Yes. Don't get discouraged by an early lack of enthusiasm from others about your writing. Learn all you can about the craft, never stop trying to get better, but write what satisfies you, knowing that whether you are making tons of money, or not, as long as you are putting the words down, you are a "real" writer.
Yes, I do read my reviews, especially when I've got a new release. I can't relax until I've read a few encouraging words about my book. The good ones keep me writing and the bad ones, as long as they tell me what they didn't like, give me direction to improve. I don't check the reviews on my back list quite so often, but every few months I check for some new input. I write to please my readers, so reviews, both bad and good, help keep me on the right track.
As a matter of fact, almost all my books have at least a little personal history included. I was a pastor's wife for twenty-five years, so where my stories touch church life, you can be pretty sure they are at least partially drawn from life.
