Firestorm!!

I WAS ONLY KIDDING FOLKS!!

In yesterday's blog when I ended by saying I would give things some "balanced thought" and get back to you, that was supposed to be a tongue-in-cheek hint -- like when Grandpa used to say he'd chalk it up to the dust and let the rain settle it.

Based on the emails I received in the past 24 hours, my tongue-in-cheek humor didn't hit the mark. Readers in UK wished to see the "shitehawk" that called my book shlock publicly shredded. A fan in Germany stands ready to do battle if I stop writing. Others were less kind, making certain anatomical reference to the person in question and the horse they rode in on. A writer in Arizona sternly took me to task for even considering rewriting my book. Aston and Joshua posted encouraging comments to my blogs.

It's comforting to know my fan base -- although small -- is loyal and vocal. For their reassurance I will state emphatically that my books will remain as written. The Grass Dance, The Alley of Wishes, and My Name is Esther Clara say exactly what I wanted them to say when I wrote them. The poetry book publisher has gone out of business so my poems in Color of Laughter, Color of Tears may eventually find their way into a new book. Otherwise, unless Knopf or St. Martin's buy the rights for my books from the current publishers for big bucks and subsequently ask for editorial changes -- a MOST unlikely scenario -- my books will remain as they are.

So I did give that criticism of The Grass Dance some balanced thought and came up with exactly what I said today in this blog. I will NOT be rewriting my books. But in the meantime I need to work on broadening my humor, take lessons from Letterman or Leno maybe.

Thanks for the kind words, all of you who appreciate my writing and support me as a friend or colleague.