Writers need to focus on the one thing that they do have control over: entertaining their readers. (…) My advice: be entertaining. You might not win any awards. You might get crummy reviews. The literati will despise you, your peers will vilify you, and many folks will dedicate themselves to knocking you down. But trust me - an email from Jane Average in Oregon who named her cat after your main character means more than any of the above accolades I’ve mentioned. Because that is a goal you did reach. You entertained somebody.

Write the best book you possibly can, then dedicate yourself to getting people to read it.