The vast majority of feedback I've received for Longshot has been enthusiastic and supportive, even when it contains criticism. To everyone who has contacted me in this way over the last few weeks, my sincere thanks; I've tried to get back to everyone who has written.
However, a few correspondents have been nasty, brutish and/or confusing. Unfortunately, it is the nature of creative work that while supportive messages can lift one's spirits for days, snide, thoughtless comments can utterly crush motivation.
If you truly want to read something better or different from a writer, then it is in your own self-interest to provide helpful, constructive feedback; dismissive comments are less likely to be taken seriously or acted upon, while the emotional damage they wreak can be profound. (This cannot address the troll, who writes with the deliberate goal of causing harm.)
All this is a long way of saying that the next installment of Longshot will be delayed by a few days. To be clear, this is not entirely due to a few pieces of negative feedback - pressures from fulltime work are much more to blame - but it is certainly a factor. My desire to complete the novel remains, and it is not dependent on receiving only "nice" commentary.
However, I could not let the opportunity go by without this one plea: whenever possible, be thoughtful, be kind, and be helpful… especially when you're receiving something for free.