IN SEARCH OF ART
"You're not seeing Margie any more?"
No.
"Out of curiosity, was the short story Maggie based on her?"
There were elements that she inspired.
"What happened? When I saw the two of you a few weeks ago, you both seemed so happy."
She has served her purpose.
"What was her purpose?"
You remember Leslie, right?
"If I'm not mistaken, you based your short story Linda on her."
Correct. And you don't remember the others?
"You move at such breakneck speed that I can't keep up with all your relationships. Let me think. There was Caroline who became Catherine and there was Beatrice who became Barbara as well as Diana becoming Dora and on and on. Are you telling me that there is a method to your madness?"
I need material. Once I have my material, I don't have any use for these gals. I'm a writer. I don't need a woman. I need a story. Women come and go, but the stories stay forever.
"Who is going to serve as your next protagonist until she no longer serves your interests?"
I'm not sure. It's time for a novel.
"Do you use the same technique for such a formidable undertaking?"
You can't see past your nose, can you?
"What do you mean?"
How many novels have I written?
"Let me think. Two if I'm not mistaken."
What were the titles?
"Juliet and Zelda. You sneaky bastard. I should have known. Both were they based on Janet and Zaira."
They both left me after the books were published. This is more of a challenge because I have to find someone who doesn't bore me after the first story but provides be with chapter after chapter of stories.
"Will you have kids with this one too?"
I can't predict a novel's evolution. I can only record the moment and then turn realism into fiction. These long-term relationships can be difficult.
"It's not like you didn't cheat on Juliet and Zelda and these flings left their stories on the pages of your novels. Are you hoping whoever performs as your next guinea pig will dump you when she reads about the intimate details of her life exposed to the public?"
You have to take the good with the bad. If she leaves me, it may give me a chance to find someone else and write a fourth novel. There's no doubt that once again my readers could expect a steady stream of short stories.
"If I didn't know better, I would argue that you have the heart of a cold blooded killer only that you use ink rather than poison to sacrifice her life for your script."
I will make you a promise because you are my faithful friend. I will spare your wife, your two sisters and your two daughters. They will never be immortalized in literature. If you're ridiculously paranoid, I will give you my assurances that your grandmother is safe from my predatory instincts, too, although old ladies deserve to have their stories told because they are more exciting than you might think.
"My wife! My sisters! My daughters! Even my mother! God save the queen!"
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