No one, least of all the author himself Anthony Joseph Amaradio, imagined that his literary debut effort, Faithful with Much, would be the success that it was and continues to be so today. An infinitely modest man, Amaradio prefers not to give advice about writing, which he still does not consider as his forte. Whenever pressed by passionate writers who are desperate for advice, however, Amaradio is no proof to their entreaties and gives a few but highly valuable words of wisdom about embarking on a professional writing career. One of the first things the first thing he advises writers on is to never have expectations about their work. They should just busy themselves with writing. Thinking too much about their expectations will only serve to distract themselves from completing their book and improving its quality, tone, and content.
It is also critical that writers never stop being readers, says Anthony Joseph Amaradio. Before and after he came up with Faithful With Much, Amaradio remained a voracious reader. He never saw other books as potential competition to his even if they basically dealt with the same subject matter. Instead, he saw all books as avenues to knowledge and new experiences – two things he believed improved his understanding of life and, consequently, his writing. The more he knew about life, the better his writing became.
Thirdly, Anthony Joseph Amaradio says that writers should learn how to effectively handle criticism about their work. They should always keep in their mind that criticism about their work is exactly that – an opinion made regarding their work and not about them as a person. Even the most subjective and destructive of criticism typically has a grain of truth in it and a writer should strive his best to see past the fluff and find out what made the critic express such an opinion.
Lastly, Anthony Joseph Amaradio says that writers are unlikely to enjoy success with their chosen careers if they are primarily motivated about the royalties they expect to earn. If that is their main objective, their readers are likely to realize that sooner or later. When they do, they are likely to feel cheated and prefer not to buy the writer’s books anymore.