https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/51024846-walk-your-path

I’ve said it before, I’ll probably annoy you by saying it again, I don’t care if you love, hate, or just kind of like my book; I want feedback.

Some snarky authors say this has to be a lie because all that authors want are good reviews. Some authors also call amazon and bitch until “bad reviews” are taken down. (I don’t even want to know how that’s possible.)

Neither of these are true for me.

I’m not so full of myself to think that everything I write is perfect. Most of improving my process and crafting better work comes from feedback.

Bad reviews hurt-I’ve only had 1 or 2 and thankfully never seen a 1 star review slapped on anything I’ve written-but when you don’t reach a reader the way you wished to there are multiple responses one can choose from.

Arrogance is the bane of creativity. It stunts talent. It is also very present in authors who expect or only want good reviews.

Disappointment is understandable. Writers get down on themselves. It’s also good for us in order to better prepare us for the ups and downs of publishing.

Denial. Some writers say to never read reviews. It may save an author a little heartache but it does little to offer them the opportunity to work on their weaknesses.

It’s almost like bad reviews put us through the steps of acceptance haha

The point I want to drive here is that when I say I want all kinds of reviews, it’s not a happy go lucky naive idealism driving me to believe that everyone will praise my work.

It’s a business choice.

I choose to accept and learn from my failure.

I wish to know what went wrong so I can better fine tune my style and skills.

This mindset has kept me going during dry patches and got me some mainstream acceptances.

Breaks don’t come easily in this industry. You have to go after everything you want no matter how many nos you receive. Sure, anyone can self-publish a book to avoid rejection from editors, agents, and publishers, but the reviews are still coming.

When approaching writing as the art form it is, one must humble themselves.

There’s a reason why the saying is, “You can’t please everyone.” You truly can’t, but that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t work harder to make the best effort possible, and part of that is taking all kinds of feedback and using what you can.

“Walk Your Path,” is very personal. I didn’t even know I was writing a book when I started it. It was supposed to just be an article.

https://www.amazon.com/Walk-Your-Path-Magical-Awakening/dp/191601402X

When it grew I realized what I needed to do. I turned down a larger deal to keep the voice in-tact, and there are plenty of other projects coming this year.

It’s amazing to be able to just finish something, get an acceptance, and have your work released.

Hearing back from you is just the icing on the cake (or the cake of the cake for me, since I’m not a huge fan of icing).

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/51024846-walk-your-path