Book Review 2025.13: the War of Art, Break Through the Blocks and Win Your Inner Creative Battles, (2012), Paperback 165 pages, July 17, 2025
Dissatisfied by my inability to sustain writing despite trying all techniques that I had followed to write my two books published in the last decade, I googled and found this book. I don’t know why it took another two months for me to sit down and read it, but once I started, I completed in two days flat. My fastest record for completing a book. Considering that I take detailed notes while reading books, I was pleasantly surprised. Further even before completing the book, I implemented the only suggestion it contains, which is to sit down for a fixed duration each day to write. Rest of the book is about explaining resistance and motivating the reader to do it. The last part of the book that looks at the sub-conscious elements that propel an artist is not only insightful and illuminating, but also very encouraging and motivating.
Organised in three parts, the first deals with Resistance, the second with Combating Resistance, and the third and final part covers Going Beyond Resistance. What makes the book an exciting read is its short but reflective content that almost engages you in a dialogue with the author. I could relate to every section in the first part covering different facets of resistance have had a first-hand experience in the last two years.
Combating Resistance uses an interesting approach of making the reader see themselves as a professional. Contrasting an amateur, a Latin word meaning ‘in love’, with a professional who needs to go beyond love, the author highlights the need for discipline to be at it daily, even when the excitement wanes. A telling point is the mindset of amateur that sets overambitious and unrealistic schedule for measuring output. Often this leads to frustration when the schedule is missed or the output is suboptimal. On the other hand, a professional sets an ambitious schedule and measures the input. The pro knows with sustained inputs quality output is sure to come.
In the third part, Going Beyond Resistance, the author by delving on the spiritual or for the more rationally inclined, the sub-conscious facet of the individual makes this book a classic; its appeal timeless to all artists grappling with the challenge of expressing something original. Here the author advices the reader to focus on technique which is essential and leave the inspiration to the sub-conscious. In author’s own words it reads “The professional masters the how and leaves what and why to the gods.” The goal to aim for is also well defined, which is to make the art live, in all its facets, and not strive for greatness or wealth, which are only the byproducts.
I am delighted that I found this book for it gave me not only knowledge but also the desire to implement it. I recommend this book for everyone wanting to but struggling to do something non-routine, non-traditional, be it writing, painting, starting a business, or running a marathon and become they individual they dream of.
Happy reading as we unshackle ourselves and become what we are destined to be.
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