Wonderful post. I read every word. Thank you for sharing this and all of your links too. I think that is something people are forgetting about using A.I. to write for them or to make art (generate images) or create videos for them simply because it's easier. As humans, we write, create art, photographs, films...as a form of human expression. To show ourselves and our meaning. If you put A.I. in, it's no longer human and no longer has meaning. So again, thank you for this post.
This week I've been working on my newsletter, and this month's topic was when our family moved from Pittsburgh to Sweden on my fifth birthday (February 1961), and we were "immersed" in a foreign culture and had to learn the language. One reason I'm able to share some of that experience even after all these years is that my father took 8mm "home movies" of that trip and of our life there. That's what I thought of when I saw the image of the old-fashioned film camera and the link to Adam Savage's video on that topic - it really hit me!
It got me thinking that our family has a "legacy of creativity" that comes down from my dad - that it's probably not a coincidence that so many of us descended from him write, or paint, or do other creative activities. Probably also not a coincidence that I married an art teacher who spent her career teaching hundreds of children to love art!
Love these reflections — thank you David! Also, amazing to see the old home movies, and how challenging they were. The lower quality, lack of audio, and how panning quickly blurs everything out. And the individual tapes were likely just 2 or 3 minutes long each, so there would have been pressure to fit a lot in quickly.
OK, I have to start by saying the AI prompt about Goth squirrels playing D&D in the 80s while eating salads (then seeing said image) made me laugh out loud, Dan. Absurd. Great insertion into your post this week.
You really got me thinking about how much craft and care is involved in creative work, when we're talking about human-made art--like the videographers, photographers, dancers, producers, songwriters, singers, etc.
My oldest wants to be a songwriter. She has actually received commendations for her songwriting, in 8th grade. One was from her school's music teacher, and another was actually a fluke - our girls ended up in a workshop put on by Sing Me A Story (nonprofit) while Ben and I attended a panel discussion for parents raising kids with complex care needs. Felicity's story was chosen by four different indie musicians from all over the country, in all different genres! They included a short video explaining why they selected her story, along with a full video of what they did with it musically. WOW.
Anyway, what you wrote reminded me of how much we need art, and maybe how much we need to save it.
Dan, my absolute favorite part of your weekly newsletter is seeing what your boys are doing. Just bolsters my spirits, while also offering a connection with how my kids show up creatively every day, too. I think in some ways we are kindred spirits that way. I love watching what my kids come up with, using their imagination or when they make a diorama or fort or collage. :)
Sorry I write a novella each time you post, Dan. Thanks for being so gracious in reading and replying, though. You just give me a lot to think about. :)
Dan, an inspiring post for us writers. Here’s another perspective on the use of AI in writing historical fiction. I collaborated with AI for historical details. The years 1960 to 1991 in a trilogy. Book 2 spans life & events in the U.S. and Germany. I wrote about them with characters involved. Use of AI for specific history details is acceptable, it’s a tool, a brainstorming partner. It’s important to ask specific questions, and challenge the answer if it’s off the mark. I’m way past middle age at 87. A copywriter, and I read tons of articles on the basics of good writing. My characters are personally involved in the historical events from 1960 to 1991. A trilogy. Book 1 Amazon self-published. Book 2 ready to go. Book 3 in progress. 📚
Thanks Dan, I thought this was so insightful. It isn't interesting to me if it's not authentic either and I want to know how much the author or artist cares before I care how much they know. I'm not sure if this is just a Polynesian perspective because we are very relational people from our language all the way to our love and care of the environment or elders and the young in our community. I think what your posts do for me is remind me none of us are operating in a vacuum and we don't need too. There will be a reader for our book and there will be a literary agent for it too it's just that we need to find them because they are looking for what we have written. I think this has been the best use of AI for me of late is to have Groc find some good fit agents for the manuscript I'm presently working on. Groc went all over the internet and found 2-3 super fits for me. It helped me move from a skatter gun approach within the books genre to a strategic focus and it taught me that I have an audience outside of where I was looking for representation.
Loved the pictures of the old typewriters. It took me back to my high school days (early 1970’s) when I took Typing l
and Typing ll because my mom insisted I was going to be a secretary. Now that I’m writing/typing my memoir, I’m thankful to my mother. Once the thoughts come to my mind, I can quickly cement them in to something tangible. But most importantly, when I make a mistake, now I don’t have to back it up, get out the white out paper, type over the error, remove the white out paper and try again. 🤣
Art is work, and dedication, and persistence, and belief. A movie that takes two hours of a viewer's time is the labour of many years and multiple people. So is a novel that a reader devours in a weekend and can't forget. I have always loved 'how it was done' stories. They seem to put the world right - humans who are moved or provoked by something, determined to make something fine with it. Thanks for these wonderful examples, Dan.
Jam packed with good stuff. Definitely a post to read more than once to absorb all the smart information. I especially like, "sharing with authenticity and connecting with others in meaningful ways." Very helpful for a project I'm working on that has gotten me into fits. Good opportunity to step back and re-evaluate how I'm thinking. And, oh my goodness, love the dungeon playing squirrels. And the boys. Always enjoy seeing what the boys are up to.
Thank you for this inspiration that lots of people care about human centered living--oh living is the code word, isn't it. For some AI is a fun toy and squirrels working is funny and we laugh, knowing it's silly, and knowing that we too can go to our computer and "create." AI does need prompts. The post and videos are deeply touching. Reading all those names who were involved in the dance and singing video was moving--all humans creating together. I used to play in symphonies and each rehearsal and concert shifted the cells of my body and mind, though I couldn't have named it then. I only know it was when I was happy in the context of a tough childhood. Music and feeling the vibrations and seeing the joy in the eyes of the violins and violas next to me took me to a realm where each person was valued and needed for the music to be real.
Summer is for working with our stickers. Or our writing. Keeping things simple gets us back to feeling joy in what we like to do. A good post. Thank you!
Wonderful post. I read every word. Thank you for sharing this and all of your links too. I think that is something people are forgetting about using A.I. to write for them or to make art (generate images) or create videos for them simply because it's easier. As humans, we write, create art, photographs, films...as a form of human expression. To show ourselves and our meaning. If you put A.I. in, it's no longer human and no longer has meaning. So again, thank you for this post.
Thank you A.E.!
This week I've been working on my newsletter, and this month's topic was when our family moved from Pittsburgh to Sweden on my fifth birthday (February 1961), and we were "immersed" in a foreign culture and had to learn the language. One reason I'm able to share some of that experience even after all these years is that my father took 8mm "home movies" of that trip and of our life there. That's what I thought of when I saw the image of the old-fashioned film camera and the link to Adam Savage's video on that topic - it really hit me!
My brother's video with some of that archival footage: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d50QMqurG2w&t=371s
It got me thinking that our family has a "legacy of creativity" that comes down from my dad - that it's probably not a coincidence that so many of us descended from him write, or paint, or do other creative activities. Probably also not a coincidence that I married an art teacher who spent her career teaching hundreds of children to love art!
Love these reflections — thank you David! Also, amazing to see the old home movies, and how challenging they were. The lower quality, lack of audio, and how panning quickly blurs everything out. And the individual tapes were likely just 2 or 3 minutes long each, so there would have been pressure to fit a lot in quickly.
OK, I have to start by saying the AI prompt about Goth squirrels playing D&D in the 80s while eating salads (then seeing said image) made me laugh out loud, Dan. Absurd. Great insertion into your post this week.
You really got me thinking about how much craft and care is involved in creative work, when we're talking about human-made art--like the videographers, photographers, dancers, producers, songwriters, singers, etc.
My oldest wants to be a songwriter. She has actually received commendations for her songwriting, in 8th grade. One was from her school's music teacher, and another was actually a fluke - our girls ended up in a workshop put on by Sing Me A Story (nonprofit) while Ben and I attended a panel discussion for parents raising kids with complex care needs. Felicity's story was chosen by four different indie musicians from all over the country, in all different genres! They included a short video explaining why they selected her story, along with a full video of what they did with it musically. WOW.
Anyway, what you wrote reminded me of how much we need art, and maybe how much we need to save it.
Dan, my absolute favorite part of your weekly newsletter is seeing what your boys are doing. Just bolsters my spirits, while also offering a connection with how my kids show up creatively every day, too. I think in some ways we are kindred spirits that way. I love watching what my kids come up with, using their imagination or when they make a diorama or fort or collage. :)
Aw, thank you so much for the kind words and sharing all of this Jeannie!
Sorry I write a novella each time you post, Dan. Thanks for being so gracious in reading and replying, though. You just give me a lot to think about. :)
Ha! Thank you so much for your thoughtfulness, it’s a joy to read.
Dan, an inspiring post for us writers. Here’s another perspective on the use of AI in writing historical fiction. I collaborated with AI for historical details. The years 1960 to 1991 in a trilogy. Book 2 spans life & events in the U.S. and Germany. I wrote about them with characters involved. Use of AI for specific history details is acceptable, it’s a tool, a brainstorming partner. It’s important to ask specific questions, and challenge the answer if it’s off the mark. I’m way past middle age at 87. A copywriter, and I read tons of articles on the basics of good writing. My characters are personally involved in the historical events from 1960 to 1991. A trilogy. Book 1 Amazon self-published. Book 2 ready to go. Book 3 in progress. 📚
Thank you Christine!
Love this newsletter, Dan! So well said and meaningful as always. (And also love that purple typewriter! ;) )
Thanks Dara!
I loved (and needed) every bit of this today, right down to the image of that typewriter. Thanks, Dan.
Aw, thank you Susan!
Thanks Dan, I thought this was so insightful. It isn't interesting to me if it's not authentic either and I want to know how much the author or artist cares before I care how much they know. I'm not sure if this is just a Polynesian perspective because we are very relational people from our language all the way to our love and care of the environment or elders and the young in our community. I think what your posts do for me is remind me none of us are operating in a vacuum and we don't need too. There will be a reader for our book and there will be a literary agent for it too it's just that we need to find them because they are looking for what we have written. I think this has been the best use of AI for me of late is to have Groc find some good fit agents for the manuscript I'm presently working on. Groc went all over the internet and found 2-3 super fits for me. It helped me move from a skatter gun approach within the books genre to a strategic focus and it taught me that I have an audience outside of where I was looking for representation.
Thank you Maree!
Hi Dan,
Do you know that teaser posts are not supported?
so we see the title of the links but Substack says they is not supported
Loved the pictures of the old typewriters. It took me back to my high school days (early 1970’s) when I took Typing l
and Typing ll because my mom insisted I was going to be a secretary. Now that I’m writing/typing my memoir, I’m thankful to my mother. Once the thoughts come to my mind, I can quickly cement them in to something tangible. But most importantly, when I make a mistake, now I don’t have to back it up, get out the white out paper, type over the error, remove the white out paper and try again. 🤣
Technology definitely has its advantages.
Indeed! Thanks Paula.
Art is work, and dedication, and persistence, and belief. A movie that takes two hours of a viewer's time is the labour of many years and multiple people. So is a novel that a reader devours in a weekend and can't forget. I have always loved 'how it was done' stories. They seem to put the world right - humans who are moved or provoked by something, determined to make something fine with it. Thanks for these wonderful examples, Dan.
Yes!!! Thank you Roz.
"Nobody cares" has helped me hit publish on sooooo many blog posts.
Yes! Thanks Dawn!
Jam packed with good stuff. Definitely a post to read more than once to absorb all the smart information. I especially like, "sharing with authenticity and connecting with others in meaningful ways." Very helpful for a project I'm working on that has gotten me into fits. Good opportunity to step back and re-evaluate how I'm thinking. And, oh my goodness, love the dungeon playing squirrels. And the boys. Always enjoy seeing what the boys are up to.
Thank you Marlene!
Thank you for this inspiration that lots of people care about human centered living--oh living is the code word, isn't it. For some AI is a fun toy and squirrels working is funny and we laugh, knowing it's silly, and knowing that we too can go to our computer and "create." AI does need prompts. The post and videos are deeply touching. Reading all those names who were involved in the dance and singing video was moving--all humans creating together. I used to play in symphonies and each rehearsal and concert shifted the cells of my body and mind, though I couldn't have named it then. I only know it was when I was happy in the context of a tough childhood. Music and feeling the vibrations and seeing the joy in the eyes of the violins and violas next to me took me to a realm where each person was valued and needed for the music to be real.
Oh, thank you Linda Joy!
Summer is for working with our stickers. Or our writing. Keeping things simple gets us back to feeling joy in what we like to do. A good post. Thank you!
Thanks Christine!