The Intrinsic Perspective
With the news having been broken that around 10% of Substacks have some AI-generated content in them (and probably plenty of bigger outlets as well, this problem isn’t specific to Substack) I’d like to tell a tale.
It began earlier this year, when someone I respect and like reached out to me. Their offer? Do a book club version of a Master Class (get interviewed, write some commentary) about any book I want. The payment—notably high since it required only a few filming sessions and a little writing—was a hefty $20,000.
Truth be told, I don’t quite make enough money here on Substack yet to be financially on budget. I make tantalizing close enough, enough to be the main support for my family, and I cobble together the rest through other means, like the occasional book deal or speaking fees, and also from being a surprisingly savvy (or perhaps just lucky) investor. Thanksgiving is coming up, so I’ll note that I’m lucky in general to make as much as I do from writing and thinking. We all choose what to maximize in our lives and careers, and I made a conscious choice to have quiet flexible time for reading and research and writing and being a parent, rather than trying to make a lot of money, which is why I moved out to Cape Cod. Kurt Vonnegut also moved out to Cape Cod when he started writing full-time (he wrote Slaughterhouse Five just a town over from me) but he had to moonlight at a Saab dealership. I don’t have to do that, so I’m lucky.
All to say, an easy $20,000 is not nothing for me. Additionally, I was excited by the idea of a book club, for it immediately popped into my head to do it on Michel de Montaigne.
