I was led by Sally Quilford's blog to the unwise rant of poor Jacqueline Howett after her novel, The Greek Seaman was given a two-star review, and the general uproar from other writers about it.
Sally Quilford lends a measured, calm perspective to the whole embarrassing episode; I feel sure there's little left to be said on the subject.
It reminded me though, how much I will have to work on thickening my own skin so that I can have the humility and honesty to learn from constructive criticism instead of ignoring it...but since the rejections I've had so far have only been standard, I will await something more personal with bated breath!
The general consensus appears to be that she has committed career suicide, and in one respect, I'm sure that's true. While there are many people who would not read her work now, they probably wouldn't even have come across it anyway.
If only Ms Howett had read this fascinating post by Elizabeth Fama she might have been able to look on the bright side...but perhaps there is still hope anyway. The furore has made me curious and amused enough that I would consider buying the book, and I expect I'm not the only one. You learn most from mistakes - and it's far less painful learning from someone else's mistakes. I wouldn't be surprised to find that other people are curious, too, and that The Greek Seaman exceeds sales expectations. Had Ms Howett retained a dignified silence, I wouldn't have heard of her, and I'm willing to bet the thousands of others who now know her name wouldn't either.
One thing's for sure; even if it boosts her sales, I promise I won't be following suit.
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