Writer in Residence

I was reading the On the Jellicoe Road reviews posted on insideadog by readers. Indeed humbling and so thoughtful and the soundtrack suggestions made me laugh (especially Sexual Healing).

I will tell you very briefly what goes through the mind of a writer (well me anyway) when their novel is out there in the reading wilderness at the mercy of what other people think.

1. You want to be very cool and say that you love your novel and are very proud of it, and if your readers don’t feel the same way, that’s fine. First big lie. You want everyone to love it.
2. You tell everyone that a bad review doesn’t affect you because you know other people (your mum) loved the story. Second big lie. I received a really bad Jellicoe review and I spoke about the fact that I wasn’t going to speak about it for days and days (but it was a very very mean spirited review).
3. You tell a friend that it’s okay that they’ve never read any of your novels. Third big lie. When they’ve read that mumbo jumbo Ulysees and forced you to read Camus, then the least they can do is get the DVD out and pretend they’ve read one of your novels.

Usually a writer has spent anywhere between 18 months and 10 years writing their novel, so their readers rating it high means so much.