Self-doubt, Part 1
Have you ever met a writer (usually a very young one) who tells you, “I love to write! I can’t wait to sit down each morning. I love everything about it!”
My first thought: “Either this guy is crazy … or he’s living in a dimension with which I am not familiar.”
Likewise, I’ve encountered writers who will tell you of their work-in-progress, “It’s dynamite! Readers are gonna love it!”
Again I think, “What planet does this dude inhabit? Because it sure ain’t the one I live on.”
Here’s my mantra re self-doubt:
If I’m not crippled with self-doubt for at least the first nine months of a project (and sometimes a lot longer), something is wrong.
You and I should be feeling self-doubt.
We should be terrified.
1. Because self-doubt comes (often) from trying to second-guess readers’ response to what we’re writing.
We can’t do that. Nobody can. William Goldman was 100% right when he said, “Nobody knows anything.”
2. But the main freight of self-doubt is simply Resistance, i.e. our own self-sabotage. And the First Law of Resistance is:
The more important a project is to the evolution of our soul, the more Resistance we will feel to it.
In other words, self-doubt is good. Massive self-doubt tells us that our Resistance, sensing the positive power of the book/screenplay/painting/dance/symphony we are working on, has pulled out all the stops, trying to undermine us and make us give up.
When I ask a writer of her current project, “How’s it going?”, the answer I want to hear is, “I hate it … I’m so confused … I have no idea what I’m doing … this is going to be a disaster!”
If you and I ain’t feeling self-doubt, we ain’t working.
DO THE WORK
Steve shows you the predictable Resistance points that every writer hits in a work-in-progress and then shows you how to deal with each one of these sticking points. This book shows you how to keep going with your work.
THE AUTHENTIC SWING
A short book about the writing of a first novel: for Steve, The Legend of Bagger Vance. Having failed with three earlier attempts at novels, here's how Steve finally succeeded.
NOBODY WANTS TO READ YOUR SH*T
Steve shares his "lessons learned" from the trenches of the five different writing careers—advertising, screenwriting, fiction, nonfiction, and self-help. This is tradecraft. An MFA in Writing in 197 pages.
TURNING PRO
Amateurs have amateur habits. Pros have pro habits. When we turn pro, we give up the comfortable life but we find our power. Steve answers the question, "How do we overcome Resistance?"
Love it!
I love you man.
I mean deep down.
You say things I should know.
You are my dear mentor in my writing journey.
I LOVE YOU SO MUCH
😍😍😍😍
I love the way you frame my self-doubt as Resistance. This past year I can feel the discomfort and weight if It, and I know I just have to get uncomfortable by taking the next steps. I am working on a very positive online course and I can barely move through the shit that IA happening during the day to dump me off the track. Most days I am moving ahead; some, I make sure that I am at least standing at the end even if I.lost some ground to time.
So so so true…love this and really needed to hear this. People are often surprised to hear that I am wracked with self doubt as I go through my life…because I care SO much and because I am doing exactly what I am supposed to be doing. Love your work…especially ‘Put your a## where your heart wants to be’ … it was exactly what I needed to read at the right time of my life last year. It has/is propelling me forward (at a ridiculously uncomfortable rate 😉). Thanks for sharing so much of yourself!
Ahhh! You’re the man!
Perfect synchronicity to this post…
… the First Law of Resistance is:
“The more important a project is to the evolution of our soul, the more Resistance we will feel to it.”
… “self-doubt is good. Massive self-doubt tells us that our Resistance, sensing the positive power of the book, song writing that I’ve been
working on for decades, has pulled out all the stops, trying to undermine me and make me give up.”
Thank you Steve, and this community your article and comments are right on time. ♥️
Oh that’s reassuring, thankyou! I always thought there was something wrong with me when I have doubt, fear and loathing about the paintings I’m working on. You’ve made my day!
As a fellow writer, I found this post to hit me between the eyes with insightfulness.
I love what you wrote about this Steve. Self doubt I guess it comes from a very deep insecurity that we don’t want to meet. Because we’re keeping it in the dark, it has more possibility to play around in our subconsious, making us more nervous and uneasy, looking for distraction, etc…
So I agree with you Steven, we need to feel self-doubt. and make the choice to face it completely. that helps….
I come here to get my self-comforting band-aids torn off! Ouch! What a relief! Now, back to work …
Strange how the Universe works. A familiar heaviness had bubbled up in my Being and I emerged from the penumbra of semi-conscious sleep and lay in bed, eyes open, enveloped by an intimate darkness.
As if to comfort me, dainty footsteps tiptoed across my legs as one of our cats nestled into a familiar spot between my thigh and the edge of the bed and started purring.
After countless moments of roiling darkness, I realized energy was gathering in my body and there was no going back to sleep. So I reached over and turned the light on.
Typically, when I wake up in the middle of the night, I make it a point not to look at my phone screen. If I don’t know what time it is I can often drift back to sleep. But for some reason I grabbed my phone and thumbed through my emails and landed on this gem. It had literally hit my inbox seven minutes before.
The Universe knew I was meant to get this message. Thank you, Steven.
Just what I needed to hear this morning. Much appreciated! This is my first writing project beyond jotting down thoughts here and there. It’s truly daunting. I found a spot- a coffee shop in town (clichés much?). But it’s my spot. The spot is pleasant. I bribe myself with a piece of coffee cake. Working for me so far. 🙂
Again, your timing is spot on. Just what I needed to hear when I needed to hear it!
Thank you.
“The more important a project is to the evolution of our soul, the more Resistance we will feel to it.”
Read this again and again. Again.
A jazz pianist once told me, to paraphrase, that creativity is fueled by our fears. We see this problem. We work tirelessly over it. It’s never enough. We grow from it only to create again. We’re alchemists here. First step is admitting we must give Resistance a big boot up it’s ass.
When I stop whining and overthinking, and just do it, stuff gets done. I’m just gonna do it. Even if it sucks. That’s my fear. What if the song isn’t perfect? Kate, they’re going to see who you truly are: a loser. Boot in ass to that voice. Do it anyway.
I am so happy that you try to think that way Kate. This is the sign of the creator.
I also wonder if I/we must settle for a safe room where I/we can write, or actually go write “out there where the truth is” like the title in X Files declared -would you remember that one? Such conditions could actually fuel our inspiration and internal powers. I guessed a few days ago, while traveling on the ship from Crete to Pireaus, that *habit* could actually be one of our biggest enemies. Just bringing us some food for thought.
This is dead on and I definitely needed to hear it. Thank you for this one today especially, but for all your work.
Every project I have done ….. enterpreneurhsip, house building, flat renovation, marriage, kids, …I had so much fear of uknown, fear of failing, fear of not being sure. We just need to keep going, accept what is generated inside us. The journey into unknown is built with doubts.
Thanks Steve for sharing
“The journey into unknown is built with doubts.” Love this!
Exactly what I needed this morning at 5:16. Otherwise. Who knows how I would have been wasting this day?
I do not know how you do it. Your ability to post just the right thing at just the right moment appears preternatural! As always, thank you!
Joe, that’s what I thought! Crazy.
Thanks for this. Now, at last, I feel vindicated.
WOW! How well do I know and understand this feeling? “The more important a project is to the evolution of our soul, the more Resistance we will feel to it.”
“I hate it … I’m so confused … I have no idea what I’m doing … this is going to be a disaster!”
And… it makes me want to pull my hair out… not doing it makes me want to pull my hair out…another few years of work for nothing…for what???…why???
Thanks for your help to find the courage to continue no matter what.
Jackie… yup, let’s do. It.
Steve I like your posts and thank you!
Resistance, anxiety and procrastination are signs that you need to DO “it” right away, a compass of the fear of not being good enough, BUT no fear and productivity is FLOW state and not the wrong state as you imply, it’s simply the other side of “not just doing it”, it’s when you realize that you’re doing something valuable to you and you love doing it, no matter what anyone else thinks.
You don’t “need” fear…. It’s just a compass.
On the other side of crippling fear is… FLOW
David, I like what you wrote.
Shibui.
I’m hammering out a third draft of my current book, well more like fourth draft. Only now am I finally finding the voice of the story. Thanks for the inspiring words Steven. Still a long road ahead before I’m done but I’ve moved a few steps ahead. ✌🏼
Yep.
Oh my god, this is so reassuring. It’s not that I’m stuck, I’m paralyzed. But, I have to be honest with myself, have I put in the work? No.
Like hands… drawing hands. It’s hard and yet I know if I spend enough time with my sketchbook I’ll improve. Obviously. I’ve been studying YouTubes and how to understand them. In the past I’ve been able to carry it off. Sort of. I found a picture of one and rendered it exactly, that’s how I did it. But I don’t always do that. Sometimes I settle for “good enough”. Those paintings and sculptures speak to me the most. They say, “You didn’t try hard enough”.
There’s this competition by “Beautiful Bizarre” magazine. It’s not just any competition. Artists I truly admire enter it. I’ve seen their adds before. I always think to myself, “You need to get better to compete!, Why don’t you?” I’m not good enough. That’s just a fact.
I have this new series of paintings in mind. I’m so afraid to paint it. If I do and it doesn’t work out, all the planning for it will crush me. But then I think, if I don’t do it, I’m just going to rot, wishing I could draw a better hand.
Kathy, don’t think. DO!
Yes. Absolutely True.
Thank you so much for reminding us dear Steve.
I am SO glad. I am anxious about this crazy creation that I am creating here from almost day 1 -not exactly but after about a couple of months, and even more after a few years when I made a crucial, crazy and un-marketing-like decision to make it so original that it will actually be unreadable.
I can think of another reason why this dynamic that you write of can have value -because the self-doubt is a universal force, and all who try to create something similar to what we create probably stopped because of that self-doubt. I have a sense that all people feel the same waves of self-doubt when wanting to create a thing that is similar. Even more self-doubt force settles in when a creation needs incredible amounts of time to be fulfilled, for then self-doubts come in many layers and great terrifying colors and underlying currets. So entering your land of self-doubt could take you where most didn’t enter -and that makes your creation unique, maybe the results too.
But most of all how beautiful it feels to read the words you wrote above
The more important a project is, the more Resistance it will force on us. What a magic! Seems to overturn our world’s order but apparently it doesn’t.
lakehouse
Writing, the art of creation, is a journey that many pursue with passion and dedication. Yet, amid this pursuit, self-doubt often creeps in, testing the very foundation of a writer’s confidence. In this article, we explore the notion of self-doubt in the context of writing, drawing insights from the wisdom of acclaimed author Steven Pressfield and examining the impact of self-doubt on a writer’s creative process.
The Deceptive Mirage of Effortless Love and Boundless Confidence:
The common perception of writers passionately in love with the writing process or oozing with unwavering confidence can sometimes set unrealistic expectations. However, writing is far from a walk in the park; it’s an intricate battle, where self-doubt and resistance are familiar adversaries. Accepting this reality is the first step towards a more genuine understanding of the creative journey.
The Positive Indicator of Self-Doubt:
Pressfield emphasizes that self-doubt can serve as a positive indicator during a creative project. It signifies the project’s importance to the writer’s growth and soul evolution. However, it’s crucial to maintain a balanced perspective. While self-doubt is a natural part of the creative process, glorifying it can be counterproductive.
Understanding the Roots of Self-Doubt:
The seeds of self-doubt often sprout from the fear of judgment, the desire for external validation, or a perceived sense of inadequacy. Acknowledging the presence of these feelings is vital, but we must not let them define our worth or the potential of our work. We should challenge self-doubt constructively, recognizing it as a form of resistance that seeks to thwart our creative endeavors.
Overcoming the Pitfalls of Self-Doubt:
While self-doubt can be a test of our dedication to our craft, succumbing to its paralyzing effects is not a sustainable path for growth. Pressfield urges writers to find ways to manage and channel self-doubt constructively. Dwelling in excessive self-doubt can stifle creativity and hinder exploration of one’s full potential.
Striking a Balance:
Confidence and passion are crucial companions in the creative process. While self-doubt may visit us from time to time, it should not dominate our journey as writers. Focusing on honing our craft, finding joy in the act of creation, and developing resilience to face challenges are essential elements of a well-balanced approach.
Additional Reasons Why Self-Doubt Hinders Writers:
In addition to the insights shared by Pressfield, there are other reasons why self-doubt can be detrimental to a writer’s growth:
1. Procrastination and Perfectionism: Self-doubt can fuel procrastination, as writers may hesitate to put their work out there due to the fear of not meeting their own high standards or the expectations of others.
2. Reluctance to Take Risks: Self-doubt can lead to a fear of failure, deterring writers from taking risks and experimenting with new ideas and styles.
3. Damaged Self-Confidence: Chronic self-doubt can erode a writer’s self-confidence, making it increasingly difficult to believe in their abilities and potential.
Overcoming Self-Doubt:
Pressfield’s advice offers practical strategies for overcoming self-doubt:
1. Remind Yourself of Successes: Reflect on past accomplishments and remember that every great writer started as a beginner.
2. Set Realistic Goals: Begin with small, achievable goals and build on them gradually, allowing yourself to grow in confidence.
3. Find a Supportive Community: Surround yourself with fellow writers who can offer encouragement and support during moments of doubt.
4. Take Breaks: When overwhelmed by self-doubt, step away from your work temporarily, engaging in activities you enjoy. This can provide a fresh perspective when you return to writing.
Conclusion:
In conclusion, self-doubt is a natural part of a writer’s journey, but it should not control or hinder the creative process. Embracing the struggle with self-doubt, while maintaining confidence and passion for writing, is key to realizing our full potential as creative artists. By challenging self-doubt and pushing through uncertainty, writers can uncover their true strength and create works that resonate deeply with readers, leaving a lasting impact on the world. Remember, self-doubt may be a visitor on this journey, but it need not become a permanent resident.
Yes! Pressfield indeed changed my perspective. Doing art could no longer include a binge and getting drunk. I wasn’t going to somehow miraculously get there. I actually had to work at it. This refresher is mandatory. Thank you.
I like this post a lot. I feel like I’ve spent a lifetime analysing the fear and self-doubt, that usually ends up manifesting in me diverting into (slowly) making one more hot drink before sitting down to work, or finding some other diversionary activity, even healthy activities like squeezing in unplanned exercise before a writing session.
But Steve is reminding use that the doubt can’t be conquered, and his implicit message, as always, is the key: get your butt in the chair and start writing/plotting/creating.
I love it and I need it.
Thank you Steve.
Oh wow!!! I love, love, love this!!!!!
As I’m getting closer and closer to finalizing my next book, this is good to hear.
This is the BEST quote:
“The more important a project is to the evolution of our soul, the more Resistance we will feel to it.”
At every stage of my upcoming book — writing, research, editing, rewriting, End Notes — I’ve encountered whopping resistance, challenges from other people, myself and the Universe.
I’ve been feeling this way but not just the evolution of my soul. This book is to help the evolution of other souls — millions, preferably!
Thanks for the reminder.
Self doubt and anxiety, it seems to be, are the natural state of being for humans.
In many ways this makes sense, the world is a dangerous place, people can become monsters in a second, and getting kicked out of the tribe is a death sentence. Safety is an illusion, our amygdalas know this.
We develop coping skills, subconsciously, to deal with this discomfort. Some are healthy, some are decidedly unhealthy.
Masking the terror has been my predominate choice to cope, I transmuted self-doubt/anxiety into a nicotine fit for most of my life. The fear rose up, I interpreted is as a Nic fit, took a chew, and could cope for a bit. Coping does not mean thriving.
Wednesdays, here among the struggling creatives, I am reminded that the very best way to cope is to through yourself into your creation, whatever that may be. Maybe I am more hard-headed than most, but the lessons I learn here must be relearned again and again and again.
Thank you for the reminder. The discomfort is the indicator that we’re pointed in the right direction.
bsn
In Elizabeth Gilbert’s book, “Big Magic”, she wrote this scenario…. She had an idea but kept putting off writing it. It was all researched and planned out, but she put it off. After time, someone else did it! Her thing!! SOMEONE ELSE DID IT!
Can you imagine?
Someone else painting your idea, singing your song, writing your play, running your race?
I think about that all the time.
I keep wondering, is that how the universe works?
Thank you Steve. Thank you everyone who posted. For a minute there I thought I was hopelessly insane.
My self doubt is bound to asking for money. I enjoy making art, whether good or bad, up until I decide to try and sell it. All of a sudden it holds no interest for me. I lose all enthusiasm.
Honestly, it feels more like my “daddy issues” than self doubt. I want someone to take care of me. I resent having to earn a living.There. I saud it. Knowing this does not seem to alleviate my self sabotage.
Thank you, Steve. Just finished a first draft that’s important to me. And now for the rewrites!
Oh, I read your first paragraph and laughed out loud, long and hard, because 1) I had just posted about a writer having confidence on my blog, and 2) because that very thing did happen to me, some 30+ years ago, and I’ve never forgotten the moment. I had published a couple of novels and was at a writers’ conference, when a woman came up to me and said that statement almost that verbatim and gushing, while I stood a deer in the headlights. For a long time I wondered what was wrong with me. I found, and still do, writing excruciating a lot of the time, with moments of triumph and joy thrown in, just enough to keep me going. That and liking being paid.
Thank you for your blog, and The War of Art– which helped me and still does.
Oh how I needed that showing up in my inbox today.
“If you and I ain’t feeling self-doubt, we ain’t working.”
I also appreciate how your “we” is making me feel like I’m somehow not alone as I write – that there’s community of fellow self-doubting writers stumbling and lurching forward while they cheer me on to do the same.
My writing will feel a little less lonely today.
Thank you.
Thank you. It makes me go another round against my own resistance.
Thank you, Steven. I have heard these words come out of my mouth several times, “If I knew I had only 6 months to live, I would finish this book” as if to impress on the listener how important, and precious my message is to me. Then, I do nothing. Feeling fraudulent. Resistance is so smooth and legitimate feeling. However, without any big fanfare or fireworks, I’ve been writing each day for the last 5 days and it feels great. I am feeling a strength that sees resistance and for now, is driving or writing through the middle of it.
For me, your insights are so very helpful. You have helped me see resistance for what it is and that has helped me move forward. Thank you.
On point, as usual. We live in a society that punishes mistakes, rewards successes. Most companies, at least the ones I’ve been employed by, don’t much appreciate or value people who go outside their lane – and make mistakes. Most schools don’t much appreciate or value teachers that do that either. (I’ve seen this first hand working for several fortune 500s in executive management roles, and several schools as a teacher.) What this leads to is compliancy and comfort in the status quo. Resistance, as you like to call it, incubates and leads to self doubt.
The ones who believe enough in their value and have a healthy self image, push through the resistance, knowing it’s part of the game of life – use it essentially to grow stronger, much like the mighty Juniper tree that grows stronger from winter storms.
The thing is. I do love waking up a half hour before sunset, walking out to my writing shed and throwing down my first morning thoughts. The ones that fermented from the day before. But before I can do that, I have to let the dog out. Mix the cat meds for the cranky old lady and feed them to her. Feed my daughter’s cat, because he gets hangry without his morning yumms. Let the dog in and feed her. Make my tea.
Somewhere during that 20 minutes, I panic. Sometimes I start to tear up because I’m so scared that none of it’s worth it. I should go out and get a second job, maybe substitute teach again, then maybe I can afford to do the renovations on the property that seemed such a good idea to buy so I could visit my 80-year-old parents without being in the way.
Then I open my weird modern loose-leaf binder that the pages keep falling out of, uncap my pen and write the date at the top of the page. And for a half hour or so, while the birds are knocking the seed off the feeder outside my window, it doesn’t matter what I write. The ink is down. The words are out. And I reintroduce myself to today’s part of the story.
So, yeah, I guess I’m crazy.
But for now, for that time every morning, I know that I’m where I’m supposed to be.
Maybe tomorrow, I’ll have the courage to send something out.
Or figure out how to build a website.
That was supposed to be
….half an hour before sunrise….
Damn autocorrect.
Awesomeness. I was just thinking about my book, the idea keeps nudging me to write, I don’t want to, don’t even like the topic but when you wrote about the resistance you get with a project that is important to the evolution of the soul I thought OK, that’s it then. Messy, scary, self doubt and all – Bring it on!
Thank you
Really nice.
I have this Scrivener project that I have been picking away at for a while. Today I saw that I began in 2017 or possibly earlier! Yikes. What a failure, right? And I’m not procrastinating. I’m just always somewhere in nowhere.
Robert McKee says that it takes 10 years (or is it 10 failures) to write a decent book.
Every watercolor teacher I have read (who isn’t trying to sell a pipe dream– i.e., lying) says it takes about 10 years of regular practice to get the skills.
And for those of us who have constant interruptions in life, it means that the process takes a very much longer time. And these circumstances feel like they are telling us something, “You were not born to be an artist or writer. Look at your life!”
The thing is, it’s complicated. Life is complicated. Chaos is all around us and in us as we create something. It is going to come into order if we keep going and keep believing there must be a destination to all this.
I have read every word that has been written on Resistance. I can attest to hiking for at least 40 hrs listening to the War of Art. I have used therapists, writing assistants to help with plot and timeline breaks, and it all comes down to why don’t I sit and write. I have written more sober than not, but neither state of mind breaks the block. My self-doubt is always reinforced by professional editor sand coaches I hire to help, who usually start with, ‘only avid readers make good writers’. That is after they have read on of my pieces of art. What I hear when they say that is ‘I am better than you; you are different than us, those of us that know how to do this thing you want to do. Then they get fired. I write because the Muse continues to circle about my head with magical prompts that are irresistible. Here is the latest, a poem entitled Hitler is in Heaven. I wrote 2 hrs on it last night in a high volume hip hop bar, drinking. I literally couldn’t hear the music at times, I hope that is because I was focused. I’ve never finishes anything still. I have almost 250K words now spread across novels, poems, and different types of shorts. To you, my family, you are my people, its like a 12 step meeting for me……My name is David, and I have Resistance……..can you help me.
invincible season 2
So inherently brilliant are your perspectives and guidance. You are a mentor to many. I am one of them. I sit alone in my makeshift office in my garage, with my washing machine and dryer going late night, and a few bugs come in here and there (once there was a mouse) and I swim in self doubt. I am really alone in my dream. I have a day job as a lawyer, but it never fills me like writing. My friends have all but given up asking “how’s that writing thing going?”, and I don’t even hint that it is going. I feel ashamed that I haven’t reached the end of my book, I am lost, sad, wounded and tired. But writing trumps all that — even if I can manage only one line at the end of the day. I am also a caregiver for my aging mom and my developmentally disabled and wheelchair bound older brother (they live with me).
WHAT YOU SAID — that RESISTANCE comes full force when the meaning and purpose of your writing is REAL and will alter your substance of being — PICKS ME UP from the floor of life and helps me write, even that one sentence. THANK YOU AND PLEASE KEEP US GOING OUT HERE.
“Doubt is the origin of wisdom,” Descartes
Does self doubt make me/you wiser yet? Gotta be.
C’mon, this is soooooo good! I love it! It’s exactly how I am feeling and what I am experiencing. I thought something must be wrong with me and my project… Now I know that everything is fine and I can continue. The resistance is crazy insane! Thank you for being so raw and real – I love that! I love your writing style. Thank you, Steven Pressfield!
I used to tell people that my script was like a bad relationship: We are either madly in love or we hate each other and are no longer on speaking terms.
I understand that feelings of self-doubt can affect us all from time to time. It’s important to acknowledge and address these feelings in a healthy way. Remember, it’s okay to have moments of uncertainty and questioning, as it’s a natural part of being human.
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There’ve been occasions when your blog catches my fall, Steven. This time, it hit me 147 days ago when this post first assuaged my bludgeoned psyche. If that was all you ever did with your time here, to impact one reader as you have done me, that would count as an achievement. Contributing bona fide, measurable good. Forgive me admitting that I have not called-by for these 147 days because I have been consumed by the self-doubt to which you so knowingly allude. Then tonight, as if an astronaut with failing breathing apparatus lost amid the vacuum of space, I knew I had seen a life-line, a buoy, a beacon in my recent mind-map that, if only I could back-track, would supply the oxygen my particular form of self-suffocation hungered for.
And here it is, “Self-doubt, Part 1”. Phew. I found it. Every bit as potent I recollected. Honest, Real. Pragmatic. Sustenance. Maybe even permission. As you know from our previous exchanges, I can talk (and maybe even type) underwater. So I will leave my statement of immeasurable gratitude there. At least for now 😉
But I would ask this in signing-off, Steven. On so many writing forums that I plug-in to from time to time, there is so much snobbery about who or what gives people the right to write when they do not know the mechanics of syntax, grammar, punctuation? They remind me of those wine connoisseurs. Who so clearly forgot how to truly relish a decent glass of plonk. Today, on such a forum, one was talking down Hemingway, Steinbeck, Herman Melville and Henry Miller as being “weak story-tellers”. It left me reflecting upon the impact John Updike’s style had on me when I first read him a ¼ century ago. The shear irreverence of his language sparking off the page hit me like a Mike Tyson uppercut. I can remember the physicality of his words landing on me. Impacting me to this day. (Much like ‘Gates of Fire’ and ‘War of Art’ have done with you). I wonder if he panicked before letting ‘Rabbit, Run’ loose on the world. Because it seems to me the more Jackson Pollock an artist is, the braver or thicker their shield must be. But art has to be seminal to slap convention and attract attention. Otherwise it’s not art. Surely?
I wonder if you would ever or have ever summed your thoughts up on this topic in your blog?
Thank you, once again, Steven. Thank you. Thank you.
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