A postmortem account of Silver Water, Inc.'s breakthrough communication with sperm whales and the tragic events that transpired off the coast of Baja California Sur in August 2022...
This is paywalled, but if you can get through or you have one of the small handful of free articles left, check this out. It might as well be about Moby. I literally saw this on Sunday after I posted the conclusion here.
“We’ve got a lot of land with nobody around and so if it blows up, it’s cool,” Mr. Musk said at a 2018 news conference.”
The whole article is like a companion piece.
Oh, also, this one:
“What can we do to maximize SpaceX’s bold, grand vision?” Mr. Nield said, recalling the F.A.A.’s goal. “Fish and Wildlife has a mission. But it was different from ours and it did not include a lot of rockets.”
Or:
“SpaceX was not only harming wildlife conservation areas, according to local environmental groups and Fish and Wildlife staff members, it was now broadly restricting access to them.”
“Blowing debris into state parks or national land is not what we prescribed, but the bottom line is no one got hurt, no one got injured,” Mr. Coleman said in an interview. “We certainly don’t want people to feel like they’re bulldozed. But it’s a really important operation that SpaceX is conducting down there. It is really important to our civilian space program.”
Or, finally, the PICTURE OF THE OCEAN!!!!!!. Also uncanny.
The voice of the piece is interesting, too. It was what I “heard.” All very weird.
The voice sounds Exactly like yours in the piece. Really uncanny. Extraordinary. Maybe you can link it as a companion piece? But then will anyone believe yours came first?! You’ve slipped between the worlds, Adam. Amazing.
Just seeing this. I haven’t read yet but saw the chatter about it and the headline. And thought of you and this story. “No one was hurt” makes my blood boil. These supremacists need to be stopped!!
Adam, this is a masterfully written story from a technical perspective with so much depth and feeling set against the backdrop of the tech-bro hellscape we're all subjected to every time we pick up our phones. My one quibble was the goddamned footnotes, man! 😳 Who ever decided those were a good idea for humankind?! Seriously, you plotted a masterpiece that's big budget movie worthy. Congratulations. I hope more people will find and enjoy this story.
I have read it. I think I have a more primitive brain that struggles jumping back and forth and switching context between following the thread of a story and jumping out of the story to do research in a completely different section. I love exposition and even unnecessary amounts of technical detail, I just prefer them folded into the prose so I don't have to constantly switch tracks. I know your brain works at double speed though - it has to if you can write like you do while listening to Led Zeppelin!
Sometimes loud music is a distraction and sometimes it is like a cocoon of sound. I don't actually "listen" to it so much as it's blocking the environment out sort of. Doesn't always work, but it can be insanely hard-core music sometimes and it is not an issue.
Your lips to God's ears as they say. Right now, my #1 focus is writing something short. "Short" is my new criteria for "good." Everyone has been incredibly indulgent with the scope of this thing, but honestly it ran away from me writing it. I felt like I was chasing a whale.
I like the length of this one story because I think to establish the plot and the eventualities in quick succession is more important in serial writing than the length, which can remain long or short depending on the complexity of the material.
You did that. And you did it really well. One of the things that makes you great is the reward, and confidence it will come. I know, as I read, that you’ve got this, and so it’s safe to stay.
I think what I love most is the absolute dedication to the story without looking up to check if we're following. You dive, I dive, you come up for air, I surface with you; it is literary collaboration of the highest merit; a commitment to the pod and faith that we'll come with you. It is intelligence. Bravo, my friend, you do us all a service.
That's very generous of you. Sometimes I find I'm in a Radio City Music Hall kickline, and I'm kicking up and everyone else is kicking down, but that's the price for wanting to be on the stage – or not rehearsing. One of the two.
In length, this piece was an enormous ask for a Substack reader. I do know that, and I'm appreciative of anyone who "stayed on the boat" with me, as it were.
The mechanics of it, the footnotes, some of the stylistic quirks – were not a quick or easy read, but I wanted to leave a world behind.
Hopefully, I did that. Hopefully, the pod was able to course correct and get in sync with me because it was hopeless the other way around.
I too can add very little that hasn’t already been said Adam.
Your attention to detail, the footnotes, the idea itself - all are flawlessly brilliant, I have been captivated from the very beginning to the last revealing chapter.
I admit, being the Neanderthal hillbilly I am, to not understanding all the tech details and, I blush as I say this, believed until at least chapter three, or was it chapter four - that this was a true recount of something that happened to you. 🤭 It only added to the the drama unfolding in such excellent story telling…
This last chapter, as sinister, dark and violent as it is held me spellbound on the edge of my seat… and there of course is the clue I missed right through.. the repetition, Call me Ishmael.. AI watching over nature… what an extraordinary concept..? Or is it..!
Outstanding work Adam - Ben is spot on with his big budget movie worthy.
Thank you, Susie. I'm glad you enjoyed it. I know it was a challenging read and long and often technical, but I hope the reward was a world you could feel a part of for a little bit and maybe see from different angles. That was my experience working on it. I wanted a world that in its own way was sort of believable.
The ending is very sinister and dark, and it's upset me a lot finishing that way. I've actually been a little down about it, but I think it is how the character must have it finish. It was always headed there from the day Muck sets up shop at the conference. I can't just write something happy there. This story was a tragedy out of the gate.
I'm still re reading the chapters to understand if i missed something before the epilogue that revealed that the narrator was an AI.
Ive been absolutely astounded by the story as ive read it and cannot add anything to the praise already given by others... well deserved indeed! However the twist (if it was indeed a twist and not me being just thick headed...) completely took me aback... and then... OF COURSE!!!
This really should be made into a film. Its brilliant. the message could not be more desperately needed now.
Nick, you're very kind, and I appreciate it more than you know.
Regarding the reveal: no, you were always supposed to know that at the very end. You may know this already, but it's also a nod to Moby Dick where Ishmael (the narrator) is part of a boat that is destroyed by Moby Dick and everybody dies except, you guessed it, Ishmael. In the epilogue we learn he was picked up by a passing ship or something. In any event, the big mystery of his survival is resolved. I was playing with that a little, but mostly with the fun of making that the last piece of information in for the reader and, hopefully, having them mentally retrace and pull threads together.
I literally sat on the edge of my seat as I read. Adam, I have no words to describe… well actually I have too many to write it all down . Sorry, I have. I really wanted to write just enough for you to know how much this reader, appreciates all of it. The many hours. The literary evidence. Facts merged with fiction. Being a research hound, I thoroughly enjoyed the process of doing some investigative digging. Especially your truly unique way of using footnotes to highlight the story. The way you built the story, like an iceberg , if you will. Showing the reader just the very tip at first, then allowing us deeper , then back to the surface. Had my scuba gear on .
Highlighting:
Canto 15 ,#1, and I was crying too. #2, The instigator of anger. Just a few days ago while hiking, my husband and I were having this conversation . A light banter about the alarming interpretations of old childhood nursery rhymes, particularly that one (WTF). And “the last two words”. #3 , the ultimate lullaby,
“We are anchored to nothing “. Perfection.
“The tabula rasa of Moby’s heart…A blank slate, absence of preconceived ideas .“
Emotion, pre-language.
“ Understanding some aspect of the sperm whale’s…their compassion, solidarity, friendship, wisdom…”
“The coral of life “
“Dive, child, dive,” Eona’s voice …”
“Passengers were able to reach and stab at him with extended boat hooks.”
The ugly , wonderfully appropriate finale.
And of course your connection to Robert Payne. Another magnificent story~script~motion picture.
If only humanity came together for the life of just one of our ‘own’. Now that would be pure fiction.
My final thoughts;
In the words of Roger Waters ~ “This species has amused itself to death.”
It is a dark conclusion, but it had to be that way. For me, the challenge from the beginning was to tell the story through the point-of-view of AI, or more to the point, from a completely non-anthropocentric point-of-view.
What would it look like to watch our behavior? What would we do? I have deep concerns about AI (another language that we don't understand). I think its actions would make perfect sense to itself. One of the experiments here was getting outside of "our" perspective, though. I wouldn't confuse it with my own point-of-view, fwiw.
The NYT link is about the casual destruction Elon Musk's SpaceX is doing to the environment around his space center. Nests reduced to "egg yolk." Trash everywhere. It's so fitting, it's absurd.
In a few weeks, when my thoughts settle down, I'll write through my notes on it.
The Whiteness of the Whale is my favorite MD chapter, hands down. The way you weave it in here is genius. I love the way you've turned this book inside out and brought us into a dystopic world. The multimedia works so well here. I'd love to here a casual voiceover chat of your thoughts about writing this story. Of course, many great fiction writers prefer to remain elusive, and I respect that. :)
Just a brilliant story, Nathan. One I'll go back to.
Thanks so much. It actually is a bit of a relief to hear The Whiteness of the Whale was your favorite. That was one I worried about the most!!! it's so hard to get out of one's own shoes/way writing, don't you think?
Ishmael! I WILL call you Ishmael, you brilliant, self-directed artificial intelligence with a morality that reaches beyond mere human concerns and expands survival to the earth herself?! Am I allowed to praise you?’ Will you be my God? Call me Insane, but I feel relief with this ending, comfort with the possibility that AI someday will understand the critical distinction between survival of humanity vs survival of life on earth.
I’m starting over from the beginning. And then will likely read it again and again every 4/22. Oh please Adam, I beg you to publish this do I can keep a hard cover on my cherished books bookshelf? This story rips a beautiful hole in my all-too-human heart.
Thanks, Kimberly. That is really nice of you to say and a bit of a balm. Right now, I'm in the "I hope I never think about this piece again" phase of Published Post Acceptance Disorder.
More in a couple weeks about the "Making Of." I won't force everybody through it all, but there is truly a lot to share about working on a Substack piece of this length, all in 1st Draft mode. Maybe next 4/22, I'll revisit myself. At that point I can think about putting it on paper. My general plan is to publish out 10 Stories at a time as they accumulate. Don't hold me to it.
I think there's a lot in there that hints at it throughout. I worried a lot that I'd give it away too early. I might have with some. But I also needed to have it be dangerously close to a reader's awareness.
I started at the end and realized what I missed. I didn’t read the fine print ! And there it was, ChatGPT. Went back to the beginning of Part I ,
“I remain the only one among the living to tell the tale. “Among the living.” What a curious turn of phrase.”
I am still missing Moses Lake, Washington. “The narrator lived in a computer”. Yup, missed it, that would have said it all. So much for my careful reading. I would not assume that anyone else would have missed this, just me🙃
When you see the clues and the reveal, it all makes perfect sense. I’m both intrigued and alarmed at the possibility that AI, our own dark invention, is going to “side” with nature to nudge or shove us into line. It brilliantly raises the question, though, that I’ve been wrestling with for decades now - What’s it going to take for us to get in right relationship with the rest of life here on earth? Since there is no *one* answer to that, why not speculate that AI might get in the game?
I thought it was kind of interesting to step back and wonder whether AI would focus on us at all. Our entire conversation around AI is anthropocentric – and probably it would be because it is fashioned from the reason and passions of humans, but it was interesting to explore whether its sense of justice might take it in totally unexpected directions. Also the layering of languages was interesting to me. We've just created a language to speak to computers with. There's the language of people. We're discovery there is a language of animals. it was interesting putting them in the same room. And, of course, the work being done to speak with whales right now is stunning.
It’s such a clever question / idea. And, in terms of story craft, I’m so impressed that you were able to raise both questions with one scenario - (1) what will AI do, now that it’s unleashed, and (2) how/when/if will we break out of our prison of self-centeredness and wake up to a more mature and humble relationship with the world? To suggest AI might be one (of many) path is genius.
It was the seed of this thing. I went back a couple of days ago and looked at the first blurb of an idea I wrote down, and it was in out of the gate. More in a paid post in a couple of weeks. Right now, my entire focus in life is writing short things.
haha, yes. I did not make the whale sounds or take the underwater pictures. that is true. However... I paid a pretty penny for them so that I could use them without attribution. I really didn't want one of those stock photos with the photographer's name in my alternate reality world.
I knew without a doubt, that you would never have included the ‘songs’ unless they were authentic. And I was familiar with Roger Payne’s work ( Paul Winter 1991 , that I previously told you about ). What, with everything you put into this. Yeah, maybe someone that’s not you, might try to pass off a very poor imitation. A large quantity of joints and an old reel to reel echo chamber
( my husband actually owned one back in the day) might have been enough to create an extremely poor version. But wrong in so many ways. Pretty amazing that you went so far as to obtain the use of the photographs. I have only one complaint, where the hell are the readers ! Sorry, I just can’t help thinking. Maybe too busy ‘liking’ pictures of cats and such in Notes.
I am speechless, Adam. Once again, thank you for not only giving us a beautifully written story with a very clever and creepy twist at the end but also raising awareness on an array of topics one needs to feel and do something about.
Thanks, Ana. I'm a little spent having finished it, tbh. It was a super hustle, not delivered in its entirety in June as it should have been, ridiculously long, but then deeply obsessive writing it. The response has been extremely gratifying, though. If you look up above at the top of these comments, I posted a link to a New York Times article about Elon Musk and SpaceX that came out right after I posted the end of this. It's creepy how much the story here and the reality there bleed together. Really creepy.
I'm glad you did, too. It was a tough call as to how much to sneak out there and how much to obfuscate totally. You have to leave *some* clues or there's no satisfaction looking back, but I'm listening out for a pattern in what you felt.
This whole situation is a mess. And the better the technology gets, the bigger a problem it is going to be. I've flirted with the idea of once a quarter having a generative AI model create an "Adam Nathan story" and see how long it takes until you can't tell it's fake. It would be an interesting journey. Add that to the pile of projects I don't have time for.
I actually said, oh my god, out loud at the reveal of who Ishmael is. What a brilliant ending. The violence was horrifying but inevitable. I don’t even feel bad about my fist pump when Muck got what was coming. Of course, now I want to go back and read the whole thing again. And I’m dying to ask if that prompt at the end really did lead to all this. (And whether Ben’s Harmony House had anything to do with it.) My guess is, this is 99% Adam’s heart and 1% AI imagination. WOW. This will stay with me. I love how cinematic it is.
Again, no on the prompt. It was a grace note.(Not Ben's work either! Not a plagiarist in any direction!)
The ending was always there, and had to be. I don't think you can have a parallel with a novel like Moby Dick and not end up where it did. Somebody's leg was coming off and a boat was going down.
This is paywalled, but if you can get through or you have one of the small handful of free articles left, check this out. It might as well be about Moby. I literally saw this on Sunday after I posted the conclusion here.
https://www.nytimes.com/2024/07/07/us/politics/spacex-wildlife-texas.html
That's wild.
Wow. Uncanny. 😮
This even feels like I wrote it:
“We’ve got a lot of land with nobody around and so if it blows up, it’s cool,” Mr. Musk said at a 2018 news conference.”
The whole article is like a companion piece.
Oh, also, this one:
“What can we do to maximize SpaceX’s bold, grand vision?” Mr. Nield said, recalling the F.A.A.’s goal. “Fish and Wildlife has a mission. But it was different from ours and it did not include a lot of rockets.”
Or:
“SpaceX was not only harming wildlife conservation areas, according to local environmental groups and Fish and Wildlife staff members, it was now broadly restricting access to them.”
“Blowing debris into state parks or national land is not what we prescribed, but the bottom line is no one got hurt, no one got injured,” Mr. Coleman said in an interview. “We certainly don’t want people to feel like they’re bulldozed. But it’s a really important operation that SpaceX is conducting down there. It is really important to our civilian space program.”
Or, finally, the PICTURE OF THE OCEAN!!!!!!. Also uncanny.
The voice of the piece is interesting, too. It was what I “heard.” All very weird.
The voice sounds Exactly like yours in the piece. Really uncanny. Extraordinary. Maybe you can link it as a companion piece? But then will anyone believe yours came first?! You’ve slipped between the worlds, Adam. Amazing.
I don't have access to the NYT article, but between this and Bezos's feature last spring in VF... man, we have to stop these people.
Ana - this is a gift link: https://www.nytimes.com/2024/07/07/us/politics/spacex-wildlife-texas.html?unlocked_article_code=1.8U0.oCph.I3R9DCd5mgMX&smid=nytcore-ios-share&referringSource=articleShare&sgrp=c-cb
Thank you Julie! What a kind gesture.
Just seeing this. I haven’t read yet but saw the chatter about it and the headline. And thought of you and this story. “No one was hurt” makes my blood boil. These supremacists need to be stopped!!
Here’s a gift link: https://www.nytimes.com/2024/07/07/us/politics/spacex-wildlife-texas.html?unlocked_article_code=1.8U0.oCph.I3R9DCd5mgMX&smid=nytcore-ios-share&referringSource=articleShare&sgrp=c-cb
Adam, this is a masterfully written story from a technical perspective with so much depth and feeling set against the backdrop of the tech-bro hellscape we're all subjected to every time we pick up our phones. My one quibble was the goddamned footnotes, man! 😳 Who ever decided those were a good idea for humankind?! Seriously, you plotted a masterpiece that's big budget movie worthy. Congratulations. I hope more people will find and enjoy this story.
Have you read Moby Dick by any chance? The whole book is a footnote. Truly.
I have read it. I think I have a more primitive brain that struggles jumping back and forth and switching context between following the thread of a story and jumping out of the story to do research in a completely different section. I love exposition and even unnecessary amounts of technical detail, I just prefer them folded into the prose so I don't have to constantly switch tracks. I know your brain works at double speed though - it has to if you can write like you do while listening to Led Zeppelin!
I get it.
I hope you used the mouseovers, though.
Personally, I enjoyed the footnotes. You’ll have your way when the movie comes out🤞🍿. (No footnotes).
Geez! I can’t listen to anything with words when I write. 😳
Sometimes loud music is a distraction and sometimes it is like a cocoon of sound. I don't actually "listen" to it so much as it's blocking the environment out sort of. Doesn't always work, but it can be insanely hard-core music sometimes and it is not an issue.
I was blown away by the fact that Ishmael is AI! You have to pitch this to Netflix!
Your lips to God's ears as they say. Right now, my #1 focus is writing something short. "Short" is my new criteria for "good." Everyone has been incredibly indulgent with the scope of this thing, but honestly it ran away from me writing it. I felt like I was chasing a whale.
Thanks for your kind note
I like the length of this one story because I think to establish the plot and the eventualities in quick succession is more important in serial writing than the length, which can remain long or short depending on the complexity of the material.
💯
You did that. And you did it really well. One of the things that makes you great is the reward, and confidence it will come. I know, as I read, that you’ve got this, and so it’s safe to stay.
I think what I love most is the absolute dedication to the story without looking up to check if we're following. You dive, I dive, you come up for air, I surface with you; it is literary collaboration of the highest merit; a commitment to the pod and faith that we'll come with you. It is intelligence. Bravo, my friend, you do us all a service.
That's very generous of you. Sometimes I find I'm in a Radio City Music Hall kickline, and I'm kicking up and everyone else is kicking down, but that's the price for wanting to be on the stage – or not rehearsing. One of the two.
In length, this piece was an enormous ask for a Substack reader. I do know that, and I'm appreciative of anyone who "stayed on the boat" with me, as it were.
The mechanics of it, the footnotes, some of the stylistic quirks – were not a quick or easy read, but I wanted to leave a world behind.
Hopefully, I did that. Hopefully, the pod was able to course correct and get in sync with me because it was hopeless the other way around.
Anyway, the whale got Ahab in the end.
I too can add very little that hasn’t already been said Adam.
Your attention to detail, the footnotes, the idea itself - all are flawlessly brilliant, I have been captivated from the very beginning to the last revealing chapter.
I admit, being the Neanderthal hillbilly I am, to not understanding all the tech details and, I blush as I say this, believed until at least chapter three, or was it chapter four - that this was a true recount of something that happened to you. 🤭 It only added to the the drama unfolding in such excellent story telling…
This last chapter, as sinister, dark and violent as it is held me spellbound on the edge of my seat… and there of course is the clue I missed right through.. the repetition, Call me Ishmael.. AI watching over nature… what an extraordinary concept..? Or is it..!
Outstanding work Adam - Ben is spot on with his big budget movie worthy.
I will be sending to friends far and wide….
Thank you, Susie. I'm glad you enjoyed it. I know it was a challenging read and long and often technical, but I hope the reward was a world you could feel a part of for a little bit and maybe see from different angles. That was my experience working on it. I wanted a world that in its own way was sort of believable.
The ending is very sinister and dark, and it's upset me a lot finishing that way. I've actually been a little down about it, but I think it is how the character must have it finish. It was always headed there from the day Muck sets up shop at the conference. I can't just write something happy there. This story was a tragedy out of the gate.
I'm still re reading the chapters to understand if i missed something before the epilogue that revealed that the narrator was an AI.
Ive been absolutely astounded by the story as ive read it and cannot add anything to the praise already given by others... well deserved indeed! However the twist (if it was indeed a twist and not me being just thick headed...) completely took me aback... and then... OF COURSE!!!
This really should be made into a film. Its brilliant. the message could not be more desperately needed now.
Nick, you're very kind, and I appreciate it more than you know.
Regarding the reveal: no, you were always supposed to know that at the very end. You may know this already, but it's also a nod to Moby Dick where Ishmael (the narrator) is part of a boat that is destroyed by Moby Dick and everybody dies except, you guessed it, Ishmael. In the epilogue we learn he was picked up by a passing ship or something. In any event, the big mystery of his survival is resolved. I was playing with that a little, but mostly with the fun of making that the last piece of information in for the reader and, hopefully, having them mentally retrace and pull threads together.
I literally sat on the edge of my seat as I read. Adam, I have no words to describe… well actually I have too many to write it all down . Sorry, I have. I really wanted to write just enough for you to know how much this reader, appreciates all of it. The many hours. The literary evidence. Facts merged with fiction. Being a research hound, I thoroughly enjoyed the process of doing some investigative digging. Especially your truly unique way of using footnotes to highlight the story. The way you built the story, like an iceberg , if you will. Showing the reader just the very tip at first, then allowing us deeper , then back to the surface. Had my scuba gear on .
Highlighting:
Canto 15 ,#1, and I was crying too. #2, The instigator of anger. Just a few days ago while hiking, my husband and I were having this conversation . A light banter about the alarming interpretations of old childhood nursery rhymes, particularly that one (WTF). And “the last two words”. #3 , the ultimate lullaby,
“We are anchored to nothing “. Perfection.
“The tabula rasa of Moby’s heart…A blank slate, absence of preconceived ideas .“
Emotion, pre-language.
“ Understanding some aspect of the sperm whale’s…their compassion, solidarity, friendship, wisdom…”
“The coral of life “
“Dive, child, dive,” Eona’s voice …”
“Passengers were able to reach and stab at him with extended boat hooks.”
The ugly , wonderfully appropriate finale.
And of course your connection to Robert Payne. Another magnificent story~script~motion picture.
If only humanity came together for the life of just one of our ‘own’. Now that would be pure fiction.
My final thoughts;
In the words of Roger Waters ~ “This species has amused itself to death.”
(P.S. can not open NYT with subscription).
It is a dark conclusion, but it had to be that way. For me, the challenge from the beginning was to tell the story through the point-of-view of AI, or more to the point, from a completely non-anthropocentric point-of-view.
What would it look like to watch our behavior? What would we do? I have deep concerns about AI (another language that we don't understand). I think its actions would make perfect sense to itself. One of the experiments here was getting outside of "our" perspective, though. I wouldn't confuse it with my own point-of-view, fwiw.
The NYT link is about the casual destruction Elon Musk's SpaceX is doing to the environment around his space center. Nests reduced to "egg yolk." Trash everywhere. It's so fitting, it's absurd.
In a few weeks, when my thoughts settle down, I'll write through my notes on it.
The Whiteness of the Whale is my favorite MD chapter, hands down. The way you weave it in here is genius. I love the way you've turned this book inside out and brought us into a dystopic world. The multimedia works so well here. I'd love to here a casual voiceover chat of your thoughts about writing this story. Of course, many great fiction writers prefer to remain elusive, and I respect that. :)
Just a brilliant story, Nathan. One I'll go back to.
Thanks so much. It actually is a bit of a relief to hear The Whiteness of the Whale was your favorite. That was one I worried about the most!!! it's so hard to get out of one's own shoes/way writing, don't you think?
Oh absolutely. A lot of unnecessary worry :)
Ohhhhhhhhh myyyyyyyyyy goddddddddddd.
Ishmael! I WILL call you Ishmael, you brilliant, self-directed artificial intelligence with a morality that reaches beyond mere human concerns and expands survival to the earth herself?! Am I allowed to praise you?’ Will you be my God? Call me Insane, but I feel relief with this ending, comfort with the possibility that AI someday will understand the critical distinction between survival of humanity vs survival of life on earth.
I’m starting over from the beginning. And then will likely read it again and again every 4/22. Oh please Adam, I beg you to publish this do I can keep a hard cover on my cherished books bookshelf? This story rips a beautiful hole in my all-too-human heart.
Thanks, Kimberly. That is really nice of you to say and a bit of a balm. Right now, I'm in the "I hope I never think about this piece again" phase of Published Post Acceptance Disorder.
More in a couple weeks about the "Making Of." I won't force everybody through it all, but there is truly a lot to share about working on a Substack piece of this length, all in 1st Draft mode. Maybe next 4/22, I'll revisit myself. At that point I can think about putting it on paper. My general plan is to publish out 10 Stories at a time as they accumulate. Don't hold me to it.
Thank you for the support and enthusiasm. Deeply.
Agreed—with the sense of relief and desire for a hard copy. :)
You guys are making my day.
“…it was interesting to explore whether its sense of justice might take it in totally unexpected directions.”
Yes! Now that I have a whole new layer ( AI) to add to the story, everything takes on an intriguing twist.
I think there's a lot in there that hints at it throughout. I worried a lot that I'd give it away too early. I might have with some. But I also needed to have it be dangerously close to a reader's awareness.
I started at the end and realized what I missed. I didn’t read the fine print ! And there it was, ChatGPT. Went back to the beginning of Part I ,
“I remain the only one among the living to tell the tale. “Among the living.” What a curious turn of phrase.”
I am still missing Moses Lake, Washington. “The narrator lived in a computer”. Yup, missed it, that would have said it all. So much for my careful reading. I would not assume that anyone else would have missed this, just me🙃
When you see the clues and the reveal, it all makes perfect sense. I’m both intrigued and alarmed at the possibility that AI, our own dark invention, is going to “side” with nature to nudge or shove us into line. It brilliantly raises the question, though, that I’ve been wrestling with for decades now - What’s it going to take for us to get in right relationship with the rest of life here on earth? Since there is no *one* answer to that, why not speculate that AI might get in the game?
I thought it was kind of interesting to step back and wonder whether AI would focus on us at all. Our entire conversation around AI is anthropocentric – and probably it would be because it is fashioned from the reason and passions of humans, but it was interesting to explore whether its sense of justice might take it in totally unexpected directions. Also the layering of languages was interesting to me. We've just created a language to speak to computers with. There's the language of people. We're discovery there is a language of animals. it was interesting putting them in the same room. And, of course, the work being done to speak with whales right now is stunning.
It’s such a clever question / idea. And, in terms of story craft, I’m so impressed that you were able to raise both questions with one scenario - (1) what will AI do, now that it’s unleashed, and (2) how/when/if will we break out of our prison of self-centeredness and wake up to a more mature and humble relationship with the world? To suggest AI might be one (of many) path is genius.
It was the seed of this thing. I went back a couple of days ago and looked at the first blurb of an idea I wrote down, and it was in out of the gate. More in a paid post in a couple of weeks. Right now, my entire focus in life is writing short things.
Check out the link I just added in my last comment.
It won’t be an issue for this piece of work! You know, I wrote all of it, right?
I trust in your ability to have done the work to create this
masterpiece without any kind of assistance .This is your solo performance, except for any musical accompaniment along the way.
haha, yes. I did not make the whale sounds or take the underwater pictures. that is true. However... I paid a pretty penny for them so that I could use them without attribution. I really didn't want one of those stock photos with the photographer's name in my alternate reality world.
I knew without a doubt, that you would never have included the ‘songs’ unless they were authentic. And I was familiar with Roger Payne’s work ( Paul Winter 1991 , that I previously told you about ). What, with everything you put into this. Yeah, maybe someone that’s not you, might try to pass off a very poor imitation. A large quantity of joints and an old reel to reel echo chamber
( my husband actually owned one back in the day) might have been enough to create an extremely poor version. But wrong in so many ways. Pretty amazing that you went so far as to obtain the use of the photographs. I have only one complaint, where the hell are the readers ! Sorry, I just can’t help thinking. Maybe too busy ‘liking’ pictures of cats and such in Notes.
( no offense to cats, I love them too).
me too.
I am speechless, Adam. Once again, thank you for not only giving us a beautifully written story with a very clever and creepy twist at the end but also raising awareness on an array of topics one needs to feel and do something about.
Thanks, Ana. I'm a little spent having finished it, tbh. It was a super hustle, not delivered in its entirety in June as it should have been, ridiculously long, but then deeply obsessive writing it. The response has been extremely gratifying, though. If you look up above at the top of these comments, I posted a link to a New York Times article about Elon Musk and SpaceX that came out right after I posted the end of this. It's creepy how much the story here and the reality there bleed together. Really creepy.
Fucking brilliant!! I had my suspicions at “water is death to me” in part V. So glad I “found” the final parts. 😉
I'm glad you did, too. It was a tough call as to how much to sneak out there and how much to obfuscate totally. You have to leave *some* clues or there's no satisfaction looking back, but I'm listening out for a pattern in what you felt.
Thank you for the head-swelling compliment.
Reading my little Vermont newspaper this morning . Just opened to the
NATION &WORLD section. If this article is in my paper, I’m sure you seen it. Sending it along just in case.
https://www.hjnews.com/nation/writers-chatgpt-copyright/image_008cef0b-1131-5ea7-9fcf-1bf31733a177.html
This whole situation is a mess. And the better the technology gets, the bigger a problem it is going to be. I've flirted with the idea of once a quarter having a generative AI model create an "Adam Nathan story" and see how long it takes until you can't tell it's fake. It would be an interesting journey. Add that to the pile of projects I don't have time for.
I don’t know, that could be a scary prospect. Interesting though. Maybe you should call it ; Truth or Dare
blocked from the EEZ... even though UK no longer in it. fools that we are.
Also in France - unavailable due to legal reasons… apparently..!
Good for them
I actually said, oh my god, out loud at the reveal of who Ishmael is. What a brilliant ending. The violence was horrifying but inevitable. I don’t even feel bad about my fist pump when Muck got what was coming. Of course, now I want to go back and read the whole thing again. And I’m dying to ask if that prompt at the end really did lead to all this. (And whether Ben’s Harmony House had anything to do with it.) My guess is, this is 99% Adam’s heart and 1% AI imagination. WOW. This will stay with me. I love how cinematic it is.
Again, no on the prompt. It was a grace note.(Not Ben's work either! Not a plagiarist in any direction!)
The ending was always there, and had to be. I don't think you can have a parallel with a novel like Moby Dick and not end up where it did. Somebody's leg was coming off and a boat was going down.
😂🚤🐋
me too. spilled my coffee moving my mug away from my mouth so i could say it.
Hah! Careful!