Vanishing Point by Sean Mills can be found in the latest online version of Hobart, and it is one sneaky son of a story. Mills lulls the reader into the story via repetition:
"I should put you on the plane. The plane you'll take to the bus you'll take to the car you'll drive home. I should put you on that plane" is how the story begins. In only an additional 298 words, Mills continues to pull the reader into this travelling scenario with a trip to a train station, and then a bus depot, all the while the unnamed narrator continues to refer to the person leaving as you and his/herself as I.
How is that sneaky? In the last paragraph, there is a reference to where the duo are when they briefly split up as the narrator goes on a coffee break. It is this reference, and the knowledge of what happens outside of the story that hits the reader like a sledgehammer to the chest. Sneak on over and take a quick peek.
As a composer who set this story to music (it's available on my website), I totally agree with this assessment. I still recall the first time this song was sung in a workshop, and the way that the singer and listeners said that they wondered about the meaning of the beginning...it is indeed lulling...but then everyone remarked about the surprising power the story held over them by its conclusion.
Posted by: Stefan Weisman | January 17, 2007 at 11:16 AM