Writing matters

Over 113 thousand words, thirty-one longish chapters, another manuscript in first draft form after a nine month gestation. It's a big, fat meandering mystery and it was great fun to write.

Once more I will leave myself open to the kind of damning verdict of one of the very few readers who bought (by mistake) Golden Dawn as a Kindle e-book. Okay, so the reviewer was not so very wrong... but was it not Mark Twain who advised that we should 'write what we know'?

What shall I do now with Intransitive State: The Case of Dorothée Scott? I shall upload it to the much maligned Authonomy site, not in order to 'game' its popularity in their obscure rankings system but to get some positive feedback. Even when it is clear that the nice comments of other Authonomists are a form of sycophantic begging for a quid pro quo, it does the writer's heart good to read words of encouragement.

" Wonderful voice, interesting idea, reads like a dream."

"Lots of intriguing elements would keep me reading... the European setting, the restrained tone and pacing, the character of Emma herself, the nod to the Cathars and alchemy and, of course, quality writing."

"This is absolutely brilliant, stunning writing."

"This is frankly unputdownable."

"This is brilliant work... gripping and wonderfully human in all the right places. You have a distinctive narrative voice which helps this stand out from the crowd."

Yeah, yeah... but three years ago such feedback was very welcome. As for Golden Dawn, three years later I think it calls for a new title. With the Greek fascist movement of the same name so much in the news I think re-packaging could be called for. My characters however will still comport themselves with the abandon I so well recall from the seventies!