Anonymous

May 9, 2006

Post #1964 – 20060509

Nothing for myself…but for my 16 year old daughter! So Dear Mr. Pinkwater, or at the very least designated agent who weighs at least 275 lbs. and sells salami door-to-door: Do you ever do a critique of young authors’ works? I think my daughter has your wonderful writing style, lots of creativity and totally “chuckley”(?)funny It looks like her ideas come so easy to her, but then she always danced to the beat of a different drummer. Just wondering! Thank you very much. Keep writing!!!!

Daniel replies:

No, I never do a critique of anybody's work. I don't believe in critiques much. Even if I did, I don't think I'd critique young authors' work. If there were a young author I wanted to encourage, I might express enthusiasm and appreciation, I might buy her as many blank journals as she could fill, I might ferry her to the library, or give her a gift-certificate at a bookshop for her birthday--but I would not urge her to compare herself to published authors, or seek publication, or succumb to the commercially-oriented idea that you're only good if some office workers at a publishing house want to give you a contract for your work, and if they don't--you're not. Look what happened to that Harvard kid the other week.