This week’s 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 today’s show Steve talks about his latest novel, The Knowledge, which he describes as “the origin story of The War of Art“, based on his life as a taxi driver and struggling novelist in 1970s New York. He reflects on the relationship between truth and fiction in his writing, and explains the artistic and editorial decisions he made when fictionalising from his own life experience.

Steve also has some forthright and provocative things to say about some of the myths about creativity that we allow to hold us back – so I’m expecting howls of protest from some quarters this week!

You can pick up The Knowledge via Steve’s imprint, Black Irish Books, as well as Amazon and all the usual bookstores.

I recommend you also subscribe to Steve’s blog, where he shares his hard-won creative wisdom every week.

The post Steven Pressfield on Truth and Fiction appeared first on Creative Coach | Mark McGuinness.

Today is the launch of my podcast The 21st Century Creative. It’s designed to help you thrive as a creative professional amid the demands, distractions and opportunities of the brave new world of the 21st century.

We’re living at a time of unprecedented opportunity for enterprising, outward-looking creators. And you’ve probably noticed we don’t have our challenges to seek either – creatively, personally, professionally, politically and environmentally.

So I thought it was time for a show that addresses these issues, from your perspective as a creative professional. I’ll be taking the lead and sharing my thoughts on them in a series of short talks in the first part of each episode. In today’s episode I introduce the show, explain what it’s all about and how it will work (the format is a little different to most podcasts).

And I have a stellar line-up of guests who have given me in-depth, insightful and inspiring interviews – including writers, designers, entrepreneurs, and experts in leadership, productivity, and personal development.

I’m producing the show in seasons of 10 episodes – today is Episode 1 of Season 1 of The 21st Century Creative.

I’d like to say a special thank you to two amazing creatives who have been a huge help in producing the show:

Irene Hoffman, who designs all my books, has created a beautiful and distinctive visual identity for the show.

And Javier Weyler, musician, composer and producer, has composed original music and soundscapes that give the show a unique atmosphere. He and his team are also responsible for producing the show, and making my job a whole lot easier.

I’m delighted that my first guest is Scott Belsky, author of Making Ideas Happen, and founder of Behance and 99U, which have been instrumental in providing a focus, platform and opportunities for the creative community in the 21st century.

In today’s show Scott discusses the foundation and purpose of Behance and 99U, the importance of community for creatives, and the role we can play as creators in challenging political and economic times.

You can follow Scott’s work at ScottBelsky.com, on Twitter @ScottBelsky and on Medium at Positive Slope.

The post Introducing the 21st Century Creative Podcast, with Scott Belsky on Creative Community appeared first on Creative Coach | Mark McGuinness.