The Audience

Whenever there's the possibility of a lazy day I find myself desiring a number of books. Perhaps out of the four I took out of the library today one will propel me to another place.

And what is captivating today will feel ordinary on another day. How difficult it is for the writer to assume what his audience will fancy at any given time. We change with the seasons, with events, even with the news.

Late this afternoon I found myself drawn to a mystery. Yesterday I finished a book set in a Shaker community. Perhaps tomorrow I' ll find myself adrift in short fiction or poetry.

Now I read once that you should write the book you would want to read. Perhaps that's why I've never written anything longer than a short story. I change every day.