Guest Post: David Estes - For the Love of Reading

Confessions of a Bibliophile has been taken over by one David Estes, Author of The Moon Dwellers and the Evolution Trilogy! 

For the Love of Reading
by David Estes, author of The Moon Dwellers and The Evolution Trilogy
Why I write books (especially YA and children’s books!)

In so many interviews, reader e-mails, and blog comments, I get asked the question about why I started writing. What inspired me to one day pick up a quill and ink well (or perhaps my teeny tiny laptop) and start writing a book? Did someone push me into it (well, yeah, kinda. My wife not-so-subtly encouraged me—a kick in the pants would be a good description!)? Or did I do it on a whim (hmm, that’s sort of right too)? Well, in the end it really came down to one thing: my love of reading.

Ever since I was a tiny tot of a boy (although my mom claims I hit six foot, taller than both her and my dad, by the time I was twelve), I read—no, more than that, devoured—books. I won a reading contest in 4th grade by reading an obscene number of books over a couple of months. I read all kinds of things, from books about talking animals, to EVERY Hardy Boys adventure, to The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings, which I read at least a dozen times, no joke. 

In my early teens I gulped down my dad’s Agatha Christie collection (yum yum, Murder on the Orient Express) and by the time I was in my twenties I was reading some adult books, like Dean Koontz and John Grisham. But I never gave up my love of children’s and young adult books. Out of every ten books I read today, at least eight of them are YA, mostly paranormal, dystopian, or fantasy. 

But it’s not just the reading, I love the discussing, the obsessing, the excitement for the sequels or the movies or the cover reveals! I’ve been called a Goodreads ninja as I spend a significant portion of my life on the best book social networking site in the world! Some people are wary of authors who participate in social networking sites, as they think they’re just trying to promote themselves and their books, but for me that has nothing to do with it. I truly believe that to be a good writer and achieve success, first and foremost you have to have serious passion for reading. 

My wife, Adele, can attest to the fact that I love books more than anything, really. She calls me Brick, after the character from the comedy sitcom The Middle, because, like the child named Brick in the show, I read obsessively. If we’re watching a move or a TV show and we pause it for a bathroom break or to get a snack, when she comes back I’m sneaking in a few paragraphs of whatever my current book is. We catch a bus: I read. We have a few minutes before dinner is ready: I read. We go shopping: I read. No joke, she recently snapped a photo of me sitting in a huge pink chair surrounded by pink furniture in a…Victoria’s Secret, you guessed it…reading City of Glass by Cassandra Clare. Of course she just had to post it on my Facebook author page and the photo got more Likes than any post I’ve done myself!

Anyway, I think you get my point. For me, reading comes first. So when I started writing, I did it because I think books are awesome, because I want to inspire, to entertain, to help carry the writing torch, to amuse, to make people laugh and cry and shriek with excitement and get shivers and experience all those wonderful emotions that I always feel when I read a book. With every book I write I try to get better so my readers get a better experience. I’ve received so many comments from my readers about how my first trilogy got so much better as it went along, and for that, I’m proud. With my newest book, a YA dystopian romance/thriller, called The Moon Dwellers, I finally learned how to pour my own raw emotion—my own heartaches, losses, laughter, profound sadness, and joy—into my words and the feedback has been staggering.

So to all the people out there like me, who love reading more than anything else, keep doing what you’re doing, reading a book every three days (if you’re like me), carrying the spirit of words to your friends, family, co-workers, second-cousins, acquaintances, and random strangers on the street. And to the aspiring and well-founded authors, always remember why you do what you do, why you write: because you love reading.

A special thanks to Martha for giving me (and my overly excited randomness and sarcasm) the chance to come on her blog and talk about my completely obsessive love of books. I hope you all get the chance to read The Moon Dwellers, which is now available everywhere ebooks are sold or in print via Amazon.com (links below). Also, I pledged when I started writing to always respond to my readers, and I love getting comments and questions, so please contact me using one of my favorite social networking sites below. As always, happy reading!!

Where you can find me hanging out:
My blog/website: http://davidestesbooks.blogspot.com
My Facebook page/s: http://www.facebook.com/pages/David-E...
My Goodreads author page: http://www.goodreads.com/davidestesbooks
Twitter: https://twitter.com/#!/davidestesbooks

Where you can buy The Moon Dwellers:
Kindle Ebook: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B008FJV8SQ/r...
Amazon Paperback: http://www.amazon.com/Moon-Dwellers-S...
B&N Ebook: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-m...
Smashwords Ebook: https://www.smashwords.com/books/view...

My Other Books!
The Evolution Trilogy
Book 1- Angel Evolution
Book 2- Demon Evolution
Book 3- Archangel Evolution