redsombrero

A guy - let's call him X - says: 'Personally, I don't read novellas...'

Then, in the same paragraph, X says: 'I think novellas lack the plot and character development that novels have. I get no satisfaction from reading...novellas...'

How can X make the second statement if the first statement's true? I mean, what's he basing his argument on if he doesn't read what he's criticizing? To make a valid case he'd need to have read a great many novellas. But then that would suggest he enjoyed them.

Is he one those people who're consumed by a desire to answer honest questions as arrogantly as possible? Does the redundant 'Personally' in the first statement suggest ignorance or egotism? Is he mean? Or is he sick? I know we don't have much to go on, but I''d like to know your thoughts.

I've never read a novel that wasn't padded one way or another. Novellas of 20,000 to 40,000 words get the point over much more tellingly, in my experience. Some great stories from the past were really novellas. I know it's expensive to produce a single volume of 40,000 words, so why don't they produce volumes with two or three novellas in each of them? It would cost the same as producing a novel, but give two or three times the pleasure. And so sell more, surely?

A friend of mine is orangesombrero@yahoo.co.uk. I've actually seen him/her signed into that account on his/her PC. But when any of us tries to send email to him/her we get a response from yahoo that the account does not exist. Why? (And why don't we get extra points for remaining polite in the face of this kind of treatment?)

The original paintings are in the church at the mission. My real interest is in the painting of St Peter. Failing an image, can you provide a description (with colour of clothes, especially)?