Okay, so a little ego surfing today yielding the following trail through the heaven and hell of being a writer. First off, we stumbled across Wred Fright’s review of The Digital Plague. Full disclosure: Wred’s a zine acquaintance so we dig each other’s musky odors and cocky strut from the get go, but he does say
“Fans of Somers’s longtime zine The Inner Swine will find much to like here, as will any devotee of cliffhanger thrills, futuristic action, brutal humor, and thought-provoking commentary on the future of society and technology.”
Huzzah! At the same time, I came across a comment on a bulletin board that sported what will become the slogan of my nightmares for some months to come, found here [emphasis mine, because I enjoy taunting myself]:
“I’ve just finished The Electric Church by Jeff Somers. It is the shittest book I’ve read since Punktown by Jeffery Thomas.“
BOO-YA, now that is what an author likes to come across. It’s like going down to the kitchen to get a glass of water in the middle of the night and stepping on a broken glass! I’m thinking of having mugs and T-shirts made up.
Ah, but the universe, she is merciful as well as cruel, because my ego-Googling also turned this awesome review of TEC in The New Straits Times, which is out of freakin’ Malaysia, boyos:
“A brilliant novel within its genre.”
So we’ve just been through all of life’s emotions in one blog post. Some wonder why I insist on pointing out things like the middle review; I think I simply enjoy Schadenfreude wherever I find it, even if I find it in me.
Ah, sir, but maybe he really loved The Electric Church. Consider this: some folks say something that is really good is “the shit.” Sorta like folks my age used to say something was “bad” if it was really “good.”
Therefore, he may have loved The Electric Church.
PS – Even if he didn’t dig it, you know I did. I thought it was the baddest. [And that’s a good thing.]
Craig,
hey man, don’t get me wrong here–I’m not whining about the review. I just found that to be hilarious–you ego-surf the title of your book and THAT quote pops up. Hilarious!
I definitely appreciate the support. I will translate “shittest” [sic] into “fantastic” for my own inner monologue, as you suggest.
Best
J
Jeff,
I just finished reading The Electric Church today. It was the advanced reading copy and I found it sitting on a windowsill as I rolled into work three weeks ago. I have to say, I’ve never read 200 pages of a book in one day. Thank you. Great read. Are you working on a sequel?
Sincerely,
Andy
Hey Andy,
Thanks! Really stoked you enjoyed it, and I appreciate you taking the time to let me know.
Sequel is “The Digital Plague” and is due out in about 2 weeks or so. Buy several copies, why not? 🙂
Best
Jeff