Thanks so much. I’m glad it resonated. I feel like this should tap into feelings that plenty of us here and on similar platforms have from time to time. Every artist needs an audience.
I think the distinction/definition of an audience you elude to in the story is important. The stats don’t nurture the artist the way just one real reaction does.
There is also the realization that whether the reaction is real or not may be more important to the reactor or the artist. The artist can’t truly know the authenticity of the reaction but the reactor does.
Yes, one person who really seems to get it is worth any number of sterile button presses or algorithmic boosts.
On reactions being real etc - yes, I am fascinated with ideas of authenticity and performativeness - you’ll see these themes running through nearly all my work to date, including what I’m working on now. Not sure why, I just find it to be fertile ground to explore.
At the risk of overusing my earlier reference, this one had me in a complete chokehold. The very essence of this work is something I think about more often than I should. One of the driving factors of my own art is trying to understand what makes us human and the hostility of the world we live constantly tests our conclusions and our creations.
This piece was a guttural representation of that circle of thought. Art and the very appreciation of art is one major factors that separates us from other, instinct-driven mammals. With the late-stage capitalization of art, the mistreatment of art as a learned skill, an earned privilege, society is losing the ability to therefore appreciate art. Media literacy is at an all time low with the focus on fast, quick, and cheap production in order to garner the most influence, the most cash.
This piece captures the fate of this course we’ve set as humans— to lose the meaning of art because anyone can do it, even code. There’s no longer a need for a human touch, human skill, or human heart. Beautiful masterpieces as they may be, they are still cold. When the art runs cold, we run cold.
You, my friend, have captured a very real nightmare here. I never want to lose my ability to appreciate it, to feel it. To me, a life without the ability to feel the art I consume isn’t a life at all. When we are all Mozart, none of us get to be Salieri.
I apologize for the length in this comment but this one really sits with me.
My favorite moment was feeling the shift from "I wondered if you'd come." to "I'm glad you did." Showing that he was able to find emotion after all, through creation. This is so brilliant.
Wow. Wowowowwowowowo. So much to unpack here. This was incredible. It was such a unique piece and I read every word with a hunger I haven’t experienced in a long time on this app. The idea of REACTING to art being a job is mind breaking. This piece was filled with thought provoking messages and gut wrenching lines. The way you described how AI could steal the emotion and reaction from others, eradicate genuine art and feeling… was terrifying. The way you described how having too much art could lead to aging unable to feel it… it was gut wrenching. I’ve had moments of pretending to ahve emotions I don’t really ahve. I've gotten so good I’ve fooled myself. It’s sometimes led to a questioning of my real emotions and identity. Sometimes I feel like I’m preforming for myself, if only to spare myself from my own disgust. If only to spare my heart from my minds scrutiny. This was filed with beutiful liens. The word sing you used to describe comfortable years passing quickly, without edges made so much sense to me. The way you described simply noticing good music was so clear and simple it made my head spin. It sat so well with me, and the way you put that into words was astounding. “I registered it the way you would note good lighting or comfortable temperature” I knew exactly what you meant and it was rather frightening! I’ve never thought of human emotion as irreplaceable but this made me think about it in a whole different light. Beautiful work! It was truly breathtaking and I think everyone needs to read it.
Thanks so much, I'm so glad that this resonated with you. Your point about questioning your own emotions sometimes - am I performing or am I being authentic & how can I tell - is a theme I find myself coming back to again and again in both my fiction and non fiction. Nearly all my stories have some kind of point to them and I'm never really sure how well I've managed to get the main ideas across, which is why I truly am delighted to read feedback like yours here. It's the kind of thing that encourages me to continue to write and connect with people in that way. Thanks again, I truly am grateful that you took the time to read it & leave such thoughtful feedback.
OF COURSE! I adore this piece of writing and you seem like such a genuine person! I’m happy to dive into your stories and tell you what I think, it’s such a joy and I’m so freaking glad you appriciate it.
The elevator scene is where the story lands. Not the world-building, not Julian's tragedy. The narrator had full capacity to give Julian exactly what the story says is now scarce. And chose not to.
Thanks for taking the time to read and your thoughtful comment. Yes, the narrator could have given Julian’s work the attention it deserved, but couldn’t find it in himself to do it. Thanks for giving my story some of yours.
Julian’s arc is devastating because it’s so quiet. No melodrama, no big break. Just a gradual narrowing of life to preserve what still works. That choice felt very intentional and very human. Please keep writing, I think you are voicing what a lot of people feel. xo.
Prophetic, this. And superbly executed. Especially how you tell this story through a few individual characters, leaving out the clunky worldbuilding exposition.
Unfortunately, and darkly, I think this future you describe is inevitable, and I think the dystopians responsible for all this, along with the mediocrity which capitalism breeds, are perfectly aware of this future and entirely intend it. Except it won't be masterpieces people are creating, it will be mediocrity, although they will be made to believe it's masterpieces (often by AI itself, ironically, posing as real people). Then before people know it, real creativity and genius will no longer exist, and that is when humanity will be ripe for slavery.
Why? Because only the true creative truly understands liberty and what it means to be human, and can educate people about the necessity of resistance. Those iconoclastic, revolutionary philosophers will be lost in that swarm of mediocrity. Ironically, a little like tears in rain.
It's already started of course, what with self-publishing and Amazon...
Thanks for reading and engaging with such a thoughtful comment. Yes, the signs that we're headed in this direction - or something like it - are all around us.
“When everyone is Mozart, who’ll be the audience?” — that line is where you got me right away, back when I didn’t yet expect this to turn into a story about AI. Your approach to the topic of AI future genuinely moved me. You hit the most painful spot. When AI takes over the creative world and starts producing masterpieces, what we’ll truly be missing is a genuine listener, a thoughtful reader, real intellectual reactions. Even now, that’s already such a painful topic. Also, the way you write, the tasty little details, the texture of the language — all of it makes the story feel rich and immersive.
Thanks so much for your attentive reading and very generous comment, like and restack. I'm glad it connected with you - it means a lot to me that it did. And yes, even though it's speculative, it really does feel like we're headed this way, doesn't it?
Thanks so much for taking the time to read my story and for leaving such a wonderful comment. In all sincerity, it means a lot to me that it was able to connect with you in this way. You are *exactly* the kind of reader I'm writing for. Thanks again.
Such a poignant piece for this platform, this audience. Its not a plea but a warning. Well done.
Thanks so much. I’m glad it resonated. I feel like this should tap into feelings that plenty of us here and on similar platforms have from time to time. Every artist needs an audience.
I think the distinction/definition of an audience you elude to in the story is important. The stats don’t nurture the artist the way just one real reaction does.
There is also the realization that whether the reaction is real or not may be more important to the reactor or the artist. The artist can’t truly know the authenticity of the reaction but the reactor does.
Yes, one person who really seems to get it is worth any number of sterile button presses or algorithmic boosts.
On reactions being real etc - yes, I am fascinated with ideas of authenticity and performativeness - you’ll see these themes running through nearly all my work to date, including what I’m working on now. Not sure why, I just find it to be fertile ground to explore.
At the risk of overusing my earlier reference, this one had me in a complete chokehold. The very essence of this work is something I think about more often than I should. One of the driving factors of my own art is trying to understand what makes us human and the hostility of the world we live constantly tests our conclusions and our creations.
This piece was a guttural representation of that circle of thought. Art and the very appreciation of art is one major factors that separates us from other, instinct-driven mammals. With the late-stage capitalization of art, the mistreatment of art as a learned skill, an earned privilege, society is losing the ability to therefore appreciate art. Media literacy is at an all time low with the focus on fast, quick, and cheap production in order to garner the most influence, the most cash.
This piece captures the fate of this course we’ve set as humans— to lose the meaning of art because anyone can do it, even code. There’s no longer a need for a human touch, human skill, or human heart. Beautiful masterpieces as they may be, they are still cold. When the art runs cold, we run cold.
You, my friend, have captured a very real nightmare here. I never want to lose my ability to appreciate it, to feel it. To me, a life without the ability to feel the art I consume isn’t a life at all. When we are all Mozart, none of us get to be Salieri.
I apologize for the length in this comment but this one really sits with me.
My favorite moment was feeling the shift from "I wondered if you'd come." to "I'm glad you did." Showing that he was able to find emotion after all, through creation. This is so brilliant.
I’m so glad you enjoyed it. Thanks so much for reading, commenting and restacking - I really appreciate it.
Wow. Wowowowwowowowo. So much to unpack here. This was incredible. It was such a unique piece and I read every word with a hunger I haven’t experienced in a long time on this app. The idea of REACTING to art being a job is mind breaking. This piece was filled with thought provoking messages and gut wrenching lines. The way you described how AI could steal the emotion and reaction from others, eradicate genuine art and feeling… was terrifying. The way you described how having too much art could lead to aging unable to feel it… it was gut wrenching. I’ve had moments of pretending to ahve emotions I don’t really ahve. I've gotten so good I’ve fooled myself. It’s sometimes led to a questioning of my real emotions and identity. Sometimes I feel like I’m preforming for myself, if only to spare myself from my own disgust. If only to spare my heart from my minds scrutiny. This was filed with beutiful liens. The word sing you used to describe comfortable years passing quickly, without edges made so much sense to me. The way you described simply noticing good music was so clear and simple it made my head spin. It sat so well with me, and the way you put that into words was astounding. “I registered it the way you would note good lighting or comfortable temperature” I knew exactly what you meant and it was rather frightening! I’ve never thought of human emotion as irreplaceable but this made me think about it in a whole different light. Beautiful work! It was truly breathtaking and I think everyone needs to read it.
Thanks so much, I'm so glad that this resonated with you. Your point about questioning your own emotions sometimes - am I performing or am I being authentic & how can I tell - is a theme I find myself coming back to again and again in both my fiction and non fiction. Nearly all my stories have some kind of point to them and I'm never really sure how well I've managed to get the main ideas across, which is why I truly am delighted to read feedback like yours here. It's the kind of thing that encourages me to continue to write and connect with people in that way. Thanks again, I truly am grateful that you took the time to read it & leave such thoughtful feedback.
OF COURSE! I adore this piece of writing and you seem like such a genuine person! I’m happy to dive into your stories and tell you what I think, it’s such a joy and I’m so freaking glad you appriciate it.
The elevator scene is where the story lands. Not the world-building, not Julian's tragedy. The narrator had full capacity to give Julian exactly what the story says is now scarce. And chose not to.
Thanks for taking the time to read and your thoughtful comment. Yes, the narrator could have given Julian’s work the attention it deserved, but couldn’t find it in himself to do it. Thanks for giving my story some of yours.
Julian’s arc is devastating because it’s so quiet. No melodrama, no big break. Just a gradual narrowing of life to preserve what still works. That choice felt very intentional and very human. Please keep writing, I think you are voicing what a lot of people feel. xo.
Thanks for the careful read and generous comment, I really appreciate it.
enjoyed this so much! keep writing
Thanks very much, i appreciate you reading and commenting.
This is beautifully written and so bittersweet. To lose all sense of feeling and to go through life so numb is absolutely terrifying for me!
Thanks so much for the wonderful comment and for taking the time to read it in the first place. I appreciate it.
Prophetic, this. And superbly executed. Especially how you tell this story through a few individual characters, leaving out the clunky worldbuilding exposition.
Unfortunately, and darkly, I think this future you describe is inevitable, and I think the dystopians responsible for all this, along with the mediocrity which capitalism breeds, are perfectly aware of this future and entirely intend it. Except it won't be masterpieces people are creating, it will be mediocrity, although they will be made to believe it's masterpieces (often by AI itself, ironically, posing as real people). Then before people know it, real creativity and genius will no longer exist, and that is when humanity will be ripe for slavery.
Why? Because only the true creative truly understands liberty and what it means to be human, and can educate people about the necessity of resistance. Those iconoclastic, revolutionary philosophers will be lost in that swarm of mediocrity. Ironically, a little like tears in rain.
It's already started of course, what with self-publishing and Amazon...
Thanks for reading and engaging with such a thoughtful comment. Yes, the signs that we're headed in this direction - or something like it - are all around us.
Kind of 50's a certain type pulp Sci-Fi. Enjoyed it.
Cheers, that’s the sci fi I grew up with.
“When everyone is Mozart, who’ll be the audience?” — that line is where you got me right away, back when I didn’t yet expect this to turn into a story about AI. Your approach to the topic of AI future genuinely moved me. You hit the most painful spot. When AI takes over the creative world and starts producing masterpieces, what we’ll truly be missing is a genuine listener, a thoughtful reader, real intellectual reactions. Even now, that’s already such a painful topic. Also, the way you write, the tasty little details, the texture of the language — all of it makes the story feel rich and immersive.
Thanks so much for your attentive reading and very generous comment, like and restack. I'm glad it connected with you - it means a lot to me that it did. And yes, even though it's speculative, it really does feel like we're headed this way, doesn't it?
Yes, and that's why it's so scary. We can see how we can relate to this. Hope that's not the future that is waiting for us!
Thanks so much for taking the time to read my story and for leaving such a wonderful comment. In all sincerity, it means a lot to me that it was able to connect with you in this way. You are *exactly* the kind of reader I'm writing for. Thanks again.