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Review #4274703
Viewing a review of:
 The Light  [E]
Inviting and seducing, the light draws the beholder in, and it's hard to let go.
by Blake
Review of The Light  
Review by edgework
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Rated: E | (3.0)
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It's a little hard to fit this piece into a specific category. It appears to be a species of autobiography, but mostly it's a philosophical screed, a discussion of energies that played a role in your evolution into the person you have become, presented as a series of perceptions, opinions and beliefs. There's something convenient about this sort of writing in that it's essentially immune to argument or disagreement. One might safely say, "I don't believe as you do," and be on safe ground. But no one will say, "You don't believe that." Of course you do. Having a captive audience, as it were, forced to accept your content at face value, you have a platform from which to launch your arguments where the reader starts out, at least, agreeing with you. In addition, the fact that you're approaching your 93rd birthday lends the weight of years and experience to your statements. All in all, a healthy environment in which to make your points.

Here's the problem. While your prose, on the surface, suggests a strong ability with the written word, your content is entirely composed of abstract generalizations, such that we more or less end up thinking, "Well, okay... if you say so..." Meanwhile, the actual experience of those 93 years remains hidden behind a gauzy veil of words that pontificates much but does little to illustrate the points you are trying to make. Note the following three examples:

My life has been a roller coaster of emotions with many leaps and bounds peppered in with a couple zigs and zags. I feel as though I’ve lived my life in one body, but have been multiple people.

My life hit a major road block many years ago that disguised itself as a beacon of hope. Without realizing it, this so called beacon of hope sent me into a tail spin that utterly destroyed any relationship I had ever had.

I have told you the story of the light because that was a period in my life where I wasn’t a person. I had no human feelings or desires. My mind was blinded by an unstoppable force that offered an illusion to fix my deep rooted issues. But this illusion was a façade. It pretended to solve my issues, when in reality it deepened my desire to become someone who ignored the real issues.


Don't know about anyone else, but I would love to get a glimpse into the real-world events those bland description merely refer to. In addition to buttressing your conclusions with empirical data, I'd bet there are some fascinating stories there, if you'll only tell them, instead of simply telling us about them.

Truth is, you probably have about 7 or 8 short stories locked away inside this piece. The challenge is to take the raw material of experience and discern the narrative arc that it generates, that transition from one state to another that signals to the reader that a story is taking place. You've told us the stories are there. Now tell us the stories.
   *CheckG* You responded to this review 11/14/2016 @ 10:51am EST
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