Steven Pressfield's Blog, page 117

The Blockbuster SuperLibrary 2.0

Last week Shawn talked about publishers selling their own books, via his post "Last Year's Model." I want to see publishers doing more of their own selling—and I want digital libraries, too.
Part I: Pay Attention
1998 was the year of You've Got Mail. Meg Ryan played the owner of the independent being forced out of business
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Thinking in Metaphors

One of the things you learn writing fiction is to think in metaphors.
The first draft of any novel or screenplay usually spills forth in blissful cluelessness. You tell yourself, I'm writing a detective story, or a Western, or some crazy genre that I don't even know the name of. Then comes Draft #2 and you
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Last Year's Model

A friend of mine is a business consultant.  A damn good one too.
About ten years ago we went out for a couple of beers so that he could ask me my opinions about the state of the book publishing business.  He wanted to know where I thought it was heading.  What global strategic initiatives would
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Alexandra in the Trenches (Sort of)

Here, thanks to Alexandra Choi, is a day we can all relate to.  (Viewing time: 1:52.)
I will say no more.
Except for more of Ms. Choi, click here.

Keep Your Feet Dry

It was time to air out.
The men sat down to remove their boots and socks.
Their feet were wet.
Their socks were wet.
Their boots were wet.
The three combined provide the perfect conditions for jungle rot (if you imagine the men in Vietnam) or Trench rot (if you imagine them in WWI).
* * *
I asked Dad what he
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Tighten Your Boots

"You need to tighten your boots
"They hurt."
"They'll loosen once you get going."
"No they won't."
My son and I hate putting on our ski boots. We want to hit the slopes, but there's still that boot hassle.
He screams and complains.
"These boots are soooo stooopid. This is the worst day of my entire life!" (He errs on the
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Paul's All Is Lost Moment

My friend Paul is writing a pilot. He's never done a piece of writing this serious before. The work is totally on spec.
Paul has a full-time business and has to do his writing at odd hours. A couple of weeks ago he had a crisis that made him almost suicidal. When I describe it to
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War Stories Become Prologue

It was 1961 and Dwight Eisenhower was still going back to that game in 1912—West Point v. Carlisle.
West Point and Carlisle were winning teams. One featured two future generals—Eisenhower and Omar Bradley—and the other featured all-around athlete and gold-medal-winning Olympian Jim Thorpe and the now-legendary Coach Pop Warner.
Eisenhower and a team mate strategized and hit
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The Difference Between Pain and Injury

So I'm at the health club the other day. And like most health clubs, there is a ceaseless barrage of aural and visual input.
Grunts reminiscent of a maternity ward come from a beer bellied guy who wants everyone to know that he's just bench pressed 112.5 pounds. A personal trainer checking his cell phone, halfheartedly
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Saying No

Ask me what I envy most about people who have lots of money. My answer: "I'm jealous that they have secretaries to say no for them."
Saying no is hard for me. Always has been. It's hard for a lot of people. Maybe we want to be thought of as nice guys. Maybe we remember people
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