I think I haven't been exposed to such a good writing in years. (Which probably says as much about average modern writing as it does about my reading habits)

> Writing a book is a horrible, exhausting struggle, like a long bout of some painful illness. One would never undertake such a thing if one were not driven on by some demon whom one can neither resist or understand. For all one knows that demon is simply the same instinct that makes a baby squall for attention.

Story of my life is how to align that demon to force me into things I actually want to do.

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randusername 2 days ago | parent | next [-]

> Story of my life is how to align that demon to force me into things I actually want to do.

My favorite example of creators discussing the drive to create is from the video game Dwarf Fortress. It has mechanics for it [0].

Dwarves that are stuck with inspiration to create a masterwork will go mad and destroy themselves if they can't find the raw materials they need.

Dwarf Fortress is known for the absurd scale of its simulations: history, war, love, geologic formations, fluid dynamics, prognosis of specific injuries to specific body parts. It's an interesting detail that creative frustration earned a place in that web of "realism". It's a significant part of the game.

[0]: https://dwarffortresswiki.org/index.php/Strange_mood

	▲	mghackerlady 2 days ago \| parent [-]
		I really wish Dwarf Fortress was open source or at least source available. The game is freeware anyway, it isn't like he'd be losing money

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6LLvveMx2koXfwn 2 days ago | parent | prev | next [-]

"I haven't been exposed to such a good writing in years." yes, this Orwell chap might have something about him!

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Loino 2 days ago | parent | prev | next [-]

> I think I haven't been exposed to such a good writing in years. (Which probably says as much about average modern writing as it does about my reading habits)

I have been reading the Aubrey-Maturin book series by Patrick O'Brien (you may have heard of the film, Master and Commander, based on some of the books). It is a literary treasure trove that has impeccable historical accuracy. The same demonic drive rings through in these books as POB started his series of 20 books well before the information age.

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IAmBroom 2 days ago | parent [-]

As an aside, there's a Facebook group for Patrick O'Brien fans. Content consists mostly of questions about tiny details in one book, which are rather nicely examined in a cooperative, investigative spirit by other fans. It's refreshingly different from, well, pretty much all other online discussions.

	▲	Loino a day ago \| parent [-]
		Thanks for the suggestion, I'll check it out. > which are rather nicely examined Adapted to the meanest understanding, I hope.

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blharr 2 days ago | parent | prev | next [-]

It's something that's really been worrying me these days. With AI creating literally floods of information, it's getting noisier and noisier.

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boznz 2 days ago | parent | next [-]

Yes, not a good time to be a new author, as I well know, but you also need to go back to the title of this post "why I write" - There is a lot more to wanting to write than fame and money (which you are very unlikely to see either of)

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Cthulhu_ 2 days ago | parent | prev | next [-]

And with AI ingesting said floods of information, there's less incentive to read as well.

Case in point, I've let AI help me write some documentation; I'd probably end up writing just as much in the end so I don't think there was much waste, but in the back of my head there's two voices now.

The one says "nobody will actually read this. I wouldn't, but I think it should be written down just in case".

But the other says "an AI will ingest all of this and give everything equal consideration, unlike most humans"

So yes, it is getting noisier, but as long as there's enough oversight and aggressive editing / cutting, it's probably manageable and hopefully helpful for our AI overlords.

	▲	boznz 2 days ago \| parent [-]
		Reading non-fiction maybe, but reading fiction is about escaping and immersing yourself in another world for a few hours, like gaming, and I doubt people will ever stop doing either.

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OZYMANDIASAK 2 days ago | parent | prev [-]

[dead]

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analog8374 2 days ago | parent | prev [-]

sounds like software dev. Life consuming

	▲	lioeters 2 days ago \| parent \| next [-]
		> Writing software is a horrible, exhausting struggle, like a long bout of some painful illness. One would never undertake such a thing if one were not driven on by some demon.. Yeah that fits.
	▲	epr19 2 days ago \| parent \| prev [-]
		ahahahaha, I code in the day and write by night. And no, I do not have a semblance of life.