It is taught at west point, the united states naval academy, and at the marine corps the basic school. See all books authored by steven pressfield, including the war of art. On the commandants reading list for all ranks since 2002. Pressfield was born in port of spain, trinidad, in 1943, while his father was stationed there, in the navy. Richard lee talks to steven pressfield about his new novel historical novel society archives. Nearly 2,500 years ago, in 480bc, at a bleak pass in a farflung corner of eastern greece, three hundred spartan warriors faced the army of xerxes of persia, a massive force rumoured to be over a million strong. Steven pressfield born september 1943 is an american author of historical fiction, nonfiction, and screenplays. An epic novel of the battle of thermopylae, and more on. Gates of fire is on the chief of the marine forcesappraisal list. Steven pressfield books list of books by author steven. His debut novel, the legend of bagger vance, was made into a movie starring matt damon and will smith in 2000. Steven pressfield is an author, novelist, and screenwriter.
He is the bestselling author of the legend of bagger vance, gates of fire, the afghan campaign, and the lions gate, as well as the cult classics on creativity, the war of art. An epic of love and war, last of the amazons is a gripping, imaginative novel of the ancient world filled with pressfields trademark extraordinary attention to detail. In this interview, i ask steve how he turned real life into fiction, accessing the darker side of life, choosing book titles, and more. In gates of fire, steven pressfield tells the epic story of those legendary spartans. Gates of fire was not quite what i expected, but this does not in any way diminish its attraction. Despite their eventual defeat, the greek forces became renowned for. Gates of fire is required reading at west point and annapolis and for all officers in the u. Showing results for the war of art by steven pressfield.
Steven pressfields turning pro interview with you was an eyeopening perspective for me. His books include the legend of bagger vance, the war of art a mustread for any writer, and most recently, do the work. Steven pressfield on the lions gate the hugh hewitt show. Gates of fire by steven pressfield book home facebook.
I chose to turn pro and now show up as lazyass salma who does things when she feels like it, but as a professional whos invested in her brand and is accountable to her audience. As an indication of its popularity, this book has been embraced by hundreds of thousands of readers, many of whom were previously unaware of one of ancient historys most celebrated battles. Use your life story to bring depth to your writing with. Steven pressfield is a mentor to many writers through books like the war of art and turning pro. But i know him for what was a detour off the path for him. Apple podcasts android rss this weeks guest on the 21st century creative podcast is steven pressfield, author of the creativity classic the war of art and a string of other bestselling fiction and nonfiction books in todays show steve talks about his latest novel, the knowledge, which he describes as the. About steven pressfield steven pressfield is the author of the hugely successful historical novels gates of fire, tides of war, and last of the amazons. Steven pressfield is a great writer, but with gates of fire, he reaches a pitch of sublimity that rivals the gods. Stream and download audiobooks to your computer, tablet or mobile phone. Gates of fire is an historical novel about the immortal military stand of an elite group of spartan warriors at thermopylae against the invading persian millions. Well before we get into the questions here steven, i want to remind listeners that this show is brought to you by internet marketing for smart people, which is the premier online marketing course, delivered straight to your email inbox. Marine, pressfield fought his way through 17 years of odd jobs until he earned his first paycheck as a writer. Steve shares his lessons learned from the trenches of the five different writing careersadvertising, screenwriting, fiction, nonfiction, and selfhelp. Gates of fire is on the commandant of the marine corps reading list.
As a former marine, and a bit of a classics buff, gates of fire speaks to me on so many levels. While searching through the commandants new reading list, the title of the book stood out to me. Steven pressfield is a modernday homer, a writer interested in epic struggles, bloody battles, and legendary warriors. Gates of fire is a 1998 work of historical fiction by steven pressfield centered around the famous battle of thermopylae 480 bc, in which a heavilyoutnumbered force of native greeks led by the spartans held the invading army of the persian empire at bay for several days. Hailed as breathtakingly brilliant by the late, great david gemmell. One day i was reading herodotus the histories for probably the twentieth time when i came to this passage about the 300 spartans and the battle of thermopylae. In the time before homer, the legendary theseus, king of athens, journeys to the nation of proud female warriors whom the. Gates of fire quotes by steven pressfield goodreads. An epic novel of the battle of thermopylae kindle edition by pressfield, steven.
After that, he worked as a copywriter, teacher, truck driver, bartender, oilfield roustabout, mental hospital attendant and fruitpicker. I asked steven to be here live, because i thought people might want to react to the book, the lions gate, and to the telling of the story, and to talk to steven pressfield, whos, i dont know how many millions of books hes sold, but hes among the mostread authors in america and around the world. Steven pressfield is the internationally bestselling author of gates of fire and tides of war. Use features like bookmarks, note taking and highlighting while reading gates of.
After graduating from duke university, steven joined the united states marines. I had no idea what i would do after the legend of bagger vance. I had fallen in love with his non fiction book the war of art the. Steven pressfield is the author of screenplays including the legend of bagger vance, novels around the classical wars of ancient greece and modern warfare like gates of fire, and nonfiction works including the war of art and turning pro, which i know are on the desks of many writers listening. Of all this the man informed me, concealing nothing, within the first minutes of our initial interview. Gates of fire by steven pressfield, 9780553580532, available at book depository with free delivery worldwide. A triumph in historical fiction best describes this stirring account of the famous battle of thermopylae, told by the lone survivor before succumbing to his wounds, in a logical followup to pressfields homeric take on golf, the legend of bagger vance 1995. Gates of fire is a 1998 recorded fiction novel by steven pressfield that relates the battle of thermopylae through xeones, a helot slave, and one of just three greek survivors of the fight. An epic novel of the battle of thermopylae audiobook by steven pressfield.
Pressfield graduated from duke university in 1965 and in 1966. Steven pressfields book the gates of fire has done more than any other to bring awareness to the battle of thermopylae and the legendary warriors collectively known as the 300 spartans. Steves thoughts on resistance have been instrumental in my working through and overcoming creative blocks. The young squire xeones is pulled from beneath a burned battle wagon when the carnage finally ends at the narrow. Im starting to feel that historical fiction is the right genre to visit when im looking for amazing standalone books. Download it once and read it on your kindle device, pc, phones or tablets. Break through the blocks and win your inner creative battles, and gates of fire. From the legend of bagger vance to the war of art, which i enjoyed, and my personal favorite, gates of fire. Steven pressfield is the author of twelve previous books, including the bestselling novels gates of fire and the legend of bagger vance, as well as the cult classic on creativity the war of art. Go tell the spartans, stranger passing by, that here, obedient to their laws, we lie. One of the two best standalone books that ive ever read so far. No, it is not the source material for the movie 300.
Steven pressfield is an american author of historical fiction and nonfiction books, in addition to being a screenwriter. Steve is known for the combination of meticulous research and gripping narrative in his historical novels, several of which focus on ancient military campaigns such as the battle of thermopylae gates of fire and the exploits of alexander the. But steve learned his creative lessons the hard way, and he shares that story in his new book, the knowledge. His nonfiction includes the war of art, the warrior ethos, and the upcoming turning pro. He is now an established author of historical fiction, with notable expertise in the ancient world. A page to honor an amazing book by a gifted author. A king does not dine while his men go hungry, nor sleep when they stand at watch upon the wall.
It did not seam like a boring documentary or and endless biography that goes on and on but rather an interesting read that. I was expecting a war story with a focus on the mentality of the spartan warriors, and this was indeed a significant part of the book, but it was ultimately more than that. He did so, he stated, to ensure that i whose family shared bonds of marriage with the alcmaeonids, alcibiades family on his mothers side, and myself. Gates of fire is a 1998 historical fiction novel by steven pressfield that recounts the battle of thermopylae through xeones, a perioikoi born in astakos, and one of only three greek survivors of the battle. The novel stresses the literary themes of fate and irony as well as the military themes of honor, duty, stoicism, and e. Movie rights for this novel have been acquired by universal studios for george clooney and robert lawrences maysville pictures. It is my pleasure, because steven is a fascinating author, and dare i say a prolific author, with his wide range of works.