As fiction writers our job is a delicate balance between making a tale that is believable but not boring. Inevitably, no matter what you are reading you are going to run into little things that make you think, “Well that wouldn’t happen.” Or, “That’s unlikely.” Get over it and enjoy the Story.
Story is what it’s all about, not realism. If it was real, Darth Vader would have gone home, become a wife beater, and had more illegitimate children. Luke would have run away, joined the military, and ended up fixing army droids while strung out on deathsticks. Those are boring things that have nothing to do with saving the Galaxy.
If you want realism, go down to the food-court at the mall and sit awhile, or shop at Wall-mart. Sit down, and watch it unfold. Story is something more. Sure, it may have some of those same characters in it, and there may be some of the mundane. But, if it’s just people going about their lives, it’s probably going to be a memoire or a documentary, series of events that are loosely related and meander here and there. That’s not actually Story, and that’s a book to nod off to late at night. Those are the kind of movies, that when they end, you find yourself thinking, “That’s the end? Really? WTF?”
Story grips you and never lets go. When you find Story, you get on the ride and there’s no getting off until it comes to a complete and final stop.