.
art hate ego
The instinct that pulls us toward art is the impulse to evolve, to learn, to heighten and elevate our consciousness. The Ego hates this. Because the more awake we become, the less we need the Ego.
writing artist genius
A writer writes with his genius; an artist paints with hers; everyone who creates operates from this sacramental center.