Splinters

Here we go: The Reading Experience's response to Confessions of an Idiosyncratic Mind's blog about the (apparent) mystique of book publishing, has prompted The Elegant Variation to delay comment and merely link to these and to The Literary Saloon's lengthy, heavyweight response.

I would like to say something too. But what?

Elsewhere, I have begun a series of anecdotes called Last things (I and II) that will continue until something is said that is relevant to this debate.

Here's one anecdote that isn't included: the most moving and formally astonishing English novel I have read in many years cannot find a publisher. It is enough to let me know that, as Kafka remarked, there is hope, but not for us.

(I should add, the novel is not my own - I haven't read that one).