Some stories have small holes
wormed through, others have chunks and sections scooped out. In my mind a good
story is like an apple, whole and “balanced” There will be portions that exceed
the circle, leaves and stems that lead elsewhere, and hint at a tree, a world,
beyond the scope of my story, and they bore the story like fruit, but you can
pluck the fruit, cut it off, and eat it, and it is whole and tasty, without
ever knowing the tree that bore the fruit. You may understand how the fruit
came to be, and be lead to other new experiences, but the apple’s sweet taste
would not hint at something more, something missing, and you could eat it
whole, happily. Without knowledge of the tree, or the world, and that, in my
mind, is truly a good story. Lengths may vary, tales may vary, but that sense
of completeness, though not always there, always should be.
