-You know, I hate stories that use hyphens.
-Why?
-Because you need to think about the psyche of each character so they all sound different.
-How can they sound any different if they don't even have a voice?
-That's the problem: you give them the voice.
-In my head they all sound the same.
-They shouldn't. Also, women's voices are higher-pitched than men's.
-What if it's a woman with a deep voice?
-You compose it with something like: the woman had a man's voice.
-Do you propose that a woman should have the same tone of voice as a man?
-Well, then: he had a voice like a man.
-And what does a man's voice sound like?
-Serious.
-What if you are deaf?
-Then I pity you. Books were made to be enjoyed with all the senses.
-Of course not. It's just reading, period.
-Just reading? I don't think so. There are books you can smell and taste.
-Like what?
-All of them, depending on the perspective from which you read them.
-Bullshit. Oh, look at you.
-What?
-You're using hyphens to write that.
-Doesn't that sound real enough for you?
-Let me see it... Yes, it sounds just like the talk we're having.
-That's what writing is all about.
-From what?
-To make a copy of reality, but with text.
Photography by Ludwig van Borkum
Bookseller and bibliomaniac reader with fourteen years of experience, based in Mexico City.