Becker has an M.M. in musicology from the University of Texas at Austin. As of 2005, he is completing his Ph.D. in musicology from the same school. In the following essay, Becker discusses the use of form, especially the conclusion, in the short story "Titanic Survivors Found in Bermuda Triangle."

In a time-based creative endeavor (meaning anything with a beginning, a middle, and an end which unfold over a certain time period), devising a satisfying ending can perhaps present the most difficult questions for the creator. How a composer resolves the sonic tension created during a piece, what decisions a director makes about how a film's momentum slows, or how an author wraps up the situations he has presented through out his story all have a major impact on how the audience receives the work as a whole. An exemplary finish can make up for an...