THE STORY goes that half the way on a long-haul, international flight a faulty plane is forced to land off its course, leaving a few passengers from around the world stuck in the same, far off place. … Over a few days in a small hotel, those passengers connect - and then decide - to stay and start a life and offbeat business together during what becomes a historic time in that new and different land.
the stories in a name.
Bound (for) adventure.
The first interpretation of the So Far Bound title is the idea of going somewhere or heading toward some thing. The inciting action for the entire story is that the characters all decided to catch a flight to someplace new to them, and that action of traveling shapes an overall series theme of expedition. Over time, we’ll see the characters discover, explore, settle and then advance or fall in their new world.
Bound (to) others.
A second interpretation of the title is the idea of being tied to or connected with others. Once the characters find themselves stranded, they’ll each make way to the same hotel, and from there, we add a second shape to the story: the evolution of a found family. Within the walls of their hotel, the strangers will cross paths, attach, and soon, they’ll bind. … Who’s gonna do what with who and why and what next?
THE BOUND BOOK CLub.
NOTE — Bound is Bound. But, understandably, every project today has to have a comparison, something to “hook” on to. Here are two stories which align with some of the desired shape and spirit of So Far Bound. They’re two of the greatest books ever, so, of course, all we can do is have reverence for them and try to complement them in our own way.
“One Hundred Years of Solitude”
100 Years recounts the lives of generations of the Buendia family and of the town of Macondo, which was founded by the first Jose Buendia. On shape, it aligns in that in tracks the discovery, settlement and later cycles of a people and their new homeland. In Bound, though the place they end up is already founded, it’s exotic to the passengers and thus ripe for discovery. It’s also on the edge of tense times, which may lead to shifts for the city and the people within it. Finally, the deeper bench of characters in Bound mirrors the wide array of characters in 100 Years.
On spirit, 100 Years is both epic and intimate at once. Reading it, you’ll feel like you’ve gone to the ends of the Earth - like you’ve done something - but really, you rarely leave the family’s neighborhood. It’s casually profound; there’s something in so many lines to consider. It’s casually weird, with something offbeat always around the corner of the page. Bound wouldn’t be quite as extra as 100 Years is, but, we’ll still look to add some “sauce” to the storytelling.
“The Sun Also Rises”
“You can’t get away from yourself by moving from one place to another. There’s nothing to that.”
Above, two Americans in Paris argue about going to South America to find some kind of excitement, or life. They don’t go. But, they do travel across Spain with a group of friends. On shape, the book tracks that group, all in their late 20s/early 30s as they sojourn in Southern Europe in the aftermath of World War I. Bound will model a similar, though much longer, spin.
“Nobody ever lives their life all the way up except bullfighters.”
Bullfighting is a dumb-ass sport, which checks out, because generally, people are a dumb-ass species. Nonetheless, the protagonist in Rises, Jake Barnes, loves the sport. He likes the idea of the fighter, who’s both brave and foolish at once and who has a life and times, though reckless, that he deems honorable. On spirit, the movement of the characters in Bound will also be more reckless than regulated, though hopefully toward an actually honorable end.