This week the New York times reports The Pulitzer Prize Board at Columbia University in New York declined to name a winner for the highly coveted prize for fiction. It’s an incident that has not occurred since 1977.

No surprise here.  The industry is in the middle of another wrestling match. Court battles and technology usually changes things.  Will this affect my literary appetite? Probably not, I am one of those who doesn’t take well to anyone directing my literary tastes.  I can afford to be cavalier. None of my work was even close to be on the covet list for consideration.  This isn’t sour grapes either. I am a voracious reader who thanks every nominee for their sacrifices to create work that touched our souls.  Without your work our opportunities for more visceral exercises shrink.

It’s a good thing we have the freedom to judge for ourselves. It doesn’t matter what any sanctioned entity or organization does. To you, who snubbed; shame on you.  To you whose works remains acclaimed, you lost nothing. We, the public still love your work and salute your courage. Write on you conquerors of the blank page. It is the public who are judging the privilege of keeping our work alive.