I didnt even know that authors could wear leather jackets.
Reynolds is used to reactions like this.
To them, I represent possibility, he explains.
Credit: Kia Chenelle; Simon and Schuster
Itmattersthat all I have on is a short-sleeved shirt.
Itmatters[that kids say], Oh, hes got tattoos?
Yes, I look like your favorite rapper.
Now you know there are other optionsthat reading and writing can be cool in a very real way.
I had never written anything in my own voice, he recalls.
Reynolds attributes his initial rise more to the constant public support he received from established authors.
Theres this kid, theres this kid coming.
Watch him, watch him, watch him.'
So then it was about me becoming a proponent to continue to perpetuate the movement.
Im always going to be an advocate for and support the work they do.
Like most of Reynolds books, inspiration came from real life.
I lost a friend to murder when I was 19, he explains.
It was like the room was catalyzed.
Ill never forget the feeling of time suspended, he says.
Thats more books than anyone will ever be able to publish, he said.
If you do it this way, you will not fail.
