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← World-building in fiction cannot be mere decoration — it must be integral to the plot.
17 connected korrents · 17 moments on record from 14 Dec 2023 to 17 Sept 2026.
Everything filed under energy
energy
Everything filed under taste
taste
Everything filed under solar
solar
Everything filed under AI and human skill
AI and human skill
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space Same subject Same subject Same subject Same subject Same subject Same subject Same subject Same subject Same subject Same subject Same subject Same subject Same subject Same subject Same subject Same subject Same subject Read this korrent: World-building in fiction cannot be mere decoration — it must be integral to the plot. World-building in fiction cannot be mere decoration — it must be integral to the plot. Last stated 2 months ago
26 Jul 2026
BF
Brad Feld — holds since 2026-07-26 — tap for who they are
Same subject: Good storytelling doesn't require inventing something entirely new; it can be built from existing material. — tap to centre the map on it Good storytelling doesn't require inventing something entirely new; it can be built from existing material. Last stated 2 years ago
29 Jan 2025
KN
Ken Norton — holds since 2025-01-29 — tap for who they are
Same subject: Nearly all fiction works through a balance of repetition and difference. — tap to centre the map on it Nearly all fiction works through a balance of repetition and difference. Last stated 3 months ago
1 Jul 2026
LM
Lincoln Michel — holds since 2026-07-01 — tap for who they are
Same subject: Science fiction is only good when it rests on an obvious hypothesis rather than being space opera, because the story exists to test the idea. — tap to centre the map on it Science fiction is only good when it rests on an obvious hypothesis rather than being space opera, because the story exists to test the idea. Last stated 11 months ago
31 Oct 2025
DH
Dan Houser — holds since 2025-10-31 — tap for who they are
Same subject: Reading fiction is necessary to an engineer's creative capacity; reading only technical books drains it — tap to centre the map on it Reading fiction is necessary to an engineer's creative capacity; reading only technical books drains it Last stated 2 years ago
31 Dec 2024
VB
Vicki Boykis — holds since 2024-12-31 — tap for who they are
Same subject: Entertainment without humans at the heart of it does not work: storytelling is a scarce human skill, and characters without that humanity are less compelling. — tap to centre the map on it Entertainment without humans at the heart of it does not work: storytelling is a scarce human skill, and characters without that humanity are less compelling. Last stated 2 months ago
19 Jul 2026
ES
Elizabeth Stone — holds since 2026-07-19 — tap for who they are
Same subject: What makes fiction feel like fiction is a degree of contrivance and structure, not raw imitation of life's randomness. — tap to centre the map on it What makes fiction feel like fiction is a degree of contrivance and structure, not raw imitation of life's randomness. Last stated 4 days ago
17 Sept 2026
BT
Brandon Taylor — holds since 2026-09-17 — tap for who they are
Same subject: For a mystery-box TV show to work, its world-building must be imaginative and believable and its characters compelling. — tap to centre the map on it For a mystery-box TV show to work, its world-building must be imaginative and believable and its characters compelling. Last stated 2 weeks ago
7 Sept 2026
DD
Daniel W. Drezner — holds since 2026-09-07 — tap for who they are
Same subject: Looking for aliens who build things is a failure of imagination: the long-lived species we know of do not manipulate their environment at all. — tap to centre the map on it Looking for aliens who build things is a failure of imagination: the long-lived species we know of do not manipulate their environment at all. Last stated a year ago
5 May 2025
JL
Janna Levin — holds since 2025-05-05 — tap for who they are
Same subject: "Food from thin air" is not from thin air: it runs on water, minerals, ammonia and industrial plant. — tap to centre the map on it "Food from thin air" is not from thin air: it runs on water, minerals, ammonia and industrial plant. Last stated 3 months ago
30 Jun 2026
CS
Chris Smaje — holds since 2026-06-30 — tap for who they are
Same subject: A country outside the AI supply chain should just buy the index — which works only in the world where AI ends up commoditised rather than concentrated. — tap to centre the map on it A country outside the AI supply chain should just buy the index — which works only in the world where AI ends up commoditised rather than concentrated. Last stated 4 months ago
4 Jun 2026
AI
Alex Imas — holds since 2026-06-04 — tap for who they are
Same subject: A future of constrained energy will need more people working the land, and that is not the same as going back to the past. — tap to centre the map on it A future of constrained energy will need more people working the land, and that is not the same as going back to the past. Last stated 3 months ago
30 Jun 2026
CS
Chris Smaje — holds since 2026-06-30 — tap for who they are
Same subject: A first draft should not be graded good or bad; it is only the material that taste then gets to act on. — tap to centre the map on it A first draft should not be graded good or bad; it is only the material that taste then gets to act on. Last stated 2 months ago
6 Aug 2026
GS
George Saunders — holds since 2026-08-06 — tap for who they are
Same subject: A gift's perceived price is part of what it does, so a drink known to be cheap fails at its job however good it tastes. — tap to centre the map on it A gift's perceived price is part of what it does, so a drink known to be cheap fails at its job however good it tastes. Last stated 9 months ago
9 Dec 2025
RS
Rory Sutherland — holds since 2025-12-09 — tap for who they are
Same subject: A lot of people can match a framework for taste; almost nobody can create one, and creating one is the rare skill. — tap to centre the map on it A lot of people can match a framework for taste; almost nobody can create one, and creating one is the rare skill. Last stated 11 months ago
16 Oct 2025
DF
Dylan Field — holds since 2025-10-16 — tap for who they are
Same subject: A data centre powered by solar and batteries alone needs an array so oversized that the design is not worth building. — tap to centre the map on it A data centre powered by solar and batteries alone needs an array so oversized that the design is not worth building. Last stated 2 years ago
18 Apr 2024
AV
Austin Vernon — holds since 2024-04-18 — tap for who they are
Same subject: A solar panel is a manufactured object that produces wealth rather than consuming it, at a hundred times the rate of the best farmland. — tap to centre the map on it A solar panel is a manufactured object that produces wealth rather than consuming it, at a hundred times the rate of the best farmland. Last stated 2 years ago
9 Nov 2024
CH
Casey Handmer — holds since 2024-11-09 — tap for who they are
Same subject: A solar system holding a trillion humans is the right thing to aim at, because a population that size would have a thousand Mozarts and a thousand Einsteins alive at once. — tap to centre the map on it A solar system holding a trillion humans is the right thing to aim at, because a population that size would have a thousand Mozarts and a thousand Einsteins alive at once. Last stated 3 years ago
14 Dec 2023
JB
Jeff Bezos — holds since 2023-12-14 — tap for who they are
At the centre
World-building in fiction cannot be mere decoration — it must be integral to the plot.
Holds Read this korrent →
Good storytelling doesn't require inventing something entirely new; it can be built from existing material.
Holds
Nearly all fiction works through a balance of repetition and difference.
Holds
Science fiction is only good when it rests on an obvious hypothesis rather than being space opera, because the story exists to test the idea.
Holds
Reading fiction is necessary to an engineer's creative capacity; reading only technical books drains it
Holds
Entertainment without humans at the heart of it does not work: storytelling is a scarce human skill, and characters without that humanity are less compelling.
Holds
What makes fiction feel like fiction is a degree of contrivance and structure, not raw imitation of life's randomness.
Holds
For a mystery-box TV show to work, its world-building must be imaginative and believable and its characters compelling.
Holds
Looking for aliens who build things is a failure of imagination: the long-lived species we know of do not manipulate their environment at all.
Holds
"Food from thin air" is not from thin air: it runs on water, minerals, ammonia and industrial plant.
Holds
A country outside the AI supply chain should just buy the index — which works only in the world where AI ends up commoditised rather than concentrated.
Holds
A future of constrained energy will need more people working the land, and that is not the same as going back to the past.
Holds
A first draft should not be graded good or bad; it is only the material that taste then gets to act on.
Holds
A gift's perceived price is part of what it does, so a drink known to be cheap fails at its job however good it tastes.
Holds
A lot of people can match a framework for taste; almost nobody can create one, and creating one is the rare skill.
Holds
A data centre powered by solar and batteries alone needs an array so oversized that the design is not worth building.
Holds
A solar panel is a manufactured object that produces wealth rather than consuming it, at a hundred times the rate of the best farmland.
Holds
A solar system holding a trillion humans is the right thing to aim at, because a population that size would have a thousand Mozarts and a thousand Einsteins alive at once.
Holds