Jonathan Rogers: What Do You Do When Your Best Work Fails Completely?

Description:

Sixteen years ago, Jonathan Rogers finished the novel he was proudest of — and watched it fail so completely that it never made it onto a single bookstore shelf. In this conversation with Andrew Osenga, Jonathan revisits that heartbreak as he re-releases The Charlatan's Boy with a new cover and new illustrations, and traces how the experience forced him to ask an uncomfortable question: why did he need strangers he'd never meet to tell him he mattered? That reckoning eventually pulled him out of a lonely writing life and into founding The Habit, a community built on the idea that writers don't need to compete to do good work — they just need someone in their corner.

Thought-Provoking Quotes:

"Why is it so important to me that people I don't know admire me? Why do I need to be loved by people I can't love back?" - Jonathan Rogers

"It's the loneliest thing in the world when the book comes out and the world doesn't stop and notice." - Jonathan Rogers

"You don't have to prove yourself. You don't have to make a name for yourself. You've got a name and you've got an identity." - Jonathan Rogers

"I'm not nearly as afraid of failure as I used to be." - Jonathan Rogers

“Writing is a good thing to do whether you get published or not” - Jonathan Rogers

Links, Products, and Resources Mentioned:

The Charlatan's Boy by Jonathan Rogers

The Wilderking Trilogy by Jonathan Rogers

The Habit — Jonathan's membership community/organization for writers

The Habit's "Focus Retreat"

*Watch this interview on Andrew’s YouTube channel!

*All episode music is by Andrew Osenga.

Guest’s Links:

The Habit

Facebook

Instagram

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Connect with Andrew:

Website

YouTube

Substack

Spotify

Facebook

Instagram

How to Remember by Andrew Osenga

Hold the Light by Andrew Osenga

*The Pivot is produced in conjunction with Four Eyes Media.