Breakthrough the Block!: 5 Steps to Renewing your Inspiration

by Allen C. Paul

Are you feeling stuck creatively? This mini-eBook will give you five quick, easy ways to break out of any block and to renew your passion in your artistic field. You'll immediately learn immensely practical and inspirational tips that will have you creating your best work again in no time.

22 pages, Kindle Edition

Published October 7, 2016

About the author

If you ask what I am, my response will be one word – forgiven.

If you ask who I am, I’ll tell you I’m a musician and writer, a husband for almost 20 years to my wife Lia, and a dad to three amazing young adults: Chris, Marcus, and Naomi.

If you ask what I do, I’ll mention that I play the piano. A lot. I also teach, and now I write.

Now for the story:

For many years working as a church staff musician and as a performing artist and pianist, I struggled with the tug-of-war between my faith and my career. Finally I decided I wouldn’t choose – I would do both. I also learned that I wasn’t alone. Other artists were dealing with the same thing. So I started writing about our struggles on my blog, http://www.GodandGigs.com.
My heart’s desire is to help this special group of people to maximize their God-given abilities. I’ve been blessed to work with many amazing musicians, and my upcoming book will reveal how they navigate the world of popular music without sacrificing their faith.

You can find more info on my performances and recordings at http://www.allenpaulmusic.com.

Thanks for reading. Let’s take this creative journey together and see where it leads.

Reviews

[Heather · Rating 3 out of 5]

Breakthrough the Block!: 5 Steps to Renewing your Inspiration, by Allen C. Paul, is more like a long blog post than a book. However, it does have some decent suggestions in it.

I have to admit, the idea of changing the thought of “what if?” to “so what if?” is a helpful one. We don’t always have to fear the things that might go wrong or the difficulties that we’re having.

Reconnecting with your feelings certainly can’t hurt. Emotion is at the heart of inspiration, after all.

Reactivating your appreciation for others: “a grateful artist is an inspired artist.” I do think that reading/listening to/etc. other wonderful artists is a great way to feel creative again.

Recommit to your daily creative time. Mr. Paul is certainly not the first person to say that one of the best ways to stay active in your art form is simply to do it every day, even when you don’t feel creative.

Reward yourself for each step forward. Hey, I’m all for rewards.


I think this book is simple and doesn’t present anything terribly new (except maybe for the appreciation tip–I’m not sure I’ve heard that one before). However, it’s also brief and, at the time I’m looking at it, quite cheap, so maybe it’s worth a read.


Original review at my site: http://www.errantdreams.com/2017/08/r...

[Rosemary Rey · Rating 4 out of 5]

Breakthrough the Block! is a short book that's more like a lengthy article that gives tips on how to push past the walls created around you when you want/need/should be writing. It was insightful. I already know why I'm blocked, and this book touched on that point. This is a decent resource to come back to whenever you need a spark to get started/return to a project.

[Tonya Ashe · Rating 4 out of 5]

A Great Short Read!

I'm so glad I picked this book to read. I needed the quick reminder of confidence in my work. And I enjoyed the reminder to be grateful for my creative time as well.

[Mateja Saraja · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great little booklet

I feel inspired to start my creative work. This booklet is short but concise and to the point, and I liked that.