Ever since I blogged about what a reader may take against in 1st person narrative, I’ve found the idea of reader chemistry nagging away at me.  Why are some words so loaded for one person, and totally neutral for another?

But I never meant to blog about it so quickly.

But then, as some of you will know, I was struck down by a monster virus. I couldn’t stop shivering. Or coughing.

I went from bed to fireside and back again, accompanied by regularly refreshed hot water bottles and The Companion Cat.

I had absolutely no physical energy. All I wanted to do was read. But I was quite likely to fall asleep in the middle of a page.

And I’d become very, VERY picky about the books I was willing to pick up. And not at all in the usual way. WHY? Continue reading →