Shunning the cloak of Intellectualism

As I was surfing the net today, with a story idea developing in my mind, I was struck by a realization- my writing style is undergoing a change!

Earlier, I used to write stories told in a serious, almost impersonal voice. Stories that I thought the great writers would have written.

But now, I am beginning to accept the fact that I myself do not read those stories with relish. I read those stories in parts, like a task that must be done, but that is not particularly interesting.

The stories that I've enjoyed the most have had more substance than style to them. In fact, that is the greatness of their style- that the reader cannot see it at all! The reader just reads the story, just goes with the flow, and is unable to stop till the story is finished, and when it does finish, he leaves it with a satisfied smile of having read something whole.

That then is the kind of stories I want to write.

The story that always comes in my mind is 'The Gift Of Magi.'

It's a story that has stayed with me years after I read it, and that I always remember fondly.

That was because it was a real story- it had something to say. It was not merely a medium to express philosophies or thoughts.

I now want to write stories that I will enjoy reading, not stories that appear intellectual.