feedback

i liked it. im not too good at giving prose feedback, as i dont write it myself, but i know when something is well written, and this IS well written. it is a very aware story, and im wondering if this is based on fact, if the person in the piece is yourself, as the character seems so well known to the writer. it seems that the author feels sorry for the main character, yet whilst slightly mocking the way that hes living, there is an admiration for his life in this. the descriptiveness is bloody good, i could almost smell the nightclub portrayed within the piece, and the small details in the opening few paras about the bathroom and the preparations within it, are very clever, as they are not over - wordy but crisp and clear, and paint a good full picture. im rambling... said i was no critic, but yes. i like it.

This is a terrific description of a way of life and it gripped me all the way through. It's extremely honest and direct and the unusual second person narration really works. It made me think about the MC's perspective on life, which was entirely convincing and self-consistent, but at heart bleak and unattractive. This is the story of a lonely man, I thought, trying to bolster his ego by going from one sexual thrill to another without any feelings for his "conquests" or any understanding of women or close relationships of any kind. I have nothing against sex and have not led a particularly "faithful" lifestyle myself, but this one would almost make me want to. It reminded me of the frantic pursuit of pleasure that seems to produce mainly misery depicted in the recent TV series about 18-30 Club holiday reps in some Greek island "paradise". There's something particularly sad about the idea of sex between people who don't even like each other, and this story captures it magnificently.

Enjoyed the read.. Well written. Classic questioning of a non-commital lifestyle which whilst fantastic sounding in early youth starts to feel unfulfilling as you approach 30's and beyond.. ..time for new dreams for the MC.. .. Whereas he is still on top of this world at the moment, I would like to hear what he thinks the future holds for him if he carries on with the same dreams of old.. (he is clearly thinking about the future.. in his reference to savings, career etc).. eg. when his physical attractiveness starts to wane in comparison with other young bucks and he is left chasing fewer and fewer vestiges of former conquests..

spare, sure, economical piece about addiction. this read very professionally and i was deeply impressed by the level of stylistic control you exercise. the pace is faultless. the whole thing lends itself to the general Easton Ellis(ish) theme - 'people don't merge'. the conversational style, rather than adding intimacy to the piece, seems to shift it to a further point of remove. the conversational style almost makes the point of the piece by itself - communication without intimacy, or rather, what we have here is a kind of faux-intimacy, which is further borne out by the (expounded) narrative action of the piece - the holding hands in the car, the f.u.c.k-me kissing. the narrator - virtually solipsistic - is a master of his world. but behind the meticulous detail, the toothbrushes, the what to buy when, what to say when, whom to f.u.c.k when, one senses the accumulated exhaustion that addiction brings. this exhaustion always remains beneath the surface though - the narrator's voice never quite becomes jaded, and he invokes his art, and the precise details that go to making up his art (his art being fucking) with clinical detail. effortless, expert writing and a pleasure to read.

Very good. enjoyed it. Karen

Thanks everyone for the feedback. I appreciate your comments. To answer a few questions, the piece isn't based on any specific experience, but rather a ``way of life,'' as one reviwer put it, that many expats live in Taiwan. One thing I wanted to convey is the ease in which expat men are able to find companions in Taiwan (women think they all look like movie stars) and how that affects their own perceptions of themselves and their behavior toward Taiwanese women. <> This is true, although it started out first as admiration, then followed by mockery. <> One reason why I chose the second-person narrative had to do with the subtitle of the piece. (or How to be an Expat in Taipei). I saw the narrator sort of writing down a how-to guide, giving advice to himself and other expats. <> <> This is spot on. Many expats question what happens in life after Taiwan. I haven't found the answer. <> Thank you. A personal note: I'm a reporter by training, I think my fiction writing reflects that. In journalism we are trained to use sparse language, prefering shorter words to longer ones and following the ``show, don't tell'' principle. Thanks everyone for your help, Michael