A storyteller must believe what he is telling or else he is a liar. He must be honest and mindful of what he believes or else he is a fool. His story must be deeper than its ideas or it is shallow and lifeless. His characters must be motivated beyond their niche in the narrative or else they are flat. A good yarn is always more than the sum of its parts.
Telling people what is right and wrong is presumptuous and boring. A good story is honest yet unassuming. The best characters are moved by personal motives. The best narratives are about personalities dealing with the flow and balance of cause and effect. The better storyteller relinquishes control in favor of simplicity and sincerity. Honesty itself shall cleanse a work of its fallacies and strengthen its telling.
Everyone loves a good story. Few of us ever tell one. When you read, hear or watch a good story be sure to judge it on its own merits. Discount what you anticipated or hoped for. Appreciate what is actually presented. Taste may be subjective but quality itself is what it is whether noticed or not. There is no wisdom in being oblivious to what is good.
Fiction is the crafting of fancies into art. It is notions and ideas shaped and fashioned into a story. Its characters are the people we imagine. Fiction is from within.
It is easy to let our preconceived notions about a work color our perceptions concerning it. The work must be judged on its merit alone. Then and only then, can it truly be appreciated.
ReplyDeleteIndeed. It is a common folly to "miss the forest for all the trees."
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