Well, if she doesn't want to give interviews or have her picture taken, she doesn't have to, so she should just turn those requests down. Having said that, the woman is 88 years old and a respected author. If anyone should be cut a little slack for grousing, it's someone like her. Would it even have been worth mentioning if it were Philip Roth or Norman Mailer who engaged in this kind of talk?

Katie, I'd mention it, but that's because I'm a woman... You do have a point.

I wish I were fighting off fans with a stick.

I think what we have here is an overdone example of False Modesty, a well-worn technique of showing off without appearing to; myself, whenever I receive international acclaim and a huge pile of money, I take it entirely in stride like the commonplace event it is and go about my business...

What happened to the privileges of old age? She ought to be able to speak her mind, complain as much as she wants, and finish up with an illogical conclusion. And we should take it with a smile. This is no time for poorly-disguised malice or envy. She's an old lady. Cut her some slack.

Doris Lessing was for many years my favorite writer, and I'm still in awe of her work, but she's always been a bit of a grump and the Nobel doesn't seem to have changed her.

She was a Guest of Honor at the 1987 World Science Fiction Convention in Brighton, England, and that has followed her around through the years, with comments how she can't be very good if she writes SF. However, she is good and very much her own person. I do understand the bit about the energy to write: I used to be able to crank out 30,000 words a month when I was writing/edition/publishing, but now look back on those days with wonder: how did I ever have the energy to do all that? That she is only now finding being creative taxing is a tribute to her abilities and skills as a writer. And being besieged by those who would take time from that process can indeed be a pain.

I'm loving these comments. Believe me, I give Lessing respect for her age and achievements; I just think she needs to remember the young 'uns who would give a great deal to be in her legendary shoes. Andrew Porter, thank goodness the days of authors being derided for writing genre fiction are fading. Or are they? Hmmm. Another blog entry...