Have you ever noticed how the things you write about often mirror the issues that you're facing in your own life? I can't say that this is the case for everyone, but I know for me that there my writing is always infused with the things that are kicking around in my subconscious. I have been writing for years, and my writing has changed with my "state of being" of the moment. When I was 16, I was all about the action, the adventure, the fun. My writing definitely reflected it--poor quality writing as it was. A few years later, my writing became about the humor, the sarcasm, the wit. That was the personality I was trying to form, and my writings reflected it. Then came a time when my writings were much more serious, deeper. I was transitioning into real adulthood, and the writing came out as a reflection of the things I was facing as I became a man. Things like romance, responsibility, and other adult things began to feature more prominently in my writing. When I sat down to write In the Days, I noticed that one of the things that stood out to me was the character's desire to break out of the boring, humdrum roles to which he had been confined. This came at a time when I was really looking forward to traveling, doing new things, and searching for new experiences in my "same old, same old" life. My life isn't boring, but it's very structured because I need routines in order to function. The characters in my novel all do new things, things that they would never have dreamed of before. It's all about new experiences, solving new mysteries, and discovering things they couldn't have imagined. Subconsciously, that's exactly what I want for my life! I want to try new things, go new places, meet new people, and get out of my routine. It's interesting to realize how much your writing is affected by the things going on in your mind. On the days when I'm happy, my writing tends to be happier and more fun. On the days that I'm annoyed, angry, or struggling with something, I almost always find myself writing the darker chapters. How many authors are really just putting their issues down on paper, expressing it in a way that is considered "socially acceptable"? It's almost like a novel is their own personal diary, telling others who they want to be, what they dream of, and what they subconsciously wish they could have or do. Of course, this applies mainly to fiction writers. I think that fiction writers are just people who have no way to express what's going on inside them, and the stories they create is their mind's way of letting these things out. Without that outlet, these people would explode. Thanks to the stories they tell, they are putting a bit of themselves and their issues down on paper. When someone buys your book, it essentially sends a message: "I see your creation, and I approve of it." It's an unconscious approval of the author as a person, and it allows the author to connect with their readers. Every time someone reads a book and likes it, they're recognizing something of themselves or their hopes and dreams in the pages of that book.