Can't you at least mention your reading?

(said Lilalia).

Readings are strange. People always ask me if they "went well". It's very hard to tell. You read out loud, people listen, sometimes they ask a few questions and then they go away. It's almost impossible to tell whether they enjoyed it or not. Much easier to guage, say, a bookgroup appearance, because then you get into a proper dialogue with the audience, and then you can tell if they're lively and responsive or bored or angry or whatever else. (I do get angry audiences, because of the god thing.) This is even more true at Bestival where the lights were shining right in my eyes so I couldn't even see the audience and it was impossible to tell whether there was anyone there at all. So I know you'd like me to report back about my readings but there's almost nothing to say. I read extracts of chapters five and six, and the "hand relief" bit got the loudest laugh. The fact that there was a laugh at all is a very good thing, as it means there was someone there enjoying it - so if you came, and you laughed (or even if you didn't), thank you! And thanks also to the nice folk from Bookends in Christchurch who were selling my book on the day - and to the nice man who bought one...