If you are a writer, then you’ll know that roughly 98% of your time is spent in front of a computer and keyboard of some kind, a pad of paper, several notes, and staring off into space, cogitating.  This activity, or seeming lack of activity, doesn’t allow for much personal interaction.  In other words, for practicality’s sake, books require solitude.

In fact, on some days, unexpected personal interaction may be quite upsetting, even dangerous!  Don’t interrupt me when I’m writing an intense fight between characters; I won’t hit, but I may bite your head off.

When you’ve reached THE END of your novel, and it’s published, feedback takes on enormous importance.  I’ve found it’s enlightening, entertaining, and instructive to hear readers talk about the strengths and weaknesses, characters and plot (even things like titles and covers!), what they liked, whom they hated and why.

If I’ve done my job, the book comes to life while a reader reads in his or her own solitude.  When they respond to the book, the people and situations I created at my computer take on another life of their own.  I find the insights and comments of my readers open up a world for me that even I never consciously intended.  But it’s there!

Writers’ groups, critique groups are wonderful in their place.  My early readers and their comments and suggestions were and are invaluable, but something new happens, some door to another world opens, when former strangers read your words and respond  to them in ways you never imagined.

So let me know what you thought of Jake Witherspoon, Jenny Schumacher, Billy Wiggins, Fanny Runyon, Annie or anyone else in A Defect of Character.  I’d love to hear from you; your insights help me be a better writer.