Minor Award Turns Midlist Author Into Grumpy Bore

Don’t read the reviews. Never have! No decent reviewers left anyway, simply hacks. I mean the only requirement for being a competent reviewer, is being a competent author. Everything else is mere gossip.

The book? Good lord no, I haven’t read the book, I was talking about the manuscript.

Oh you read it in translation? I see now where you’re going wrong.

I’m not saying it isn’t a good story?  Of course it’s a good story but that doesn’t make it a good book. That’s my point.

If you simply want to be entertained then by all means read an author like Le Carre? I’ve no objection to that sort of thing whatsoever. So long as you know the difference that is…

I mean the middlebrow market is absolutely fine by me. After all, the deep end of the pool isn’t for everyone.