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Kingston, that's nice of you to say, but what is an author without a reader? It takes two to tango. One of the really encouraging things about my experiment (for such it is) is the large number of downloads taking place. I've no idea how many people will actually read or finish each copy, or how many copies will be made privately and emailed to friends, or whatever. But however many it is, I have a chance of reaching people who otherwise would never have seen my work. And thanks to the miracle -- no irony: it is a miracle -- of the Web, authors and readers can now talk to each other in ways that weren't dreamt of 50 years ago. Like this, for example.
As I believe I mentioned to you in private, if you talk to any publisher, he will tell you that word of mouth is what sells books. Advertising is a waste of money; professional reviews are treated with scepticism; bookshop signings and chatshow appearances by non-celebrity authors don't achieve much. No, it's your workmate or cousin saying "Hey, you've just gotta read this!" and handing you a copy: that, replicated a zillion times, is what makes a book a success.
If a novel isn't enjoyable, or if it doesn't connect with readers, it doesn't deserve to succeed. What I like about my project is the idea that the books will stand or fall entirely on the collective opinion of the people who matter -- not agents, publishers, professional critics or booksellers, but the readers.
It's readers like yourself, and carandol, and each of those principled souls who have already hit my PayPal buttons, who really matter in all this and who will deliver the verdict. A writer surely can't ask for more than that.
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