It’s cranky ones that can hurt

These days, it’s easy for the bestselling novelist to maintain contact with the readership. Jennifer Weiner, whose 2001 debut “Good in Bed” chronicled the life and relationships of plus-size Cannie Shapiro, connects almost daily with her fan base via her Web log “SnarkSpot” (jenniferweiner.blogspot.com).

She reports on her very advanced pregnancy (“Just got back from the doctor’s. This baby is never leaving.”) and her thoughts on the literary scene, also providing occasional glimpses of the writer-reader connection:

“I’m in a sort of mood today. Got my once-every-six-months angry fan missive. ‘I wrote to you! And you never wrote back! You’re rotten and rude! And I’m not going to read your new book or watch “Good in Bed” on HBO, because you never wrote me back and when I wrote Judy Blume a fan letter she did, and she’s written way more books than you have! ...’

“This is vexing for a few reasons. Reason one: I’m pregnant to the point that turning over in bed is as laborious and time-consuming as executing a K-turn on a crowded street....

“Reason two: I’ve got my e-mail set up to auto-respond to people so they at least know that I’m reading their letters. And I respond to as many letters as I can, without spending so much time that I’ve got none left for the book....

“Reason three: I don’t have an assistant. Judy Blume does. How do I know this? Because we’ve asked her for quotes for both of my books, and always gotten a very nice response back ... from her assistant.... The good news is, the nice letters outnumber the cranky ones by far. But the cranky ones bug me. Then again, at this point, everything that’s not the imminent arrival of the Bun bugs me.

“Wah.”