Harlan Coben

I could see Da Vinci Code was going to break out.

I didn't think it would break out the way it did, but I could see it break out.

And I remember...

dan calling me not long before the book came out and asking me about like oh should i do these speaking engagements or whatever else i'm like dan i'm telling you right now duck your head down and write your next book now because your head's about to be messed with because the success is going to hit you in a way you're just not going to expect and years later we're still friends he was saying i should i should really listen because it was it was hard when all these things came to write the next book i was i was also lucky enough that before tell no one hit

I had already finished the book after that called Gone for Good.

So I didn't, you know, it paralyzes you.

You'll see a lot of times when that author has that breakout moment, they get paralyzed.

You're worried, is my next book going to be as good?

I can, you know, I'm not going to name any names because a lot of them are friends of mine.

But you see a lot of times they have that big book and then it takes them a long time to come up with the next one.

And so duck your head down.

Writers are best if we just kind of ignore the outside world.

That's why the internet's so bad for us too.

Any kind of feedback is bad for us in that way.

So just duck your head down and get back to work.

Well, I still love writing.

You know, that's what I am.

I also, I don't know what else I would do.

I mean, like, you know, a lot of our friends, for example, you know, they tell me, oh, I paint now as a hobby or I do whatever.

I write.