I have made this choice recently concerning my book Sea, Sand, and Sabine. The book is undergoing a major overhaul and will be re-released under the same title as a second edition.
My seventh-grade Language Arts teacher, Mrs. Rockwell, said she thought I had the makings of a good writer. From that day onward, I hoped one day to be a full-time writer. Now, after having left an accounting career to teach, and having retired from teaching, I am transitioning from being a part-time to a full-time writer at age 62 - 50 years after Mrs. Rockwell's encouraging words.
The cover of a book is the first chance the author has to make an impression on the reader. If the cover gets the readers attention, and the title piques their interest, the chances of the reader picking up the book are greatly improved.
I do read book reviews. I celebrate the good ones and try to learn from the bad ones if the reader left honest criticism pointing out why they left a bad review.
I have always been an avid reader since an early age. According to my mother, I was reading first- and second-grade level books by the time I was 5. But it was my seventh-grade teacher, Mrs. Rockwell, who inspired me to believe I could be a writer.
I'm usually surprised when people recognize me in public. When they tell me they've read my work and liked it, I feel affirmed as a writer and happy to have given them something they enjoyed.
