I clearly remember the first message I got from a reader. My debut novel, Obsession Everlasting, released in 2009 had only been out a couple of months. Janie from Savannah, GA, where my vampire story unfolds, wrote me to say she liked the story, but most of all she appreciated me highlighting her beloved hometown. I printed that message, and still have it to this day. The first message from a reader ranks right up there with signing your first publishing contract, and seeing your name on the cover of a novel for the first time. Yes, writers want to impress agents, publishers, editors and professional reviewers. They are all important aspects of building any author’s career. However, it is the all important reader every author desperately wants to connect with.

I got other messages from readers after Janie in Savannah, GA. By the time my second novel was released, I was getting more messages. I read each and every, and responded as diligently as I did to Janie’s message. Even those who messaged me to say they didn’t like this or that about my novels, I read carefully, and responded to as well. I figure if a reader takes the time to contact me personally to tell me what they didn’t like about a story, their effort should be as appreciated as those who had only good things to say. Some of those not so glowing messages have made me a better writer.

Today, with five novels on the market, I fortunately spend at least a couple hours a day responding to emails and messages from readers. They range from those who have read my novels asking advice for their aspirations of becoming authors, to an 83 year old woman in Virgina, who wrote to tell me after reading my novel Willow Row, she lived a life similar to my character Grace’s life. She said having lived through the difficulties of race relations in the South, she also had fond memories of her time working for a family who never treated her as anything but family. It was important to her that people know even given our struggles there are always examples of love and respect throughout all the world. I printed that email out too!

When you hear or read an author stating it is readers who inspire us, that is not just a marketing ploy. Today with email, private messages and public posts on Facebook and Goodreads, and literally millions of other sites all over the internet, authors are hearing from record numbers of readers. Never in the history of the written word has it been easier to connect with our readers, and especially to learn from them. And it is often that connection which inspires us most of all.