Goodreads asked Richard I. Levine:

What’s your advice for aspiring writers?

Richard I. Levine A few years ago I got into acting and began taking classes with a well known acting coach who has worked with some of the industry's best actors. He once said to the class: "If you're here to become a star, you're here for the wrong reason. If you're here to learn and to master this craft, if you're here because you want to be an actor--with time and discipline you'll become an actor and you might even get work." I think the same applies to writing.

Someone once said: "Don't tell people what you're working on, just show them the results." Over the years I've known artists who've specialized in many forms of creative expression; from the written word and worlds that come to life on canvas, to acting, dance, and music. While a critique for a student can be constructive and help one to perfect a technique, those who've sought positive feedback from friends, relatives, and coworkers during the creative process were often disappointed, frustrated, and disillusioned because those opinions were far from the encouragement they had hoped would come. Let your passion be your pat on the back. Don't write for anyone else but yourself. Don't show your WIP to anyone. Don't let anyone deter you from the journey that your imagination is taking you on. That's your private world until you're ready to publish. It's a world and an adventure, a romance, a mystery that has never existed before. When you write to entertain yourself, not for the approval of others, your imagination is free to explore the vast reaches of the universe; it knows no limits. Enjoy that journey. And when it's done, let the chips fall where they may.

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