Ask the Author: Charles O'Donnell
Answered Questions (10)
Charles O'Donnell
The Girlfriend Experience is set in present day, so no ghosts from the past.
I hope you enjoy the book!
Charles
I hope you enjoy the book!
Charles
Charles O'Donnell
The Girlfriend Experience is my most popular, so that's a good place to start. Moment of Conception is the sequel, but it stands alone.
The Shredded series is a completely different genre, and should be read in sequence. If you like sci fi and dystopian fiction, Shredded might be your first read.
Enjoy!
Charles
The Shredded series is a completely different genre, and should be read in sequence. If you like sci fi and dystopian fiction, Shredded might be your first read.
Enjoy!
Charles
Charles O'Donnell
Hi Patti. I hope you're doing well.
I've kept up with my renewals, and I still have the same callsign I got back in 1968. Been a while!
Charles
I've kept up with my renewals, and I still have the same callsign I got back in 1968. Been a while!
Charles
Charles O'Donnell
This question has been the subject of speculation for decades. I remember reading Isaac Asimov's "I, Robot" as a teenager. Asimov of course invented the three laws of robotics: 1) A robot must not harm a human being, or, through inaction, allow a human being to come to harm; 2) A robot must obey the orders of human beings, except when doing so would conflict with the first law; and 3) A robot must protect itself, except when doing so would conflict with the first or second laws. You look at those and it's clear that in Asimov's view, robots are purely servants of humans, a mechanized slave race. In "I, Robot," these laws are embedded in the programming of every robot. Presumably, they also serve as the motivation for the robot race: service to mankind. In such a world, robots would never replace humans, except as surrogates for tasks that humans order them to do.
I don't think the future will be that tidy, assuming AI advances beyond human intelligence. There's no reason to believe that such an intelligence would not be sentient, since we humans are. So they would know that they're not human. There's no reason to believe that an artificial intellect the equal or superior to ours wouldn't have ambition, or need motivation and seek it from whatever source, whether it be humans or its own fulfillment. And there's no reason to believe that such intelligences would be any less subject to the defects that humans suffer from, whether it be envy, greed, vindictiveness, or any other unpleasant character trait that we try to avoid.
Except maybe there are reasons to believe that robots won't be sentient, or aspirational, or deviant, even if their intelligence outstrips ours. We suffer from millions of years of primate evolution, for which intelligence isn't an end in itself, but instead is a factor in reproductive success. If an artificial intelligence could be developed without that evolutionary history, might it have all the virtues of intellect with none of the faults?
Some scientists estimate that the singularity, the point at which artificial intelligence surpasses human intelligence, is only 30 years in the future. If so, we may get an answer to that question in our lifetime, or in the lifetime of our children. It may turn out to be amazing. Or it may be a good day to die.
I don't think the future will be that tidy, assuming AI advances beyond human intelligence. There's no reason to believe that such an intelligence would not be sentient, since we humans are. So they would know that they're not human. There's no reason to believe that an artificial intellect the equal or superior to ours wouldn't have ambition, or need motivation and seek it from whatever source, whether it be humans or its own fulfillment. And there's no reason to believe that such intelligences would be any less subject to the defects that humans suffer from, whether it be envy, greed, vindictiveness, or any other unpleasant character trait that we try to avoid.
Except maybe there are reasons to believe that robots won't be sentient, or aspirational, or deviant, even if their intelligence outstrips ours. We suffer from millions of years of primate evolution, for which intelligence isn't an end in itself, but instead is a factor in reproductive success. If an artificial intelligence could be developed without that evolutionary history, might it have all the virtues of intellect with none of the faults?
Some scientists estimate that the singularity, the point at which artificial intelligence surpasses human intelligence, is only 30 years in the future. If so, we may get an answer to that question in our lifetime, or in the lifetime of our children. It may turn out to be amazing. Or it may be a good day to die.
Charles O'Donnell
In the hour before dawn, the wolf moon hovering above the horizon, its light gilding tombstones in golden hues, their shadows stretching toward the brightening eastern sky, I stand beside her lifeless form, the red stain on her breast appearing black in the moonlight, the wound on her neck, two round punctures, still oozing, her arms and legs splayed crazily, unmoved from where they fell when she swooned at my bite. She is mine.
Charles O'Donnell
Oh boy, I have a long list! I'm focusing on the dystopian genre: I've just finished The Handmaid's Tale (and I'm loving the Hulu series based on Margaret Atwood's novel), Ernest Cline's Ready Player One, and I'm in the middle of Snow Crash by Neal Stephenson. Next is Dave Eggers's The Circle (I refuse to see the Tom Hanks movie based on this book until I've read it), followed by Neruomancer by William Gibson and We Are Legion (We Are Bob) by Dennis Taylor. Then I plan to get back to some more literary fare with Native Son by Richard Wright, To the Lighthouse by Virginia Woolf (I'm hoping it'll be easier to get through than Mrs. Dalloway, the longest short book I ever read), I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, by Maya Angelou, and Poe's Murders in the Rue Morgue. I love the summer!
Charles O'Donnell
Scott,
I've certainly heard of Joseph Wambaugh, but I haven't read any of his work. I'll put "The Black Marble" on my reading list (the list is quite long at the moment—I'm reading Conrad's "Lord Jim" presently—so it may be awhile before I can get to it). The three-way relationship among Matt, Gina, and Flora certainly is a key element of "The Girlfriend Experience," providing the underpinning for Matt's motivation to find a girlfriend and establish a home life.
Your observation about Matt possibly being on the Asperger's spectrum is interesting! I hadn't thought of that, but Matt's character would be consistent with those symptoms. It would also be consistent with his social awkwardness. I had hoped that Matt had gained some more social skills by the time "Moment of Conception" occurs. I think I have one more Matt Bugatti novel in me, a much more character-driven and introspective story, showing Matt later in life, his intellectual skills fading, trying to solve a mystery while battling his declining abilities. Your comments provide some great insight that I can use in that story.
Thanks for the question!
All the best,
Charles
I've certainly heard of Joseph Wambaugh, but I haven't read any of his work. I'll put "The Black Marble" on my reading list (the list is quite long at the moment—I'm reading Conrad's "Lord Jim" presently—so it may be awhile before I can get to it). The three-way relationship among Matt, Gina, and Flora certainly is a key element of "The Girlfriend Experience," providing the underpinning for Matt's motivation to find a girlfriend and establish a home life.
Your observation about Matt possibly being on the Asperger's spectrum is interesting! I hadn't thought of that, but Matt's character would be consistent with those symptoms. It would also be consistent with his social awkwardness. I had hoped that Matt had gained some more social skills by the time "Moment of Conception" occurs. I think I have one more Matt Bugatti novel in me, a much more character-driven and introspective story, showing Matt later in life, his intellectual skills fading, trying to solve a mystery while battling his declining abilities. Your comments provide some great insight that I can use in that story.
Thanks for the question!
All the best,
Charles
Charles O'Donnell
I had to think about this one, but I finally settled on Odd Thomas, the clairvoyant fry cook from Dean Koontz's book of the same name, and his quirky girlfriend, Stormy. Odd, with his power to commune with the dead, could be expected to have a tough time finding a mate who could relate, but the headstrong, fiercely independent, and spiritually aware Stormy seemed, if not a perfect match, a reasonable one. Odd's homage to Stormy sums up the nature of their relationship [spoiler alert]: "Stormy believed that we are in this boot camp to learn, that if we don't persevere through all this world's obstacles and all its wounds, we won't earn our next life of great adventure. To be with her again, I will have the perseverance of a bulldog, but it seems to me that the training is unnecessarily hard."
Charles O'Donnell
The sequel to "The Girlfriend Experience" is "Moment of Conception." The protagonist, Matt Bugatti, is a few years older and doing what he loves--teaching college math. When a national crisis arises, an epidemic of death among teen girls, Matt is tapped to lead a presidential commission to find the truth.
Charles O'Donnell
I don't worry about it. I get writer's block all the time, but it always clears up over time. It usually happens when the story line is stalled and I don't know where to take it next. I can think about something else (trust me, I have plenty to keep me busy!) knowing that the back of my mind is working on the story constantly. Eventually, the answer will come to me and I'll bang out a chapter or two in a matter of hours.
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