A New Myth
Nolan James Steven Cross is an exceptional name. It is a name one would expect wedged in among the romantics: Lord George Gordon Byron, Samuel Taylor Coleridge, Percy Bysshe Shelley, and Nolan James Steven Cross. The name smacks one hard with what I believe Sigmund Freud first coined as “pen-name envy”, a common affliction among writers of all classifications. Nolan Cross is a fiction writer, from the very bottom of his heart, and I am not. We first met at Green Auto, an ex-mechanic’s shop turned indie music venue in the industrial east corner of Vancouver...
The First Story
I’m in a cafe eavesdropping on two elderly men, and one is telling the story of how he came into possession of his vest, which is certainly one of the ugliest vests I’ve seen. The old man is handsome, even handsome when wearing the thing, I think. His friend had arrived before him and was saving the table next to mine for their morning cup – he waited without ordering for himself, patient in his anticipation, glancing over at my empty document to pass the time; but old men are punctual, and he didn’t have to...
I like the metaphor by Will Campos, that storytelling is the act of uncovering emotional truths, which are distinct from…