ABSTRACT
The Story of John-or rather, the two stories of John-illustrate the impor tance of story consistency. Readers expect a story to be understandable. The characters should act in ways that are familiar and easily understood; the world should operate as the reader expects. When they don’t, the author must explain why not. The Story o f John is unacceptable not because of what happens, but because of what is left unexplained.
