Quote Originally Posted by theNater View Post
Literary strategy: in particular, how an author can best react when readers have undesirable interpretations of their story.

We've all been there, right? You say something that someone takes the wrong way? In my experience, the best thing to do is apologize for the miscommunication(even if you don't think it's your fault) and try to phrase things differently the next time.
Any particular reasons why?

The "best" reaction seems extremely relative, whatever may trigger it. Would vary according to one's objectives and values and the parties involved.

In sales it can be beneficial to be overly apologetic. "Oh, you did (insert incredibly stupid mistake) and you (insert product) (broke/died)? I'm terribly sorry, here, have another one on me!" Because clients can be stupid and bad publicity, no matter how unjustified, spreads more than good publicity. Is this the best reaction? Maybe. Different people have different tolerances of kissing ass.