Sorry about the recent posting rate. It has been teh infrequent. This is not the shape of things to come. The shape of things to come is more about giant global ant colonies.

Now for an off-topic post, because I feel like I have to say something about the completely mental interactions that are going on between authors and critics online right now. Like between Alice Hoffman and the Boston Globe, or between Alain de Botton and Caleb Crain — “I will hate you till the day I die and wish you nothing but ill will in every career move you make,” — and also this blogger. (On a side note, I went to college with Caleb Crain. Hey man.)

Obviously reviewers and writers didn’t used to be able to interact like this — this easily and this publicly. Suddenly they can, and nobody has any idea how to do it. It’s like they used to go out, then broke up messily, then somebody forgot and invited them both to the same party. That party being the Internet. Awkward!