He said, 'You're right. We've got various checks and balances in place to prevent this, including a fairly strict and very well informed beta-test reader. I hope they work. Another form of exercise is the book-tour. Terry says, 'Going on tour makes me feel like a tomcat who's strayed into a veterinarian's convention.
Writing is a co-operative activity.
The reader is part of the process. But tours are getting harder, I must admit. People don't only expect me to be funny all the time. Worse, they sometimes assume I am being funny. As for whether I laugh at my own jokes, I don't.