How a Weird Book About Tennis is Changing the Way I Write
I’ve never played a game of tennis in my life, but this book has transformed the way I think about thinking
I once owned a tennis racket. I bought it when I was 14. My plan was to learn the basics so I would have something in common with a girl I was interested in. But, I never actually used the racket.
Almost 30 years later I picked up W. Timothy Gallwey’s cult classic, The Inner Game of Tennis: The Classical Guide to the Mental Side of Peak Performance.
The book has changed the way I approach both the creative act of writing and the business of making money from my words.
Why Did I Get a Book About Tennis?
Tennis doesn’t interest me much. I’ve never played, and I have a hard time watching the game on TV. So, why would I buy a book about tennis?
I blame Steve Kerr.
I may not care for tennis, but I’m a rabid basketball fan. Ever since my family moved to the Bay Area when I was 11, I’ve been a huge Golden State Warriors fan. While the first few years we had Run TMC to cheer for, most of my Warriors fandom was a study in plucky effort, misery, and failure.
