If you don’t know what story cubes are, see the introduction to the story cubes series.
To see the original roll of the story cubes, see yesterday’s post.
Books unlock a flock of readers who talk about what you write, eager to read the next thing you come up with. But they also unlock a flock of people who look at everything you do, just as eager to sling arrows and poison apples at you. There is no shade from the evil eye of social media.
No matter who you are, no matter what you do or how well you do it, the arrows and apples will come for you. Harden your shell and do it anyway.
You’ll see more Harry Potter throughout the year in the Story Cubes weekends. I’m reading it to start off the year not as a political statement either for or against Rowling. While I quite commonly read even those I disagree with (Rand and Jordan Peterson are just two off the top of my head), this is merely me finally getting around to reading the series so I can move on to tackle Proust’s In Search of Lost Time.
My impression through two books is that narrative-wise, Rowling is an excellent story weaver and craft-wise, mediocre at best. Many blockbuster authors are; it’s rare to be good at both. Personally, I’d rather read an outstanding story told in a meh way than a meh story told beautifully.
The comments section is the perfect place for what you came up with. I’m sure you did better than I did this week!
I'd love to hear from you!