Perseus Academic: Mastering Creative Anxiety by Eric Maisel

In his decades as a psychotherapist and creativity coach, Eric Maisel has found a common thread behind what often gets labeled writer's block, procrastination, or stage fright. It's the particular anxiety that, paradoxically, keeps creators from doing, completing, or sharing the work they are driven toward. This creative anxiety can take the form of avoiding the work, declaring it not good enough, or failing to market it — and it can cripple creators for decades, even lifetimes. But Maisel has learned what sets successful creators apart. He shares these strategies here, including artist-specific stress management; how to work despite bruised egos, day jobs, and other inevitable frustrations; and what not to do to deal with anxiety. Implementing these 24 lessons replaces the pain of not creating with the profound rewards of free artistic self-expression.

* Practical insights and proven techniques for overcoming the challenges and fears that plague creators of every kind

* Teaching tales that convey effective approaches to creating fearlessly and abundantly

Eric Maisel, PhD, is America's foremost creativity coach and is widely known as the creativity expert. He is a columnist for Art Calendar magazine, the number one business online and print magazine for visual artists, coaches individuals and trains creativity coaches, and offers workshops and keynotes nationally and internationally. He is the author of Brainstorm, The Atheist's Way, A Writer's San Francisco, Coaching the Artist Within, Fearless Creating, The Van Gogh Blues, Ten Zen Seconds, and thirty other books. He lives in the San Francisco Bay Area.