Quote Originally Posted by druid91 View Post
You don't have to ask the author what they said. It was written down. What they say in the future about it is irrelevant. The author never takes precedence over the work. The work always takes precedence over the author.

If I make a sword. And then say that it wasn't really meant for killing, does that mean it won't cut me when used to do so? No. The created exists independently of the creator and can gather it's own meaning or use.
Yep, its all on the page. And if your are ever confuses what it means then the author is literally the ultimate authority. If the sword was made for ornamental or ceremonial purposes and is blunt and unusable. You might want to find that out before you try to stab someone with it. Sounds to me like the author is fairly important to listen to there.