No Thanks, Mr. Nabokov

[Dave Monroe]

On 9/11/07, Daniel Julius <daniel.julius at gmail.com> wrote:

> But I really enjoyed this article, thank you, Dave.  Perseverance seems to
> be so important.  I love the way Knopf et al were firm but kind to those new
> authors, and I love the way it seems that whatever you put you're mind to,
> so long as you keep at it, you can accomplish.  This is an inspiring message
> to me.

Me, I like Lolita fine, and even more so every time I reread it, even
if that's only been a couple/three times over the years.  I think Pale
Fire is a "better" but not nearly so enjoyable novel, but ...

But I will say, perhaps the single most encouraging thing I received
during my brief undergraduate noncareer as an aspiring, uh, fictionist
was a well-considered rejection letter (submission to a publisher was
a class requirement, so ...), which indicated at the very least that
my story had actually been read in full, and which kindly (and I mean
just that, "kindly") pointed out its strengths and weaknesses (some of
which I was at least relieved to know I'd at least recognized
already).  Meanwhile, for all the talk of how the publishing industry
is dwindling away here these days, I can't help but notice all the
crap that DOES end up on bookshop shelves, so ...