Blind alleys and dead ends.

I drove number one to school today. On the ride over, I mentioned to him that I had started working on a new story. I asked him if he would read it and give me some feedback. He is always my harshest critic; I value his opinion as he is frank and his observations are generally both helpful and insightful. He asked me what it was about so I started to outline the plot. It is an experimental piece that may be categorized as "post-modern" fiction, where the varied writing styles are as much a part of the work as the plot. I did not tell him this, I just described the basic plot.

He asked me a few a questions and then told me that it did not sound like a literary work. I responded "Shakespeare's works were not considered literary when they were written."

He snapped back "So you are comparing yourself to Shakespeare?"

I answered him quietly. "No, you are comparing me to Shakespeare. I just asked if you would read my story."