An open correspondence
Between one book and the next.
Some ideas have yet to find their book. Questions surface while I write. Scenes begin to take shape. My notes come together here, so you can read the latest and return to earlier entries.
Author’s noteArtificial intelligence, parenting, and family connection ·
One day, your child has a question about the body, love, or death and no longer comes to you. We are not losing our children to machines; quietly, we are losing our place as the people they turn to.
Author’s noteArtificial intelligence, expressive writing, and intimacy ·
At two in the morning, millions of people tell an artificial intelligence what they have told no one else. It can become a journal that asks questions or an elegant way to avoid the work of understanding ourselves.
Author’s noteMemory, generations, and artificial intelligence ·
We remember what it felt like to wait for an answer, get lost, or be bored without a screen at hand. Passing that on can give those who come after us something more useful than nostalgia: a point of comparison from which to choose.
Author’s noteArtificial intelligence, companionship, and care ·
A voice on the bedside table can make a night feel less lonely. As I work on Coco, I keep wondering what we do with the time and peace of mind that companionship gives us back.
Author’s noteArtificial intelligence, preventive medicine, and human care ·
For nearly two years, artificial intelligence has accompanied the first pass at understanding my health. What I have learned does not make me imagine medicine without doctors, but medicine in which we arrive better prepared to meet them.
Author’s noteArtificial intelligence, attention, and freedom ·
As we can delegate more to artificial intelligence, deciding what to keep doing ourselves becomes a personal question. And the prospect of human attention becoming a luxury should concern us.
Author’s noteArtificial intelligence, representation, and responsibility ·
The idea of an artificial intelligence representing us raises a question about trust, decisions, and what we expect from politics.
Author’s noteSelf-sabotage, decisions, and change ·
A walk postponed because of the rain in Miami leads to a question about the relationships, jobs, and projects we put on hold while waiting for the perfect moment.
Author’s noteMentors, projects, and first steps ·
Sometimes someone sees a possibility while we are still taking stock of our limitations. A reflection on the people who help us find the courage to begin.
Author’s noteExperience, memory, and change ·
How do we return to a familiar life after discovering that we could live differently? A reflection prompted by Cinderella.
A note before we begin
By the time a book reaches your hands, many decisions have already been made. Before that comes a less visible stretch of time: reading, doubt, a persistent sentence, a question that sends you back to the beginning.
I want to share some of that time. These notes will bring together thoughts on artificial intelligence and being human, glimpses of my writing process, and previews of upcoming books.
I will write when I have something worth sharing. Sometimes it will be a short reflection; sometimes, a passage from a work in progress. A way to keep the conversation going between one book and the next.
Christian Ruggeri