1.) Thanks, George, for the reminder that we're not alone! I'm in DC, scene of the crime, and it's been one crappy week all right. The goings-on are scary & dehumanizing & very much an indication of an evil history soon repeating itself. But the reminder that here at SC, and elsewhere, there is light & intelligence & good hum…
1.) Thanks, George, for the reminder that we're not alone! I'm in DC, scene of the crime, and it's been one crappy week all right. The goings-on are scary & dehumanizing & very much an indication of an evil history soon repeating itself. But the reminder that here at SC, and elsewhere, there is light & intelligence & good humor means that it will all be survivable. Not easy, but survivable. And then to top it all off, the awful mid-air collision last night of the plane & the copter which I did not see happen but which I heard as it happened before it all crashed into the Potomac. Jolting & unnerving & sad & avoidable & what with this last week plus the LA fires, 2025 is sure not off to a good start. But still, thanks for the boost!
2.) I loved "The Barber's Unhappiness", among my faves of yours. Couldn't imagine it and Al mashed up together when the barber is such a jewel on its own. I'm glad you just let these two stories be, be themselves. Which brings me to
3.) I understand that the questioner would so like the intersections to be neat & measured equally. I appreciate the need for & the beauty of symmetry. But asymmetry also has its beauty. What if Character 1 & Character 2 just were themselves & intersected as intended but not always at right angles. What if sometimes they were acute or obtuse or reflexive or however many other types of intersections there are? Wouldn't those very differences also help to indicate character & thus story? What if, like life, it wasn't all so neat? Just sayin'.
4.) As for examples of two-character constructions, the stories of William Trevor came immediately to mind, "Coffee with Oliver" in particular but there are many others. Trevor was a master of inhabiting more than one mind, all in the course of a single story.
And I feel for you, experiencing what we, elsewhere, can, if we choose, read about or scroll past, if only temporarily, to mitigate/avoid/postpone pain and sorrow for all who died in the plane crash.
Thanks, Jackie. As for recent events, here in DC & elsewhere, I think the best thing to do in these awful times is to be informed but not consumed, to be alert & prepared but not to the point of neurosis. I also think it's healthier to expend personal energy with the same care & regard as you might have for any other precious resource, which is to say don't waste it on what can't be changed.
Thank you so much for your point 3) and 4). I've also contemplated the asymmetry structure, or even the structure of two stories in one book (like the book Asymmetry by Lisa Halliday), but still cannot shake the mental feeling of unbalanced or not witty enough. I want to weave them together like a good Seinfeld episode, Cloud Atlas but I will keep my mind more open and not try to force things.
As for 4), I will definitely give Coffee with Oliver ago. Thank you so much for suggesting it!
I don't know the Halliday & never watched enough Seinfeld to fully appreciate but witty in itself may rest on imbalance. Right there, because it's a little off, you may have naturally come to wit. Or maybe not. I dunno. But I do know that you won't regret the Trevor. Good luck!
Four things:
1.) Thanks, George, for the reminder that we're not alone! I'm in DC, scene of the crime, and it's been one crappy week all right. The goings-on are scary & dehumanizing & very much an indication of an evil history soon repeating itself. But the reminder that here at SC, and elsewhere, there is light & intelligence & good humor means that it will all be survivable. Not easy, but survivable. And then to top it all off, the awful mid-air collision last night of the plane & the copter which I did not see happen but which I heard as it happened before it all crashed into the Potomac. Jolting & unnerving & sad & avoidable & what with this last week plus the LA fires, 2025 is sure not off to a good start. But still, thanks for the boost!
2.) I loved "The Barber's Unhappiness", among my faves of yours. Couldn't imagine it and Al mashed up together when the barber is such a jewel on its own. I'm glad you just let these two stories be, be themselves. Which brings me to
3.) I understand that the questioner would so like the intersections to be neat & measured equally. I appreciate the need for & the beauty of symmetry. But asymmetry also has its beauty. What if Character 1 & Character 2 just were themselves & intersected as intended but not always at right angles. What if sometimes they were acute or obtuse or reflexive or however many other types of intersections there are? Wouldn't those very differences also help to indicate character & thus story? What if, like life, it wasn't all so neat? Just sayin'.
4.) As for examples of two-character constructions, the stories of William Trevor came immediately to mind, "Coffee with Oliver" in particular but there are many others. Trevor was a master of inhabiting more than one mind, all in the course of a single story.
I enjoyed your ideas!
And I feel for you, experiencing what we, elsewhere, can, if we choose, read about or scroll past, if only temporarily, to mitigate/avoid/postpone pain and sorrow for all who died in the plane crash.
Thanks, Jackie. As for recent events, here in DC & elsewhere, I think the best thing to do in these awful times is to be informed but not consumed, to be alert & prepared but not to the point of neurosis. I also think it's healthier to expend personal energy with the same care & regard as you might have for any other precious resource, which is to say don't waste it on what can't be changed.
Thank you so much for your point 3) and 4). I've also contemplated the asymmetry structure, or even the structure of two stories in one book (like the book Asymmetry by Lisa Halliday), but still cannot shake the mental feeling of unbalanced or not witty enough. I want to weave them together like a good Seinfeld episode, Cloud Atlas but I will keep my mind more open and not try to force things.
As for 4), I will definitely give Coffee with Oliver ago. Thank you so much for suggesting it!
I don't know the Halliday & never watched enough Seinfeld to fully appreciate but witty in itself may rest on imbalance. Right there, because it's a little off, you may have naturally come to wit. Or maybe not. I dunno. But I do know that you won't regret the Trevor. Good luck!