 I think we judge the literary merit of a text not merely by how closely we relate to the characters' experiences – that's the relatively easy part of the author's job – but by how strongly the author's ultimate vision compels us, provokes us, challenges us, or makes new the everyday.
The Story(ies) of a Marriage, in The Art of Perspective, Christopher Castellani  Why bother to write if you don't have a view worthy of sharing?
The Story(ies) of a Marriage, in The Art of Perspective, Christopher Castellani  To determine the moral imperative or broad vision of any text – and I believe every text has one, whether or not it is aware of its implications – the text must be considered as a whole, as the sum of its narrative parts. There may not be a chummy or imperious or oracular or cynical voice that serves as a stand-in for the author, but the text asserts its authority nonetheless. The Story(ies) of a Marriage, in The Art of Perspective, by Christopher Castellani
 Within a successful narrative strategy, point-of-view "slips" are rarely accidents; they often indicate a significant thematic moment, as we saw in A Passage to India. At the very least, they force the reader to question: Why here? Why now? The Story(ies) of a Marriage, in The Art of Perspective, by Christopher Castellani
 Like any outside text imposed on a work of fiction–including footnotes; historical documents; photos; even, to an extent, maps and chronologies–it [an epigraph] reveals, however subtly, the hand of the author constructing the reader's experience. Intentionally or not, the author interposes herself between the story and the reader, acting as a scrim or a lens, an organizing force. The Story(ies) of a Marriage, in The Art of Perspective, by Christopher Castellani
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