Ask the Author: Ben Athem
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(view spoiler)[Also, Leth notices so many small things about Earth before he really understands why they matter. Was there one human habit or ordinary moment you always knew would be the first thing to make him question staying detached? (hide spoiler)]
Ben Athem
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(view spoiler)[For me, it was never going to be one dramatic declaration. It was Finn’s habit of making room for people without demanding that they earn it first.
Finn explains things without making Leth feel foolish, notices when he is uncomfortable, and offers companionship without requiring an immediate answer. Leth has spent centuries recording human behaviour, but those small acts of uncomplicated kindness are difficult for him to reduce to data. The moment Finn begins sharing the world with him rather than merely existing inside it is when Leth’s detachment starts to become impossible. (hide spoiler)]
Finn explains things without making Leth feel foolish, notices when he is uncomfortable, and offers companionship without requiring an immediate answer. Leth has spent centuries recording human behaviour, but those small acts of uncomplicated kindness are difficult for him to reduce to data. The moment Finn begins sharing the world with him rather than merely existing inside it is when Leth’s detachment starts to become impossible. (hide spoiler)]
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(view spoiler)[Leth’s field notes gradually becoming more personal was one of my favorite parts of the book. Did you always know his emotional change would be shown through the notes, or did that develop while you were writing? (hide spoiler)]
Ben Athem
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(view spoiler)[Hi Elliot :)
Basically yes, Leth trusts observation more than emotion, so the notes allowed him to confess things before he was capable of recognizing them as confessions. At first he believes he is documenting Finn objectively, but gradually the details he chooses to preserve reveal that Finn has become more important to him than the research itself. (hide spoiler)]
Basically yes, Leth trusts observation more than emotion, so the notes allowed him to confess things before he was capable of recognizing them as confessions. At first he believes he is documenting Finn objectively, but gradually the details he chooses to preserve reveal that Finn has become more important to him than the research itself. (hide spoiler)]
Ben Athem
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