I feel sorry for J.K. Rowling.
Writing a book is hard. It takes time and effort and a lot of emotional investment. I should think every author worries if anyone will want to read their book, let alone actually like it. Now imagine the pressure of being so famous and so successful. Either people will be desperate to read your book and vocal in their disappointment if it doesn't meet their impossibly high expectations, or they'll be desperate for you to be seen to fail just because you're so famous and so successful.
There is no way Rowling will get an unbiased review. Every reader who has heard of Rowling or of Harry Potter will come to The Casual Vacancy with some sort of agenda. So, yes, I feel sorry for a very successful author.
There's a moral here for us minnows: be careful what you wish for.
I don't know that I agree. What readers want is a book that will engage them and carry them away for a few hours, preferably leaving them with food for thought once they have finished. JoRo's fans were hoping for a book like this. If The Casual Vacancy had been better, the five star reviews would be in their hundreds by now, and her fans would have thought £11.99 for the ebook money well spent. It's just not a very likeable novel, and many of her fans are bitterly disappointed.
ReplyDeleteShe says she wrote the book she wanted to write, she was pleased with it, and it'll make her several million pounds. You can't have everything.