so here, after the blurb on the back of the book--itself a crucial chapter for the ensuing stories to ultimately cohere--after the dustcover's inside flaps with actual reader reactions in front followed by a fictional bio in back, we have the first four pieces proper of my unpublished novel, Empire's Fall. this was always meant to be an associative sequence. the initial titles were meant to indicate this--that each entry had something in common with the one directly following and it was for the reader to make the connection; in this instance, the titles were the primer. my intention was to teach the reader how to read the book as it gathered in complexity. the rules were obliquely demonstrated piece after piece. word association began the work, but is quickly dropped in favor of cues buried in the content. eventually, a story emerges. and even a protagonist. and a plot. but not for a very long time. not until the foundation is laid. but, like a literary Where's Waldo, a name that repeats is of considerable significance and bears recollection. as for what people look like or where they are--their genders, their races, their ages and so on--if it is germane to the piece, it will be revealed. otherwise, it could be anyone. anyone at all. and that was intentional. and also why an audio version is, for the most part, untenable.
in other words, regarding this last bit, when the nature of who speaks is never made clear, don't automatically assume who holds forth in these dialogues is either white or male. because not all of the characters are. not really. not in my head anyway. and that's the whole point. because maybe they are in yours. ah, ambiguity!
