What makes a story a good story? Is it the craft of the one who tells it or of the one who writes it?
Up until the age of eighteen I have been frantically reading every children’s story they had stored in the public library from my home town and when I have finished browsing many, many books written by writers (mostly gathered ones with unknown authors) who came from totally different cultural backgrounds, I have picked my favorite kind and never stopped reading it. Yes, I still read children’s stories occasionally and although now I see them with totally different eyes and from a different perspective, I still love them and I think it’s one of the few things in my life that make me feel completely comfortable with myself when reading them. But, the best stories, no matter what subject you prefer, are the ones told out loud, the ones who make your mouth open with no control from your part and for that you need to have a great storyteller (I know a couple of those). I for one have never been good at reading my own work, I feel awkward and like someone is twisting a knife into my throat, but when it comes to inventing stories out loud, well, that is my comfort zone and I can confuse and charm you with three hour long stories. I think this happens because I have never wanted to be a grown-up, I have always wanted to stay a kid for as long as possible and in time I have leaned that if you trick the adults into thinking that you are one of them, you can get away with your childish side and don’t have to hide it. Maybe that is one of the main reasons I am more comfortable hanging around children than adults.
To get back to my questions, what do you think makes a story a good story? I truly believe that for the written ones a lot of the story’s success has to do with its reader’s imagination. A story for children will never give you a clear answer to what right or wrong is, but it will softly outline some hints for you to discover your own answers. As for the ones told out loud I think it depends entirely on the storyteller. There is nothing more annoying then a storyteller that tells you the most amazing story in a slow, boring way; so,in this case the storyteller can either ruin it or rock on a really bad story. I am a sucker for good stories and I really love cuddling in bed with my blanket and my favorite pillow and read while eating biscuits melted in chocolate. Because these days I am suppose to act more like an adult I use my daughter as an excuse to read almost every evening a nice story; and who knows maybe soon I will have many more excuses I can use.
