What am I? I’m an Author.
By John Irvin
First, before we start, I want to bring up the fact that I did publish the series finale for my Patreon-exclusive Ikkilion Chronicles last weekend. It felt so good and a bit bittersweet to say farewell to Pwyll and Fea Libane. But I’m happy I accomplished something else.
What am I going to do next for Patreon? The only way that can be answered is if you become a sponsor here on my page:
While I’ve been steadily writing steadily every day in my Strangers to the Realm novel, I’m also looking at getting to know more people on mostly Instagram and LinkedIn. It really is all about engagement and content creation and making connections.
So, here’s a little Q&A for today’s blog. I’ll also work on this for my YouTube vlog for today as well. Here is the link for your viewing pleasure.
First question: Have you ever gotten reader’s block?
Answer: Yes, I’ll admit, there have been days where I simply don’t feel like reading. That’s mostly from exhaustion, I think. So, I understand—to a point—when my friends say they just don’t feel like reading. But there does come a point where I make myself get back into reading and I find I wonder why I’d been blocked in the first place.
Second question: If you could tell your younger writer self anything, what would it be?
Answer: Have patience. Don’t be so quick to self-publish a book. Make sure to hire a better editor and be willing to wait and save up for a good artist. Quality takes time.
Third question: As a writer, what would you choose as your mascot/avatar/spirit animal?
Answer: That’s easy, I’ve already chosen. A wolf. Many of my books have variations of werewolves. They are such magnificent creatures and can teach us humans a thing or two, such as loyalty, faithfulness to one’s spouse, community, etc.
Fourth question: What does literary success look like to you?
Answer: I think I’ve finally decided what this looks like to me. Literary success, to me, would look like me being able to buy a house with the book royalties alone and paying off the mortgage in less than ten years.
Fifth and last question: Do you read your book reviews? How do you deal with bad or good ones?
Answer: Yes, I definitely read all my books’ reviews. So far, I’ve had one bad one and it was ridiculous. I don’t respond to negative reviews, I’ll laugh and move on. Good reviews are highly encouraging and I appreciate them so much. If there is good constructive criticism in a review, I’ll take it to heart.
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I’m also a Patreon artist—the cool thing about Patreon is it allows people to support artists by monthly pledges which allow the artists to have more time to work on their own passions. Here is my account: PATREON.COM. If you’d like to support me, I would be eternally grateful!
I’ve now been hosting a YouTube channel called John Irvin, Author Journey Series. Check it out at YOUTUBE.COM/AUTHORJOURNEY
Follow me on Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram. Or email me at john@johnirvinauthor.com