I am a very lucky writer. I get to make stuff up, send it out to the world and have people read it. That sounds pretty basic, but sometimes that is all I want from this whole writing thing.
That’s why my brain never fails to explode when readers take the time to tell me what they think of my books. Whether it’s a one sentence email from a young reader or an in-depth review on Amazon, I am always thrilled to get feedback from folks reading my books (even the criticism is welcome – honest.)
The last few months of 2014 were pretty awesome when it comes to reader feedback and that’s because I did something I’ve never done before: I asked people to tell the world what they thought of my books. Specifically, my latest Minecraft fan-fiction novel, Descent into Overworld. And boy, did my amazing readers come through!
Reading the reviews on Amazon was a blast and definitely helped me keep writing the second book in the series Nether Nightmare (coming soon, I promise!).
But not everyone was content to just leave their thoughts in words. Debbie Alvarez and her young Minecraft fan not only wrote a great review at The Stylin’ Librarian blog, they made a video too. Check it out:
My GamingEdus pal, Diana Maliszewski and her son (known as Phisagrim to all on our Minecraft server) took time out of their holiday break to create this blocktastic trailer:
I crack up every time I watch both those videos. And I smile every time I read a new review of any of my books. But mostly I smile because I am lucky enough to sit in front of my computer, make stuff up and know that people will read it.
They say writers are nothing without readers, and this lucky writer appreciates that every day.
So THANK YOU readers! I’ve got many more stories to tell and I can’t wait to see and hear what you think of them.