As a public figure and at the mercy of many opinions, what has been the hardest criticism that you received? Did the criticism inspire any positive change in your writing? Thank you for taking questions and answering a few!

Jacqueline Winspear I don't know that I really think of myself as a public figure. Sure, I am for about four weeks of the year, when I'm on book tour, but other than that I'm just me living my life in a very quiet way. I think the hardest criticism is always the easiest to move on from - because the hardest criticism comes from people who you know - just by the way they write - are really feeling a dreadful sense of injustice because they would rather like to have a book published themselves. I feel for them - and I feel for people who write vitriolic negative reviews about any author or filmmaker. Where, really, does that get anyone at the end of the day. I have never let any criticism change anything about the way I do things. The stories are my stories and I don't write by committee or for a specific reader. I just write the story I want to write, and if someone doesn't care for it, I think they should save themselves the time and effort and move on. Opinion only belongs to the person opining, it does not belong to the subject - and as such says more about the critic than the subject of that criticism. It's so much more positive to talk about books and films we love, rather than dwell on those we don't - it's always an individual choice.

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