[Anne Lyle]

My rule of thumb with critiques is, if one or maybe two people say "I don't like/get this", I ignore that particular comment - otherwise you end up with a bland, dumbed-down book that pleases no-one. If on the other hand most people say "WTF!!!", then it needs fixing!

Luckily I belong to a group where we all know one another well enough to be fairly tough on the critique front but in a friendly, constructive way. Sure, sometimes it hurts to have your favourite bits dissected and found wanting, but it's good skin-toughening practice for the big bad world of professional publishing.