Comments on: Review: The War of Art

By: Fred

Fred — Thu, 22 Jan 2009 09:37:32 +0000

I agree, “The Art Of War” is a MUST READ…

Off subject: To Mrs Accountability (comment #5), try “The Name Of The Rose” by Umberto Eco, if you have a chance, the movie with Sean Connery is really very close to the spirit & atmosphere of the book.
Both describe the struggle for truth and enlightenment… not unlike our present epoch.

By: Early Retirement Extreme

Early Retirement Extreme — Wed, 21 Jan 2009 01:54:58 +0000

Turning pro also increases the risk of losing your passion for what you are doing.

The Gates of Fire is in my opinion the best Pressfield book. The Last Amazon not as good.

By: Dan Massicotte

Dan Massicotte — Tue, 20 Jan 2009 16:41:08 +0000

The OST for The Legend of Bagger Vance is excellent….for those of you who listen to music day in and day out.

By: Shea

Shea — Tue, 20 Jan 2009 03:18:39 +0000

This is a GREAT book! I read it years ago and reread it every so often. I was so inspired by it that I wrote a letter to Stephen Pressfield and told him so, and was delighted to receive a lengthy personal reply in return.

By: Mrs. Accountability

Mrs. Accountability — Mon, 19 Jan 2009 18:34:36 +0000

First off, I’ve NEVER watched a movie that could hold a candle to the book. Secondly, thank you for these great recommendations! I really needed to hear the encouragement now, and the books you mention sound like they will be a great help.

By: Betsy

Betsy — Mon, 19 Jan 2009 01:51:58 +0000

Just a few observations….

I too read this book recently and while it had good nuggets (that you summarize here) I found The Artists Way to be more hands-on-useful around getting the artist unblocked. If you only had the money to buy one, I’d go for The Artist’s Way, and if people wanted to go further with it, Walking in the World.

The other thing that is quite useful is to try to talk to working writers – either by taking a class or going to a writing group in your area so you see the backstage angst of trying to produce copy. It becomes evident really quickly that you must “turn pro” in your mind in order to get anything done.

Malcolm Gladwell’s new book Outliers also supports the idea of all this practice…it’s the only way.

By: Joyce

Joyce — Sun, 18 Jan 2009 21:54:27 +0000

Trent,
I’d like to make a suggestion: You’ve got ads on your web blog advertising weight loss products that offer a so called free trial of a dried berry puree and a laxative and end up charging your credit card for $70-80.00 after 14 days.

Some recent research in googling the complaints for this company and others touting berries and a colon cleanse product are most discouraging. Once you’ve given them your cell phone company, they won’t stop calling you!

i believe in you and this incredible blog, but the simple truth is The Simple Dollar can do better to earn it’s click-thru profits by a more reputable means.

Thanks for hearing me! I still love you and your daily delivery of forthright financial wisdom.

By: Sam

Sam — Sun, 18 Jan 2009 21:22:54 +0000

Sounds like a pretty good book, I will have to check it out. Thanks!

By: Tom

Tom — Sun, 18 Jan 2009 20:48:59 +0000

I read this book last year and loved it.
I also agree with you about part Book 3 – it was kind of weird and I felt it didn’t add any value.
The biggest lesson I learned is, if you want to succeed at something, you have to treat it like a job – work at it 5 days/week and don’t stop.
Practice, Practice, Practice …
Sometimes, talent isn’t enough.