Live Performance in an AI World.
Three thousand years ago, The Odyssey was a live event. Composed in the oral tradition by a storyteller who might have been named Homer, it was delivered from memory to live audiences long before it was ever written down.
Likewise, the epic poem Beowulf existed exclusively as a spoken-word performance for centuries before being recorded on paper.
And today, as a deluge of AI slop threatens to flood what were once purely human endeavors, live storytelling remains a purely human undertaking.
In Your Write Mind
A few weeks back, I had the pleasure of reading at Seton Hill University’s In Your Write Mind Workshop. Hosted by writer Sally Bosco (author of the YA novel This May Not End Well), the retreat kicked off with a multi-author presentation in the Griffen Lounge that also featured fellow scops Venessa Giunta and Michael Brendan.
As much as possible, honoring the tradition established with The Odyssey and Beowulf, I prefer to read from memory. Likewise, when appropriate, I like to include a story that may not be readily available in print. And so my Griffen Lounge set included excerpts from my play Mr. Edgar A. Poe Presents.
Confluence SF Convention
This weekend, I’ll again be sharing those Poe monologues along with some short fiction and an excerpt from the novel Minute Men: Execute & Run at the Confluence Science Fiction Convention.
In addition, I’ll be taking part in panels on The Earlier History of Fantasy and Horror and the Craft of Plotting Stories.
The convention runs through the weekend at the Sheraton Pittsburgh Airport Hotel. You can find more details at the con website.
If you’re in the area, I’ll hope to see you there.
Leave a Reply