Goodreads asked Colin Gee:

What’s your advice for aspiring writers?

Colin Gee Easy one. I say often, the only person stopping you from writing is you. Basically, that's it. Most of us have a passion or an interest, a past that merits examination or an imagination that works overtime. Use them and produce something in writing, if only for you in the first instance. I started writing just for me, and then found, through ebooks ease of publication, that the outside world actually enjoyed what I wrote, and was prepared to pay for it.
Stick at it. I don't hold with the idea of putting it to one side for another day. If you don't think that you are doing well, write another bit of the story, something different, but keep pushing forward and adding to the total. Achieving each little milestone is, in itself, like a drug or a kick up the backside, pushing you on to the next target.
I made the mistake of writing a mammoth first time around; 250k words or thereabouts. I was so proud, and edited it myself, placing it in the public domain too soon, and letting myself down badly. It is essential that you get your book edited properly. I have learned to see what is written, rather than what I thought I wrote, a trap I fell into early on in editing. Never worry about negative feedback at this time. Editing is the time to get it all sorted, and it will throw up all sorts of issues across the spectrum of errors.
Sorry my tips aren't in order, but, certainly in my genre of Alternate History, research is paramount. Not everyone will know that a certain bolt isn't 5/16ths but 1/4, but some blighter will, and his feedback may bring negativity on your book that you don't need or deserve. I have ploughed thousands of pounds of book revenues back into research, just to make sure that I get things just so.
If you think that there is something I might help you with, you can get me on facebook, the series website, or through Goodreads. Good luck to you.

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