Until Death by Joshua Cook
In the heart of New York City, two authors meet at the same jazzy restaurant as they have for twenty years. Their careers immortalized by text in multiple award-winning novels. Frank, silver-haired with a peppered beard, swirled his whiskey. Across from him, Henry, a clean-shaven, slightly younger man with dyed black hair, puffed his cigar.
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“I’m done, Henry,” said Frank.
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“Done with what?”
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“Writing. I’m retiring,” he put his nose to the brim of his glass before taking a sip. “I can’t compete with today’s technology.”
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“Oh, come now, Frank, you can’t give up because of the newest internet tool.”
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“Tools don’t flood the market with bullshit. People don’t even write books anymore; AI does it for them. Art as we know it is dead,” he shot back the rest of his whiskey.
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“Always so dramatic, Frank. Do you remember what we swore to each other in college?”
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Hesitantly, the old man said, “Until death.”
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“That’s right, we loved writing so much, we promised ‘we will write no matter how good or bad, until death.’”
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“But why keep writing if no one wants to read our stories? This new AI stuff is killing literature.”
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“Nothing can replace human emotion, connection, and love,” said Henry.
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“Yeah, well, once I finish this novel, I’m done.”
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Henry puffed his cigar and smiled, “Once your writing dies, so do you.”
*
“Oh for Chri..” Frank fell off his chair, pulling the tablecloth with him. Tears filled his eyes, gasping for air, he said, “Until death.”
Joshua Cook is a new writer, excited about exploring the genre of fiction. Following his career in the United States Army, he learned software engineering and video game development. After completing several projects, he has decided to chase the dream he had before his military service, being a published writer.
Instagram – joshua_cook_writes
Photo – Aleksandr Danilov via vecteezy.com
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