Storytelling

The trick of storytelling is a mixture of things. Any good writer is trying to do two conflicting things at once: attempt to have a place to escape for people, a fantasy realm, and attempt to have them see reality for what it is. In other words, a writer tries to make people turn away and simultaneously look toward the problems and quirks of our world.

Is it a balance? Does a writer choose one sometimes and another at other points in time? I'm not terribly certain. I think the mark of a lasting writer is the ability to meld the two contradictory effects into one story.

I'm still working on that...