Evil Eye is pretty much a global concept, sweetie.

Some critics shine a bright light into the recesses of your cranium.

Yes, but I don't think Bev was saying all critics were failed writers; just that a lot of would-be writers who suck at it themselves turn to crit as an outlet. And I agree. For every Pauline Kael, there's a Roger Ebert: he writes very nice crit, but what, precisely, is his screenwriting cred?

Oh, I didn't mean ALL critics, of course! No. Some critics are even very good writers, and thus vulnerable to critics themselves. Not so much actors, though, but I digress. No I meant more the vicious ones who take a writer and/or his/her work apart with an unholy, spoiling glee, purely for the pleasure of it, knowing full well how long unkind reviews stay with a writer. Not very nice.

But fair critics, even and especially ones who may not like or be kind to work that isn't adequate, those we need. I have even seen reviews that mitigate what might seem unduly severe criticism with, "this isn't my favorite genre," so any harshness can be attributed to that. But critics, and there are some, who are mean just to be mean, and because they enjoy that power, are out there.

Howsabout that for a crosspost?

Evil Eye is pretty much a global concept

Heh. In Israel, only Sepharadi people use it, no Ashkenazi ones, so I had no idea.

Nice crosspost, Deb!

Encyclopaedia Brittanica on the evil eye:

glance believed to have the ability to cause injury or death to those on whom it falls; children and animals are thought to be particularly susceptible. Belief in the evil eye is ancient and ubiquitous: it occurred in ancient Greece and Rome; is found in Jewish, Islamic, Buddhist, and Hindu traditions and in folk cultures and preliterate societies; and has persisted throughout the world into modern times. In many traditions strangers, malformed individuals, and old women are most often accused of casting the evil eye.

The Turks make really pretty blue glass things to turn away the evil eye.

here.

My mom brought some home for the kids.

Oh, I knew Egyptians used to festoon their camels with blue glass beads to ward off the evil eye. I didn't realize it was a Turkish custom as well. Those are pretty!

The ones in the markets in Turkey were lovely. I'll bet my MIL has some nice memories of people trying to sell them to her in Istanbul and Ankara; I know I do.

I like the Hamsa hand.