I'm Oprah Winfrey. Welcome to Super Soul Conversations, the podcast. I believe that one of

the most valuable gifts you can give yourself is time, taking time to be more fully present.

Your journey to become more inspired and connected to the deeper world around us starts right

now.

It was after serving in the Marines that a young Stephen Pressville first felt his calling

to be a writer. When he entered civilian life, he decided to pursue his passion, writing

during the day, while working at night to pay the bills. It took him 16 years of trying

before he sold his first screenplay, and while Sergeant sweetheart never made it to the

big screen, it launched Stephen's career as a professional writer. He's gone on to become

the best-selling author of 13 books, including his first novel, The Legend of Bagger Vance,

which ended up a movie starring Will Smith and Matt Damon. In 2002, he published The War

of Art, sharing his own hard-won wisdom on how to navigate the roadblocks that keep us

from fulfilling our creative potential. Over the years, it's influenced hundreds of

thousands of readers who tend to discover it by word of mouth. That's how I found it.

Stephen believes we all possess creative genius. He says we all are born with it in one

form or another, but the obstacle that often stands in our way is an internal force he calls

resistance. And interestingly, he says we feel resistance most strongly when we're about

to dare greatly and grow spiritually. I was delighted to finally meet Stephen for a conversation

under my peppertree in breezy, beautiful Maui.

The main reason I wanted to talk to you is because the War of Art, I think, really,

if you apply the principles, really does exactly what the subtitle says. It will help you

break through the blocks and win your inner creative battles. So thank you for writing

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