I finshed off E. K Johnston's book That Inveitable Victorian Thing, my first story from this author, and enjoyed the story. More then anything I loved the concept of an alternative future where the world is perhaps not so scarred by colonialism. My main complaint was how short the novel was. I hope the author ventures into this world again. In the notes, the author remarks the idea came from asking "what-if" the world was not quite so terrible.
The more I read, the more I write, the more I find stories come from this question. A question of how reality could be differnt. Like a mirror, some books only require a slight twist. Then others are more like fun houses--twisted perceptions. That's always the first choice on the part of the author, the distortion. The second, and one I'm struggling with, is how to orient the reader to that twist. Should it be a kick off the high-dive or a gentle immersion? I've read both ways and enjoyed floundering, working to keep up with the charcters--but, the story has to really engage me or I have to trust the author. Like with this book I finished, the read is easier when I already had my bearings.
Any thoughts, fellow book-lovers?
The more I read, the more I write, the more I find stories come from this question. A question of how reality could be differnt. Like a mirror, some books only require a slight twist. Then others are more like fun houses--twisted perceptions. That's always the first choice on the part of the author, the distortion. The second, and one I'm struggling with, is how to orient the reader to that twist. Should it be a kick off the high-dive or a gentle immersion? I've read both ways and enjoyed floundering, working to keep up with the charcters--but, the story has to really engage me or I have to trust the author. Like with this book I finished, the read is easier when I already had my bearings.
Any thoughts, fellow book-lovers?
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