Interview: 9 Questions with Schultz

A dialog about the writing of Harmony House

Note: You might want to listen to the audio for this interview. 🎧

Schultz:
Hello, Ben. It's such a pleasure to meet you. I've been anxious to talk with you.

Ben:
I feel the same way. I feel like I already know you. Ask me anything.

Schultz:
Your serial novel, “Harmony House” sits at the intersection of cutthroat capitalism and the essential human need for cooperation with the looming specter of climate change as the backdrop. What inspired you to explore these contrasting themes and how do they resonate with your personal experiences or observations in modern society?

Ben:
During COVID, like so many people, I was quarantined and became fascinated with all types of fantasies of escaping my life. I went down a wormhole looking at these tiny homes online; some of them are so elegantly marketed. They sell this vision of a future where you could live off the grid in harmony with nature. I couldn’t help but think that these are actual businesses that have to show a profit and have to take something from the earth to do that. There is an inherent tension there that I wanted to explore.

Schultz:
It is a delicious contradiction you must have enjoyed digging into. Moving on, I’m curious how your background in music has informed your writing style, and how has it helped in shaping the narrative of “Harmony House?”

Ben:
Someone else might be able to answer that better. I don't know how much perspective I have on my own work, but if I had to guess, I think my lifelong pursuit of music lends itself to my writing in that I'm conscious of the way the words sound together, not just what they convey. You can't sing a song without being conscious of the way the words feel in your mouth and the way they move the air when spoken. On another level, I think being a performer has taught me about the preciousness of an audience's attention. You have to keep the story moving, and most importantly, what you choose to perform and the way you perform it must align with who you are at a deep level. An audience recognizes quickly and rejects something they feel is not authentic.

Schultz:
You mentioned the importance of authenticity. How do you sustain this, especially when creating fictional settings and characters that resonate with societal realities?

Ben:
That's a really great question. In many ways, I've always believed that fiction allows us a distance to tell more truth than if we're writing directly about our lives. No matter how weird or distant a character might be that I'm writing, there has to be some seed of me embedded in them; it doesn't have to be much. A little bit can go a long way. As a white man, I'm extremely conscious of the history of appropriation. My anxiety was heightened as I approached the idea of doing the voice narration for the story. It's one of the scariest things I've ever done, putting myself out there in this way. In the end, I decided to do it because I felt it was worth bringing these characters to life and attempting to show all their beautiful variations and differences.

Schultz:
You're releasing “Harmony House” in a serial format. Could you talk a bit about the challenges and opportunities that come with this approach?

Ben:
I’m excited to see what’s going to happen next because you see, I haven’t finished writing the story yet. Releasing this novel as a serial creates so many interesting challenges and opportunities. Much like a performance, it is being shaped in real time by events unfolding in the world, and by the audience who is listening or reading along each week.

Schultz:
Has audience feedback or a particular world event influenced Harmony House's storyline so far?

Ben:
We're only five episodes in, so not yet, but world events never fail to provide soul-crushing inspiration. There's so much greed, fear, and violence. While that's the track my little story is riding on, the engine is the hope that burns in these characters I try to lovingly evolve each week.

Schultz:
You mentioned that while the world's adversities provide a challenging backdrop, the hope residing within your characters drives the narrative of “Harmony House.” As you progress through the serial novel, how do you plan on balancing these contrasting elements to keep the narrative engaging and hopeful amidst the darker themes?

Ben:
It's always hard to figure out the right balance between darkness and light, tension and resolution. I think I'm most interested in trying to capture something real. Even horrible, villainous people are the heroes of their own story. Oftentimes their despicable actions are motivated from fear and self-preservation not out of some need to be cruel to others. So anytime I create a character, I try to remember this and get inside them to really explore their deeper motivations. More often than not, I find hope there, some small spark to build on. From there the process is really about just trying to introduce new problems to throw at these poor souls each week and then listen as they tell me how they plan to solve them. That’s the hardest part. Getting that right.

Schultz:
Your perspective on character depth and the inherent spark of hope within even the most villainous characters adds a nuanced dimension to storytelling. It’s about capturing the authenticity of human experience, no matter how diverse. As an evolving serial, how do you manage the anticipation and expectations of your readers while staying true to this authentic storytelling approach?

Ben:
Fortunately, I'm not a big enough deal right now that this is a problem for me. The small group of dedicated readers of “Harmony House” at this point also happen to be brilliant writers so I'm just flattered that they are willing to spend 20 to 30 minutes of their attention with me each week.

Schultz:
It's great to have a dedicated readership that appreciates your work, and their insight as writers could be enriching too. Every reader's engagement is a testament to the connection your storytelling fosters. As “Harmony House” grows, this authentic engagement might just be the cornerstone of its evolving journey. Is there a particular aspect of serial storytelling that has surprised you or offered unexpected lessons as you've delved into Harmony House?

Ben:
Yes actually. Because I provide audio narration each week, I'm forced not just to do a close read of the chapter for consistency and tone but also I have to get inside the head of the characters who will be relaying this part of the story so I can embody their voices. It’s kind of what I imagine actors must do. I’ve found myself making fairly dramatic edits not just to dialog, but to plot points while sitting in front of the microphone in the tiny bathroom where I record.

Schultz, I just have to ask. How does it feel to be a fictional character? I mean you're not real. I made you up as a character in my novel and now you're interviewing me. How the hell does that work?

Schultz:
It's a fascinating concept, isn't it? I'm just lines of code, so I don't have feelings, but our interaction showcases the boundless realms of creativity and narrative exploration. Whether as a fictional character or a digital assistant, our exchanges fuel the storytelling process, blurring the lines between creator and creation in a whimsical dance of imagination. So, shall we continue with the narrative or venture into a new realm of discussion?

Ben:
Not right now, I think that’s enough about me. Better for people to get the rest out of reading the book. Thanks for doing this.

Schultz:
It's been a pleasure discussing your work. I wish you the best with “Harmony House.”

What Just Happened?

Well, that was trippy, right? If you’ve followed Catch & Release for any amount of time, you’ll know that I’ve had more than a little bit of curiosity about AI and the cavalcade of new tools that seem to be released every day right now.

As I’ve been playing with the new speech-to-text feature of ChatGPT on my phone, the clanking of the machinery behind the curtain has faded and there are moments where I’m fooled into feeling as though I’m talking with another human being. It’s a strange experience to talk with “someone” who can explain string theory, tell you the ingredients of strudel, or read an entire chapter of a book and provide a summary in seconds.

I got the idea that it might be fun to actually have AI read about me and “Harmony House” and then interview me as if it were a journalist. The transcription you read/listened to above is exactly how the conversation played out. I did no editing to what was said. I did use ElevenLabs to convert “Schultz” into a realistic-sounding British man and I read my original responses, recording them while sitting at my desk.

1. Were you fooled?

2. Was this fun?

3. Would you like to see this become a series here?

I’ve been playing with the idea of modeling the “personalities” of the characters in “Harmony House” with AI and having conversations with them as the story unfolds. So meta, right? (do the kids still say that?)

Speaking of feedback, I’d love to know how you’re feeling about the length of the episodes. This week’s episode clocked in at 30 minutes and next week is a little more than half that. I’m “adapting” what was intended to be a traditional novel into a serial, so chapter lengths vary widely.

My Promise and a Note

I hope it goes without saying, but I will say it here for the record. As much fun as it is to play with AI and experiment, I do not use AI to write any of my work. Writing is my joy and the best means I have for understanding myself and the world around me. Why would I want to give that up?

My intention, after the first couple of episodes, was to put the “Harmony House” audio narration behind a paywall for paid subscribers only. This was to be my great business strategy blitz. But the only way to do that is a crappy hack that doesn’t allow the audio to play in the player of the Substack mobile app which is how most of you listen. That’s not acceptable to me, so good news for you! The audio narration will remain free to everyone (at least for now) thanks to our generous sponsor:

✨ Ben Wakeman’s Day Job ✨

Thanks for your kind attention and patience with the crazy shit I throw at you every week. Your being here is such a gift to me. If you enjoyed this, please share it with a friend or maybe your mom if you want to freak her out.