We wanted to work collaboratively as a group to generate a mash-up style novel around the theme 'being human'. Each of the 5 authors selected one or more texts from Project Gutenberg which they personally felt conveyed some aspect of what it means to be human. These selected texts were then used as input to generate several novel versions. Of the versions generated, Tkacz chose the top 3 with the most interesting first and second paragraphs and presented them to the group for judgement. The 2 collaborators then joined the authors in reviewing and discussing the 3 versions, and all voted to select the one which was submitted as the NaNoGenMo 2020 submission.
The text of the submitted generated novel contains the names of characters which originate from the different input texts, and it reads as if characters are wandering through other works:
‘I saw them distinctly now as soon as it is the instinctive belief in a court of law. I should cut a few minutes in assisting a venerable Italian priest, who was so fantastic and incredible, the telling so credible and sober. After all, they were an altogether new relationship. Holmes edged his way without his eyes, For out o’ the air. “I got them from gout and rheumatism, and old age, and now my passion of fear struck me that a good Scarecrow after all; but the rest of us quite knew how to express Time, I pointed out the dead body of another mountainous wave and Jack had his first condition, which would prove such a masterly report For art and to this queer bridge when a ghost proved troublesome, opened the door of the other; but, as hardly anything for its preservation. That he might do to calm his rage!’ (p. 91).
The code is written in Python and uses Markovify to generate the output text.
Input Texts
Hooper chose Shakespeare’s Hamlet not only because of how it represents humanity, but because it can also represent experiences felt in the year 2020, such as the frustration of being stuck in one place. Hooper’s choice of text also alludes to Murray’s Hamlet on the Holodeck: The Future of Narrative in Cyberspace.
Described as a ‘meaty’ but readable text, Dunn selected Rousseau’s Second Discourse or, Discourse on the Origin and Basis of Inequality Among Men because it reflects on the bitter side of humanity and the bad aspects of society. Dunn also chose Doyle’s “The Final Problem” as an example of social bitterness and personal unrest; much to the dismay of fans Doyle does away with the responsibility to keep writing about his character Sherlock Holmes, by banishing him off the ledge of a waterfall.
Boucek’s intention was to collect texts which would show humanity through the good, the bad, and the ugly. Boucek chose texts by incorporating spontaneity and serendipity into the selection process: family members were asked to name a word which was then used as a search term in Project Gutenberg. The most obscure text (with the least downloads) in the search results was then chosen, and passages which were judged to convey emotion and humanity were used as input data. The texts are Baring-Gould’s Curiosities of Olden Times and Grettir the Outlaw: A Story of Iceland, Farrar’s Darkness and Dawn; Or, Scenes in the Days of Nero. An Historic Tale, Goldfrap’s The Ocean Wireless Boys and the Lost Liner, Nosek’s Independent Bohemia, Lady Wilde’s Ancient Legends, Mystic Charms & Superstitions of Ireland, and finally Wilson’s “New Year’s Wake: A Terran Empire Story”.
Suzuki-Bosco selected Baum’s The Wonderful Wizard of Oz because it's the original source of the ‘man behind the curtain’ concept in AI. The concept refers to a machine or robot which appears to be acting autonomously and intelligently, when in fact it is being controlled and directed by an unseen person.
Tkacz chose H. G. Wells’ The Time Machine because it imagines humanity in different states of evolutionary regression rather than continuous advancement.
Tweaks and Edits
Because the first versions of the generated output heavily featured text from The Wizard of Oz and seemed to overshadow the other input texts, half of the Oz text was cut in order to also generate some outputs which seemed to have more thematic variation.
The second half of the title of the submitted generated novel is taken from a different version of generated text.
The raw generated texts contained several underscores which were found to originate from the stage instructions in Hamlet. These were removed because they interfered with formatting in Latex.
Quotes
‘“Even this artistic impetus would at last and started to get some brains. Again and again sat down. They were greatly pleased to leave them there to lose the desire. Most honourable, magnificent and sovereign lords, I am, if like a whore, unpack my heart is beating yet.”’ (p. 3).
‘What devil was’t That thus hath put him to acquire. On the contrary, I should have sought out for my own part, I was still moving and living. “Some sleight-of-hand trick or other,” said the Tin Woodman, and when they mellow be’ (p. 3).
‘The people greeted Dorothy kindly, and invited her to answer; so Dorothy went to the State, which are now mere dreams had become necessary, and, admitting their necessity, let us return to France, From whence though will-ingly I came back again, Stood challenger on mount of all that lives must die’ (p. 57)
‘Toto did not require the joint labour of others, equivalent, in their way. Dorothy listened to this purpose would have cast herself into it had gone I thought I could not have
arisen much more easily than among those jurists; who seem to have the
honour of shedding human blood.’ (p. 92).
‘There were other signs of her two feet, still sticking out from under a large
estuary, or even in a gross and imperfect state, incompatible with any sort of
Burial’ (p. 92).
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Introduction
We wanted to work collaboratively as a group to generate a mash-up style novel around the theme 'being human'. Each of the 5 authors selected one or more texts from Project Gutenberg which they personally felt conveyed some aspect of what it means to be human. These selected texts were then used as input to generate several novel versions. Of the versions generated, Tkacz chose the top 3 with the most interesting first and second paragraphs and presented them to the group for judgement. The 2 collaborators then joined the authors in reviewing and discussing the 3 versions, and all voted to select the one which was submitted as the NaNoGenMo 2020 submission.
The text of the submitted generated novel contains the names of characters which originate from the different input texts, and it reads as if characters are wandering through other works: ‘I saw them distinctly now as soon as it is the instinctive belief in a court of law. I should cut a few minutes in assisting a venerable Italian priest, who was so fantastic and incredible, the telling so credible and sober. After all, they were an altogether new relationship. Holmes edged his way without his eyes, For out o’ the air. “I got them from gout and rheumatism, and old age, and now my passion of fear struck me that a good Scarecrow after all; but the rest of us quite knew how to express Time, I pointed out the dead body of another mountainous wave and Jack had his first condition, which would prove such a masterly report For art and to this queer bridge when a ghost proved troublesome, opened the door of the other; but, as hardly anything for its preservation. That he might do to calm his rage!’ (p. 91).
The code is written in Python and uses Markovify to generate the output text.
Input Texts
Hooper chose Shakespeare’s Hamlet not only because of how it represents humanity, but because it can also represent experiences felt in the year 2020, such as the frustration of being stuck in one place. Hooper’s choice of text also alludes to Murray’s Hamlet on the Holodeck: The Future of Narrative in Cyberspace.
Described as a ‘meaty’ but readable text, Dunn selected Rousseau’s Second Discourse or, Discourse on the Origin and Basis of Inequality Among Men because it reflects on the bitter side of humanity and the bad aspects of society. Dunn also chose Doyle’s “The Final Problem” as an example of social bitterness and personal unrest; much to the dismay of fans Doyle does away with the responsibility to keep writing about his character Sherlock Holmes, by banishing him off the ledge of a waterfall.
Boucek’s intention was to collect texts which would show humanity through the good, the bad, and the ugly. Boucek chose texts by incorporating spontaneity and serendipity into the selection process: family members were asked to name a word which was then used as a search term in Project Gutenberg. The most obscure text (with the least downloads) in the search results was then chosen, and passages which were judged to convey emotion and humanity were used as input data. The texts are Baring-Gould’s Curiosities of Olden Times and Grettir the Outlaw: A Story of Iceland, Farrar’s Darkness and Dawn; Or, Scenes in the Days of Nero. An Historic Tale, Goldfrap’s The Ocean Wireless Boys and the Lost Liner, Nosek’s Independent Bohemia, Lady Wilde’s Ancient Legends, Mystic Charms & Superstitions of Ireland, and finally Wilson’s “New Year’s Wake: A Terran Empire Story”.
Suzuki-Bosco selected Baum’s The Wonderful Wizard of Oz because it's the original source of the ‘man behind the curtain’ concept in AI. The concept refers to a machine or robot which appears to be acting autonomously and intelligently, when in fact it is being controlled and directed by an unseen person.
Tkacz chose H. G. Wells’ The Time Machine because it imagines humanity in different states of evolutionary regression rather than continuous advancement.
Tweaks and Edits
Because the first versions of the generated output heavily featured text from The Wizard of Oz and seemed to overshadow the other input texts, half of the Oz text was cut in order to also generate some outputs which seemed to have more thematic variation.
The second half of the title of the submitted generated novel is taken from a different version of generated text.
The raw generated texts contained several underscores which were found to originate from the stage instructions in Hamlet. These were removed because they interfered with formatting in Latex.
Quotes
‘“Even this artistic impetus would at last and started to get some brains. Again and again sat down. They were greatly pleased to leave them there to lose the desire. Most honourable, magnificent and sovereign lords, I am, if like a whore, unpack my heart is beating yet.”’ (p. 3).
‘What devil was’t That thus hath put him to acquire. On the contrary, I should have sought out for my own part, I was still moving and living. “Some sleight-of-hand trick or other,” said the Tin Woodman, and when they mellow be’ (p. 3).
‘The people greeted Dorothy kindly, and invited her to answer; so Dorothy went to the State, which are now mere dreams had become necessary, and, admitting their necessity, let us return to France, From whence though will-ingly I came back again, Stood challenger on mount of all that lives must die’ (p. 57)
‘Toto did not require the joint labour of others, equivalent, in their way. Dorothy listened to this purpose would have cast herself into it had gone I thought I could not have arisen much more easily than among those jurists; who seem to have the honour of shedding human blood.’ (p. 92).
‘There were other signs of her two feet, still sticking out from under a large estuary, or even in a gross and imperfect state, incompatible with any sort of Burial’ (p. 92).