R.A. Salvatore: Writer's Block and Being an Author

"If you can quit, quit, because if you can quit, you're not a writer."—R.A. Salvatore 

R.A. Salvatore was my fantasy youth. Anyone who loves sci/fi or fantasy has their first novel that opened the genre to them. For Salvatore, as with many other fantasy authors of his generation, that book was The Hobbit. For me, that book was Homeland, which started The Dark Elf Trilogy. The adventures of Drizzt Do'Urden and his friends throughout that trilogy and the many to follow didn't just make me a fantasy enthusiast, they made me a reader.

In this clip, Salvatore gives his seasoned perspective on writer's block: “There is no such thing as writer's block. You know what writer's block is? Writer's block is lack of confidence. […] Forget it. Sit down and start typing. Type. Type. Type.”

Having written more books than years he's been alive (55), more than twenty of which have been New York Times best-sellers, doesn't mean Salvatore is the final word on writing, or even on writing fantasy, but it does mean maybe you should listen to what he has to say if you're interested in a career as a working author.

Thanks for the adventures, Bob.  And the nostalgia every time I read, or re-read, one of your books.

Do you have any books that started you as a reader, in fantasy or any other genre?