blog

Circumstantial flummery from a would-be spoonbean hustler.

Vamoose, José’s on his way

I want to say that most of the time I revel in keeping the day to day simple and uncomplicated. Established patterns. Most direct point from A to B. Standard deduction. All that jazz. I like to think I have an overactive sense for details, but when it comes to most of the day to day minutia I lust for routine.

But if I’m the champion of anything, it’s self-delusion. Thus, predictably, chaos ensues. And the stories I most enjoy writing are usually anything but simple. I like intricate plots and puzzles, heavy with veiled themes and symbols, and details stacked to the sky. Even though I know it’s probably not the most accessible approach, I love sending characters and audiences down labyrinthine paths over endless depths. ‘If you get lost along the way, well maybe I’m not your gal,’ I think.

But I doubt very much this is a recipe for true success. I’d like to think that’s it’s not from a place where I’m trying to outsmart the audience, but rather that I want to produce the maximum reward. To craft the sense of immense triumph on making it through for whatever niche audience has had the patience and wherewithal to unlock a few secrets and come through with my characters.

Perhaps I’m stubborn. Perhaps those notions should be discouraged. So maybe I’ll start something new with the penultimate goal of keeping everything simple.

Maybe after the eighteen other things I’ve got on my plate right now.