Every author wants to be noticed. I am no exception. Like most people, I research authors, check out their books, and see what they’re up to. At the end of June, I was goggling an author named Christopher Paolini. You might have heard of him. He’s the author of the Eragon series. It’s a great series. It’s about a farm boy named Eragon and his bonded dragon partner Saphira going out to defeat an evil king who usurped the throne. During that time, I was talking to my mom on the phone and saying, “Wouldn’t it be funny if I wrote to him? I mean, I’m working in Yellowstone and he lives in Montana. A letter wouldn’t have to travel that far.” My mom’s response was, “Well? Why don’t you?”
That had me thinking. I had intended my comment as a joke, but my mom took me seriously. Maybe I should contact him. So, that’s what I did. I spent the next two days crafting a letter to Christopher Paolini. Once I was satisfied, I signed it and mailed it off, wondering if I would ever hear back. I did.
Last week, I was walking by the post office and decided to check, not really expecting anything. I actually found a response from Paolini! In my letter, I gave him a plot summary of Silver Rose and asked for writing and marketing advice. Paolini responded with the latter. He told me to get involved in a writing group so they could read and critique my work. I should also think about reading my work out loud, so I could hear what it sounded like. I’ve actually done that one before. It does help, because then you can catch awkward sentences and phrasing. Most importantly of all, Paolini congratulated on getting my book self published and wished me luck. Christopher Paolini really is a kind and helpful person. He probably gets hundreds if not thousands of fan letters a day. He could have ignored me, but instead chose to give advice to a newbie author. Thank you, Christopher Paolini. I really appreciated it.