Pre-Steal This Book
4 days ago
- #innovation
- #storytelling
- #creativity
- The author recounts a story from 25 years ago involving the creation of computer adventure games with famous authors like Ray Bradbury and Michael Crichton.
- Harry Harrison, a science fiction author, expressed anger towards Michael Crichton for 'pre-stealing' his idea for a novel about a space virus, which Crichton's 'The Andromeda Strain' resembled and became a bestseller.
- The concept of 'pre-stealing' is introduced as imagining what others might create next and then creating it yourself before they do.
- The author encourages readers to 'pre-steal' ideas from admired innovators like Malcolm Gladwell or Kevin Kelly, suggesting that successful innovations are often already in development elsewhere.
- The market tends to reward boldness and speed over completely original ideas, implying that being faster and bolder with existing concepts can lead to success.