There is shadow under this red rock,
(Come in under the shadow of this red rock),
And I will show you something different from either
Your shadow at morning striding behind you
Or your shadow at evening rising to meet you;
I will show you fear in a handful of dust.
- T.S. Eliot, 'The Waste Land'
If a story is a journey, then I want to enjoy every leg of the trip. I don't care where I'm going - I'd rather not know, half the time - but I want an interesting view while I travel. I'm happy to go fast or slow, straightforward path or winding road, but I don't ever want to feel like I'm waiting to arrive at the next station - or worse, feel like sleeping through to the end. That's the kind of story I like to read, and when I don't have enough of it to read, then that's what I write.