I am Neal Stephenson, sci-fi author, geek, and now, sword maker – AMA

https://old.reddit.com/r/books/comments/11h6hg5/i_am_neal_stephenson_scifi_author_geek_and_now/

by consumer451 • 3 years ago

209 68 3 years ago

old.reddit.com

I found this answer pretty interesting:

DavidGan1x
I seem to remember seeing the transcripts for the Baroque Cycle were all handwritten. Are you still handwriting your books and if so, what advantages do you think it has over using a computer?
NealStephenson
Mostly handwritten, yes. It's slower, and so each sentence spends longer in the buffer before it gets written out, so first draft quality is higher.

boomboomsubban2• 3 years ago

I find the combination of using emacs daily with handwriting his books bizarre. I'm sure it's that he separates the two activities, but it's funny to go "OK, I'm going to abandon the super optimized text editor I'm using to go write text for my job."

lelandfe• 3 years ago

People are funny. I have an awesome to-do tracking setup, with everything I need bound to global hotkeys.

Yet I still find myself reaching for my legal notepad to scrawl out rough ideas.

ploum2• 3 years ago

I’m myself a writer, geek and my hobby is developing free software. I do every text/blog post in Neovim, including emails with Neomutt. I do everything in console. Using the bépo layout (which is dvorak for French).

I write my books, my journal and my zettelkasten with an Azerty mechanical typewriter.

I think I do really understand his philosophy…

s1artibartfast6• 3 years ago

Interesting that you find it bizarre when he clearly states his rationale. The intention is to put mechanical constraints on throughput and make it take longer.

It seems like a matter of picking the right tool for the job.

consumer4512• 3 years ago

I understand what you are getting at, but I find it more inspiring than bizarre.

I am inspired by the fact that this man is able to use the correct tool for the particular job.

I am also inspired by the self-awareness required to make such a call.

enneff2• 3 years ago

From previous interviews I have seen him say his process for writing those books was to hand write them for the first draft and then transcribe them into emacs as part of the editing process. Seems pretty sensible to me; get the thoughts on the page without an easy way to fuss over the exact prose, and then labour over the exact structure and phrasing later.

kerpotgh• 3 years ago

I use a notepad to take notes. It offers degrees of freedom that nothing else can compare to including an iPad with a stylus. A text editor is extremely limiting.

cableshaft• 3 years ago

I wrote my game design journals by hand for a while. I didn't find the quality to be better necessarily, but it did allow for me to draw diagrams inline whenever I needed to so it was nice for that.

And I liked that I had a physical artifact afterwards, especially since the writing had a bit of visual personality while computer text does not.

But it takes forever to write by hand. I'd spend like 8+ hours a week just writing that journal, and I'd often have a cramped hand afterwards. Still did it that way for a couple years, though. And I still like referring to them from time to time.

nestorD• 3 years ago

I have heard Neil Gaiman say something similar. Writing by hand is slower and you end up having to type it which pushes you toward cutting things down and streamlining the prose.

foota• 3 years ago

Neal Stephenson must have exceptional handwriting endurance then.

lawlorino• 3 years ago

This is pretty interesting, I've noticed I find it easier to recall information if I've written it down by hand instead of typing it on a computer. I wonder if it's a similar mechanism to what Neil and Neal find with writing - it means the thing you want to express spends longer in the brain's buffer and this leads to several benefits at the cost of it being slower.

Probably goes without saying I might be talking out of my arse here but it's interesting to think about.

maroonblazer3• 3 years ago

I love Stephenson, but I think he's deluding himself. The "buffer" is the brain. The point of writing is to get it out of the brain. Otherwise, to quote Forster: "How do I know what I think, until I see what I say."

sink• 3 years ago

With all due respect, I think it's strange to critique something as deeply personal as a technique used in creative writing.

veidr• 3 years ago

Yeah, but for me (and I think most people, although I suspect there's a lot of diversity from person to person) what comes "out of the brain" is noticeably different when writing by hand.

Most of us can type a lot faster than we can write with a pencil. I doubt it is just the difference in speed (and I think Stephenson is simplifying here, not really saying that is the only difference), but that's part of it.

A sentence written by hand has often been drafted, considered, and revised before it actually makes it to the paper. Whereas for somebody who can type, the first sentence that hits the page is often literally the first draft of it, as originally thought.

(I still cannot imagine writing an entire novel this way myself, though...)

s1artibartfast6• 3 years ago

I think you are missing the point. Of course the buffer is the brain. the idea is to give the brain more time to process.

If you write a sentence per hour and a sentence per second, they will have different quality levels.

jakupovic• 3 years ago

Neal Stephenson is a product of handwritten school era. He Learned to think on paper. I am nowhere near but when I really need to learn something new or compose I reach for my notebook.

skybrian• 3 years ago

Contrary to the title of this Reddit, I don't personally make swords, because it's a specialized craft that requires much detailed knowledge of metallurgy! I have done a little hand forging of crude objects like coat hooks. I leave the actual sword making to pros.

https://old.reddit.com/r/books/comments/11h6hg5/i_am_neal_st...

krisoft4• 3 years ago

That's a bit sad. When I read the title my first reaction was: "He clearly loves swords. I'm happy for him that he found a way to try his hand making swords." But turns out the title lied.

Also I would say he is letting the "perfect" be his enemy. Nobody ever woke up being a master sword smith. Everyone who ever made a great swords made a bunch of crappy swords first, followed by some mediocre ones before they made a great one.

it's a specialized craft

Yes it is.

that requires much detailed knowledge of metallurgy

Being among the best sword makers, crafting the best swords? Maybe. Some amount of practical knowledge of metallurgy helps there. I wouldn't over estimate the required knowledge though. You are not growing monocrystaline turbine blades. You are not manufacturing subsafe valves for a deep submersible rescue vessel, or a nuclear attack submarine. You are making a sword.

But in general: Just try to do a thing! I have much more respect for a backyard sword smith who made a crappy sword which looks kinda bad and can't hold and edge, than for a sword snob who has thousand excuses why they can't do a thing.

susam• 3 years ago

From https://old.reddit.com/r/books/comments/11h6hg5/_/jasbgk0/

doolio_: Are you still using Emacs?
NealStephenson: YEs, every day

pxc• 3 years ago

Bummed he didn't answer what was his favorite Emacs package.

s1artibartfast6• 3 years ago

Interesting to see and read the questions and responses around blockchain technology.

He seems to provide a pretty balanced response and I have the best wishes for his crypto platform.

In my opinion it seems like a chain and Marketplace for digital rights management is one of the best fits for the technology.

divbzero• 3 years ago

The auction for the sword inspired by Snow Crash ends in three days. I’m surprised that the current bid for the sword ($55,000) [1] exceeds the current bid of for the original manuscript ($35,000) [2].

[1] https://www.sothebys.com/buy/0e467c5b-32fa-4c5f-a1c9-3590c40...

[2] https://www.sothebys.com/buy/0e467c5b-32fa-4c5f-a1c9-3590c40...

krisoft4• 3 years ago

I’m surprised that the current bid for the sword ($55,000) [1] exceeds the current bid of for the original manuscript ($35,000) [2].

Why are you surprised? I think about it like this: imagine you bought both and you are having a party. Folks come over, they have a good time, on one shelf they see a bunch of crumpled paper with pen scribles. They will most likely ignore that shelf because it looks like junk. On the other shelf they see a badass sword, clearly a piece of art. Much more likely that they compliment you on it. Much more likely that they will remember it, much more likely that they ask you for the story of it.

I love the book, but I’m absolutely not surprised that a cool looking unique object fetches more money than one which looks like junk.

zamnos• 3 years ago

I mean, after spending $35k, you don't just throw it on a shelf (or maybe you do - I don't have that kind of money), you'd set it on a pedestal in a darkened room so the spotlights make it pop.

nl• 3 years ago

No way!

The only thing interesting about this sword is who made it. And the person who made it is known as an author.

Plenty of actually interesting swords cost less than $55k and some have real stories and history.

celestialcheese2• 3 years ago

Was this made for the shelved HBO series?

bobby_bbb• 3 years ago

Fun! Whenever someone asks me which book of his I like best, the answer always seems to be, whichever one I just re-read last. (Well, except for Dodo.)

themadturk• 3 years ago

Thank heavens...I was afraid I was the only one who hated Dodo.

More than any author I love, my history with Stephenson is mixed. Couldn't get past the first chapter of Anathem (though I plan to try again this year). Have tried twice to get through the first book of the Baroque Cycle (it's just a slog...a slog full of great writing, but a slog anyway). Those are huge pieces of Stephenson that are just blanks for me. I didn't finish Dodo, either (a minor piece). But the rest? Gems.

JohnFen2• 3 years ago

You aren't alone -- that pretty much parallels my own opinions.

Not to take anything away from his masterpieces such as Snow Crash and The Diamond Age, which I adore beyond measure, but my favorite book is still The Big U. It's simpler than his later works, and he was still learning his craft when he wrote it, but it brings me such undiluted joy that none of that matters.

erikw• 3 years ago

Anathem and The Baroque Cycle both took me two tries as well. The second half of Anathem is an action-adventure book mix of Zodiac and Seveneves, so it gets really engaging. The Baroque Cycle eventually sucked me in because I felt like I really got to know the characters, but it never gets fast-paced.

lproven2• 3 years ago

Thank heavens...I was afraid I was the only one who hated Dodo.

Couldn't finish it.

I've read everything else he's written and between liked it and _loved_ it... including the nonfiction. Only RAFOD was unfinishable, and _Fall ODIH_ I finished but didn't find worth it.

slothtrop• 3 years ago

Thanks for pointing this out, I would have missed it. Favorite living author of mine. One answer I was looking for: his next work's going to be historical fiction. Well I'll take it.

robswc4• 3 years ago

Perfect, I can finally ask him what _really_ happens at the end of his books! /s But really, I did wish Cryptonomicon and Snow Crash had a bit more of an epilogue. I know it may not be needed but it would be more satisfying.

enneff2• 3 years ago

REAMDE had a neat and clean concluding chapter and imo it actually made the book worse for it. So be careful what you wish for.

robswc4• 3 years ago

I could see that. I wouldn't think of it being his strongest suit lol

muro• 3 years ago

I found the ending ok, but the journey there felt too long. I did like the story, just too much detail sometimes.

celestialcheese2• 3 years ago

Most of the critique I hear Stephenson get is that he writes an incredible 400 page book in 800 pages.

I agree with you, though. His world building and stories pull me in unlike almost any other author - the more the better IMO.

robswc4• 3 years ago

Most of the critique I hear Stephenson get is that he writes an incredible 400 page book in 800 pages.

LOL, if that's not the truth!

I'm a sucker for expansive world building, lore and details, so it actually works for me but I can 100% agree with the critique.

lostmsu• 3 years ago

ChatGPT-based tool to make books shorter.

MrVandemar• 3 years ago

I recently re-read Cryptonomicon and I understood, finally, why the ending was so abrupt.

The scene was not a scene from a book, but a scene from a movie.

The whole river-of-gold thing is a striking visual, and doesn't work that well as the end of a book because in a book we just don't care about visuals, we care about characters.

In a film, it's where the titles should start scrolling up and followed by a slow fade to black. Finishing a film on a striking image, that works. A book: not so much.

I still deeply love that book, and remember fondly buying it at a train-station at about 5.30pm and then suddenly it was 5AM I was at home, and I finished the book.

robswc4• 3 years ago

Oh, really nice takeaway! That does make a lot of sense, I'll have to re-read it.

I just remember getting very close to the end and thinking I had some copy with tons of missing pages or something because there was no way to have some conclusion with the remaining pages haha.

With this in mind, it will probably make much more sense.

paulpauper• 3 years ago

"Can you summarize all your books please in 2-3 sentences?"

I find writing by hand helps too in terms of finding ideas in ways that being at the computer does not.

thot_experiment• 3 years ago

It was my turn this month and I had my book club read Diamond Age. While I absolutely love the book and think it's god damn prescient, it's been the most contentious book that we've read so far. This man does not know how to write a satisfying ending. I still absolutely love his work though, despite the extremely lackluster and rushed ways he wraps things up in his books.

gizajob• 3 years ago

Yeah the Diamond Age is profoundly brilliant for about 2/3rds, but the last act just gets too weird for its own good and doesn't really resolve. Still fantastic to be in that world though.

stuaxo• 3 years ago

The first chapter is very different to the rest of the book. I hated the first chapter so much it took me about 5 tries to get through it, but then I really enjoyed the rest of the book.

I am Neal Stephenson, sci-fi author, geek, and now, sword maker – AMA

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