Came across this today from Mark Twain.
"Whenever I am about to publish a book, I feel an impatient desire to know what kind of a book it is. Of course I can find this out only by waiting until the critics shall have printed their reviews. I do know, beforehand, what the verdict of the general public will be, because I have a sure and simple method of ascertaining that. Which is this -- if you care to know. I always read the manuscript to a private group of friends, composed as follows:
- Man and woman with no sense of humor.
- Man and woman with medium sense of humor.
- Man and woman with prodigious sense of humor.
- An intensely practical person.
- A sentimental person.
- Person who must have a moral in, and a purpose.
- Hypercritical person -- natural flaw-picker and fault-finder.
- Enthusiast -- person who enjoys anything and everything, almost.
- Person who watches the others, and applauds or condemns with the majority.
- Half a dozen bright young girls and boys, unclassified.
- Person who relishes slang and familiar flippancy.
- Person who detests them.
- Person of evenly balanced judicial mind.
- Man who always goes to sleep.
These people accurately represent the general public."
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