That's interesting. I tend not to do so well off of images - it has to be the idea that comes first, usually a simple but strong one ("John grieving for Elizabeth") rather than an image. Your stories always do have that strong sense of place, so it's definitely working for you.

Like you, I like to leave my endings open, but I'll usually know when I start a scene whether it's going to push things along or not, and if it isn't, I scrap it. It maybe comes back to what I was saying upthread about the idea of "the story" - they'll be details that are part of the world that won't make it in, but for me, 'the story' is kind of a fixed, limited thing.

If that makes sense too... ;D