An Introduction

After two emails, James agreed to meet with me to discuss my proposition. This was good news for me. It told me that he was at least considering my request.

We met at one of the more obscure Starbucks in Central, the one in the Exchange Square building, up a few escalators so you won't find it on accident. I arrived first and waited for James to arrive. He called my mobile when he got there and I met him at the entrance. After he had gotten a cup of coffee he came and sat across from me near the window.

"I don't want to waste your time. I'll get right to the point. I like what you've got going here, but I don't like the direction you've taken. I'd like to do something different with it. But you've built up a lot of goodwill and that's important to me. I want you to let me continue what you've started." James didn't reply right away. He took deep breaths and looked out the window.

"What are you going to do differently?" He asked eventually. "You've lost your focus. Sometimes you're you, sometimes you write through the mind of an imagined character that's inspired by someone you see, sometimes you're a blueberry danish. It doesn't make sense! All of these posts are really about you anyway. Why not just be straight about it? If you give this to me, I'm going to tell my own stories, my own experiences. " I shouldn't have been so critical because criticism has never gotten me anywhere. But it was too late to take it back.

"You're serious? You really want to do this? You could start your own site, but instead you're initiating a takeover?"

"No, not a takeover. A changing of the guard. You haven't done anything for three months! I don't think it's important to you anymore. It's important to me. Let me take care of it."

James eventually relented and, under certain terms that cannot be disclosed, agreed to pass exclusive access and control of the site to me.

My name is Benny. These are my stories