(ki) I have been looking at some of the stories on the archive using the Random feature at the bottom of the splash page.
(sho) I have found some absolute gems there, some which are only cut glass, and some which are paste imitations (IMHO only).
(ten) I found this introduction to Eastern vs. Western storytelling fascinating, never having considered that one could tell an interesting story which lacked a central conflict.
(ketsu) I believe that some of the short stories which did not tickle my fancy can fit into this story form quite nicely, including some of the vignettes for which the authors apologized in advance for having no A-plot (central conflict).
Kishotenketsu is certainly different. I'm not sure the structure would support a long-form story whose target audience is steeped in Western-style storytelling, but it's still fun to expand one's knowledge and viewpoints. And I'm pretty confident that the authors who declined to include a central conflict were not consciously using this structure.
And I learned a new word. I have added it to my microscopic Japanese vocabulary. Konishi wa. (It's morning somewhere.)
