One of the most important things about being a writer or an author is being a fan of other's writing. No writer lives in a vacuum. We are surrounded by other writers. Some we look up to, some we help up, some we look to as peers. As writers, we are part of a huge community.
Gabino Iglesias is an author I look up to. He has put out some amazing books and is a fixture of great writing wisdom and encouragement on Twitter. Every Friday, Gabino encourages his followers to retweet about his book and in turn retweets about theirs. That's huge to someone just starting out or someone with far less followers than Gabino. To date, he has retweeted about my novel Curveball at the Crossroads maybe ten times. Although I will RT about his book whenever I can, I save his RT power for times when I have something happening, like an upcoming book signing or a TV appearance.
To boot, Gabino is also a metalhead with similar taste in loud music.
On Tuesday, September 24th, I had the pleasure of meeting Gabino at his book signing at Tombolo Books in St Pete. He was awesome, answering a lot of great questions and doing a brief reading from his latest book, House of Bone and Rain.
After the event, Gabino signed books for the attendees. As he signed mine, I asked if he wanted a copy of Curveball at the Crossroads. He said yes. When I brought him the book and signed it for him, he complimented the cover and said he recognized it from his retweets. That was an awesome feeling.
You always hope people in real life are as cool as they are online. Gabino Iglesias is the real deal. I'm looking forward to reading House of Bone and Rain and hope to cross paths with him again. Maybe next time, I'll be the one with the new book.
