The Corn Syrup Droughts
There is so much conflict, but it is not supposed to be this way. After all, we set up the United Nations and the Geneva Conventions with dedicated leaders who were charged with mitigating conflict, promoting peace, saving humanity, and ensuring prosperity. Plus, the internet is an astounding invention that brings everybody together. There should be no reason for the present devastation. Yet, some people were not surprised, and they even predicted these horrific conflicts.
These predictors go by many names: futurists, fortune tellers, fiction writers, palm readers, prophets, psychics, gamblers, oddsmakers, investors, estimators, or spiritualists. How do they make such predictions? They use past and present knowledge to understand what might happen. Their results depend on individual skill, luck, and the topic they are estimating. For example, I have a friend whose only income is horse betting. So, indeed, he accurately predicts the future well enough to make a living.
The topic I wanted to discuss came from watching the beginning of the movie Ready Player One. The plot is set in a dystopian future where everybody uses The Oasis, an interactive three-dimensional space where anything is possible. The dystopian aspect comes from the predicted reality that such technologies make everybody poor.
The line stuck in my bonkers mind is: “After the corn syrup droughts, after the bandwidth riots.” This was the event that the screenwriter/author invented to set up a dystopian future. This means that corn syrup ran out at some point, which caused great hardship. Why this particular event?
Authors and screenwriters develop crazy ideas to show a fantastic, average, or dismal future. In the sixties television show The Jetsons, the father has a flying car. In The Terminator, the world has become a battlefield against intelligent robots. So, a corn syrup drought does not seem like a big stretch. Yet, it is a prediction, meaning that corn syrup could be in short supply in the distant future. If this occurs, the plot of Ready Player One is possible.
Well, what if it did? The year is 2030 (six years away), and suddenly, bam! No corn syrup. This means we cannot buy candy, pies, soda, or jam. Umm, that does not seem like a big problem. A nuclear war seems like a better starting point for a dystopian plot.
So, why this particular event? I guess the author/screenwriter wanted us to think, “Hmm, that’s amusing and in line with this kind of plot.” Not too serious, like The Terminator, and not too funny, like The Jetsons. Right in the middle of the entertainment spectrum.
How likely is a corn syrup drought to occur? I would answer low, but anything is possible. Yet, that is not quite why the line stuck in my bonkers mind. Big surprise! I am noodling a plot for an upcoming book set 100 years from now. It is a dystopian romance between a robot and a human. My concept is that the economy is in ruins, and people blame robots. How do I set this up?
My first step was taking a high-level view of existing works, including the movie Ready Player One. I got the idea of adapting this line to inspire my plot. “After the fall of Chuck E. Cheese.” Quirky, funny, but not romantic. “After the great election crisis of 2112.” Getting there. “After the last embers of humanity had fallen.” Ooo, wrong direction. “After the last person posted a YouTube video.” Good, keep going. “When robots were finally able to join the union.” A little off, but getting there. “Remember when having a billion dollars meant something?” Closer. Try combing with that YouTube angle. “When YouTube stopped paying their creators and started paying robots.”
This kind of abstract thinking is precisely what the author/screenwriter did when they created that line. It embodies the perfect balance between reality and silliness.
What does it all mean? I have developed a quirky plot development tool. Is this something that you could use? That is about as unlikely as a corn syrup drought leading to a dystopian future with an alternate reality three-dimensional computer living space.
I wrote this article to get myself thinking in the right mindset and bring you along for the ride. Not all topics and techniques for getting ideas must be serious, but keeping our minds open to new ideas, possibilities, and viewpoints is essential. This is how we evolve, grow, learn, overcome obstacles, and tolerate issues. My real goal is to end this with “made you think!”
You’re the best -Bill
October 30, 2024
These predictors go by many names: futurists, fortune tellers, fiction writers, palm readers, prophets, psychics, gamblers, oddsmakers, investors, estimators, or spiritualists. How do they make such predictions? They use past and present knowledge to understand what might happen. Their results depend on individual skill, luck, and the topic they are estimating. For example, I have a friend whose only income is horse betting. So, indeed, he accurately predicts the future well enough to make a living.
The topic I wanted to discuss came from watching the beginning of the movie Ready Player One. The plot is set in a dystopian future where everybody uses The Oasis, an interactive three-dimensional space where anything is possible. The dystopian aspect comes from the predicted reality that such technologies make everybody poor.
The line stuck in my bonkers mind is: “After the corn syrup droughts, after the bandwidth riots.” This was the event that the screenwriter/author invented to set up a dystopian future. This means that corn syrup ran out at some point, which caused great hardship. Why this particular event?
Authors and screenwriters develop crazy ideas to show a fantastic, average, or dismal future. In the sixties television show The Jetsons, the father has a flying car. In The Terminator, the world has become a battlefield against intelligent robots. So, a corn syrup drought does not seem like a big stretch. Yet, it is a prediction, meaning that corn syrup could be in short supply in the distant future. If this occurs, the plot of Ready Player One is possible.
Well, what if it did? The year is 2030 (six years away), and suddenly, bam! No corn syrup. This means we cannot buy candy, pies, soda, or jam. Umm, that does not seem like a big problem. A nuclear war seems like a better starting point for a dystopian plot.
So, why this particular event? I guess the author/screenwriter wanted us to think, “Hmm, that’s amusing and in line with this kind of plot.” Not too serious, like The Terminator, and not too funny, like The Jetsons. Right in the middle of the entertainment spectrum.
How likely is a corn syrup drought to occur? I would answer low, but anything is possible. Yet, that is not quite why the line stuck in my bonkers mind. Big surprise! I am noodling a plot for an upcoming book set 100 years from now. It is a dystopian romance between a robot and a human. My concept is that the economy is in ruins, and people blame robots. How do I set this up?
My first step was taking a high-level view of existing works, including the movie Ready Player One. I got the idea of adapting this line to inspire my plot. “After the fall of Chuck E. Cheese.” Quirky, funny, but not romantic. “After the great election crisis of 2112.” Getting there. “After the last embers of humanity had fallen.” Ooo, wrong direction. “After the last person posted a YouTube video.” Good, keep going. “When robots were finally able to join the union.” A little off, but getting there. “Remember when having a billion dollars meant something?” Closer. Try combing with that YouTube angle. “When YouTube stopped paying their creators and started paying robots.”
This kind of abstract thinking is precisely what the author/screenwriter did when they created that line. It embodies the perfect balance between reality and silliness.
What does it all mean? I have developed a quirky plot development tool. Is this something that you could use? That is about as unlikely as a corn syrup drought leading to a dystopian future with an alternate reality three-dimensional computer living space.
I wrote this article to get myself thinking in the right mindset and bring you along for the ride. Not all topics and techniques for getting ideas must be serious, but keeping our minds open to new ideas, possibilities, and viewpoints is essential. This is how we evolve, grow, learn, overcome obstacles, and tolerate issues. My real goal is to end this with “made you think!”
You’re the best -Bill
October 30, 2024
