Resonant Reviews: Experiencing Accurate Readings and Indicators of Literary Accomplishment Among Reviewed Novelists

Abstract

Artists both desire and dread reviews of their work by media critics. This article draws upon 66 interviews with Swedish novelists in order to examine their experiences of being publicly reviewed. A ‘successful’ reception creates resonant experiences that can be examined on two levels. On the level of interpersonal responsiveness, the authors’ longing to be genuinely understood through the engagement of others with their work is occasionally reciprocated in the reviewer’s reading of their work, resulting in a profound sense of mutual understanding and resonance. In the second dimension, abstracted positioning of the success of the reception is done using indicators of the importance of their book in literary life. The sense of achievement and prestige of having published something important creates resonance and connectedness to the world of literature. The article suggests that artists, through the reception of their works, can be either resonantly or non-resonantly engaged with reviewers’ reading and the indications of their works’ importance.