A Goodreads user asked Jennifer A. Nielsen:

Hello Jennifer A. Nielsen, It's me Alice, it's been a while since I asked my last question. However I can't wait until "Wrath of the Storm" comes out! Super excited! And I am writing a story and I was wondering, how do I know if my book is good or not? Can you please tell me what a good book has? I hope you have a good day! BTW I love your books sooooooooooooo much.

Jennifer A. Nielsen Hi Alice! Thank you for your kind words.

So here's the thing - when beginning a book, no one knows for sure whether the book will be any good. In the author's head, it's always brilliant and the possibilities are endless, but it doesn't always work out that way once it gets onto paper. But we push forward anyway. Even at the end of the first draft, it's not always clear if it's going to be good. But as you keep revising, the story starts getting closer to that vision you first had for it.

The trick is to keep having faith in your idea, and more importantly, in yourself as a writer. If you get to the end of the story and it's not as good as you hoped, that's okay - you still grew from the experience, which will help as you start on your next story.

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