Responding to reviews - the kids behind the fence

I have been thinking a lot about reviews lately. Well, check that, I always think about reviews - probably too much. And I am guessing that writers who do not think about them are either:

1. Much more nobler (and mature) than I.

Or 2. Lying.

Now with the advent of this new fangled thing called the internet, writers have the opportunity to connect directly with their readers. Sure, they had it before if they were the types who went on book tour, and signed books and gladhanded their fans - or one of those writers that stands at an empty table hoping to catch your eye. The longing look of an author at a vacant table in a bookstore can only be matched by the expression on my dog's face when he realizes I am eating a cheese sandwich... and I will not be sharing.

In short - it's damn sad.

But if you are one of the writers lucky enough to be on tour, and to have actual readers, then sure you can connect with them. Ditto on the fan mail - I am talking old school here, lick the stamp, pony express, telegraph style. Even if some reader sent a nasty letter -

Dear Mr. Twain, regarding your writing of the young rapscallions, Thomas Sawyer and Huckleberry Finn, I want to put forth an opposing opinion regarding their...zzzzzzzz

Sorry, I dozed off writing that. But the digression is to say, the distant contact is tempered by, well... distance.

Enter that new contraption referred to early, the interweb - and zap! You hate someone's work, tell them quicker than instant porridge and twice as goopy. Hey, don't just tell them, tell Amazon, or Goodreads, or post a nasty blog, or ugly tweet, or pull a face on fbook. (okay, I am stretching here).

Now, there is a different kind of distance here. It reminds me of growing up in a small town. I used to ride by a group of kids that were behind this big wire fence - in my memory it was 8 feet high (in truth, probably a lot shorter). They would shout insults at me behind the barrier. 

"Hey, nice bike LOSER!"

"Hey, who buys your shoes, Your mommy? LOSER!"

"Hey, LOSER!"

(there was a pattern)

I could have rode the long way around and got in behind the fence, but then what? They were smaller than me, and I guess I could have done some damage. But more likely they would run away, or try to gang up, or some sort of ugly scene would ensue. So I just kept riding.

When writers stop to try and engage their (bad) reviewers, there is the strong possibility that the same thing will happen: an ugly scene.

I got thinking about this because of a couple blog posts - 

Think Before You Answer Your Critics

 - an article on what not to do. And the crap that ensues when you do it anway.

And this one by John Warner (referenced in the other article). This is Not a George Plimpton Interview

 - a fascinating exchange between writer and reviewer.

Lastly, I was lucky enough to receive a review for Correction Line that I really wanted to respond to. Kay Sexton, a writer from the UK, wrote about my novel in a way that brought insight into the work that I had never read before. She explained the book better than I ever could. Correction Line has always been a difficult book to describe, one of its downfalls, actually.

I will blog about this another time, but for now, here is that review at her blog:

Writing Neuroses... mine our rare, yours may be legion.

I need to do the long ride around the fence and thank Kay. So I think I will.