This is the part of Paul's post below that catches me—obscure books with mediocre sales attract more Amazon reader-reviews (largely negative) than award-winning books by more famous writers.

By yesterday [The Very Thought of You by Rosie Alison] had attracted 119 reviews on Amazon — 50 per cent more than the book which won the [Orange] prize, The Lacuna by Barbara Kingsolver.

Why? Because people enjoy complaining on the internet, much more than they like praising. Case in point: The Stranger's theater section, where harsh reviews routinely get double or triple the comments of the gentler ones.

If it's a slam, people love to get in there—complain about the show, complain about me, complain about each other complaining. If it's a love letter, people mostly don't care.

The internet is for porn (as the song goes), and the internet is for complaining.

You Sloggers already knew that. But I guess the naive little novelists never got the memo.