/lit/ - Literature

I am at a conundrum.
Generally, I write based on a question I'd like to ask, or a statement I'd like to put out there. However, I also find I personally like stories that aren't that direct with their goals, as well as ones where the statement is made subtle by the story, or ones that simply paint a pretty picture. I paint pretty pictures for myself all the time, but those are often only for my own enjoyment.
Without losing my head over the question or the statement of my writings - if they do have such a base -I'd like to present these scenarios to my reader in the way I present them to myself, but I'm well aware of the troubles the fantasy genre has with spending too much energy in fabricating the side dish of context while leaving the main course of the story undercooked.

What do (you) think? How far could one go in painting the landscape without making the subject lose focus? Since we're at painting metaphores, how could I write the landscape equivalent of a story? If it serves as context, I'd consider something like Alice in wonderland to fit into my metaphore of landscape paintings, a story where the focus is the character's exploration of the park that is wonderland, as opposed to a focused portrait that could be exemplified with a classic fable.

Have a huge man for your troubles.