When I’m not writing, I’m reading and listening to audiobooks. Namely, Robert Galbraith and Stephen King. But I’ve gone through all of the more recent works now, and so I’m looking at Ayn Rand, and trying to decide which—if any—of her novels appeals to me. I often peruse youtube for old recordings of lectures on existential topics, which I find interesting—like The Seth Material. I listen to Abraham-Hicks. I go for walks.

Next up is a book called Mollyville: State of Shock. It’s not a short story, but the characters readers already met in Mollyville: Humble Beginnings (which was a book of short stories) all live in Mollyville and so appear in the novel as major characters in the story, and minor characters in each other’s lives.

Some people who have read Mollyville: Humble Beginnings say they like it and wish they could live out the rest of their years there. Others say they’re not so sure that it’s a place they’d like to stay. It’s all about your perspective whether something is desirable or not.

For example, somebody who needs to feel like he’s the man will not, as a rule, choose an intelligent counterpart for any relationship: business or personal. Any intellectual challenge, whether it’s a question or just a thoughtful answer, is perceived as a threat to someone like that. So, from his perspective, someone very intelligent wouldn’t be an ideal partner—even though a high level of intelligence is socially what we all agree is a desirable character trait. That I-need-to-feel-like-the-man guy’s nightmare is everybody else’s dream date.

Mollyville is a dystopian future, or our utopian future—depending upon your perspective. Mollyville has unusual politics. It’s futuristic but many of the lifestyle comforts we enjoy today are useless because life has changed. The attitudes of residents in Mollyville reflect a refreshing attitude toward the problems of life; people deal with shame and poverty and pride differently.