Steven Pressfield offered up one of the most useful and pragmatic books for anyone who dreams of creating something when he penned The War of Art. In it, he discusses the source of so much frustration for would be creators which he names, Resistance. He goes on to prescribe an antidote, turning pro. From there he traces the sources of creativity through inspiration. All of this comes from the lessons learned through his experiences as a career writer.

It is direct, mature, raw, practical, funny, inspiring and leaves you feeling that you’re not alone in the struggle to sit down and create and that you can actually do it.

What has stuck with me most is the idea that actually producing something of value does not come from a flurry of activity brought on by a flash of inspiration from the muse. Instead it is the product of simple dedication and consistency in putting in the hours to do the work, day after day. And despite the quality of the output, this action is often enough to feel fully fulfilled knowing that you are doing the work you are meant to do.

This is partly why I sit here now to type this when the last thing I want to be doing on this Sunday night is writing a blog post. Yet here I am and here it is.

I hope you read this book.