Big news: I have a new novel coming out October 11th!
Foundry is a near-future thriller about two spies interrogating each other at gunpoint in a hotel room. Full of intrigue, reversals, and big ideas, the story zips between Asia, Europe, and the United States, inviting you into the strange and fascinating world of semiconductor manufacturing on a quest that reveals how computer chips are refactoring that greatest of games, the only game that really matters: power.
Preorder today! Want a signed copy? Preorder directly from me and I will personally sign and send you a first-edition hardcover on launch day (use this link if you need international shipping).
This is my best work yet, and I can’t wait to share it with you.
And now, a book I love that you might too:
Mouth to Mouth by Antoine Wilson is a tight, taught thriller that begins with a chance encounter at an airport that quickly spirals across years and continents to take you inside the opaque, exclusive machinations of fine-art dealing. This is one of those stories that will constantly surprise you, not just with its wonderful plot twists, but also with its emotional depth and psychological insight. A one-sitting book—once you pick it up, you won’t put it down.
Things worth sharing:
At 9AM PT this morning—yes, in less than two hours!—I am doing an InterIntellect salon with Visa Veerasamy about the future of cities: How do cities evolve over centuries? What makes them tick? How can you contribute to their revitalization? Victory Condition, my recent short story about reinventing San Francisco, planted the seed for this conversation. Visa is one of my favorite internet writers/philosophers and I love the salon format, less of an interview than an in-depth group workshop, so dream up your best questions and ideas and join us!
AI will increase the importance of in-person human connection because every digital channel—text, voice, image, video, etc.—will be flooded with machine-generated content. Now is a great time to start hosting more dinners with friends or open an off-grid social club like Analog.
People usually share things they think make them look good, which gives the false impression that everyone around you is always doing well, when in fact they’re making things up as they go. Whether it’s an organization or an individual, it’s hard to see the mess from the outside, but remembering that life is messy for everyone, even if they don’t broadcast it, helps reduce angst about your particular mess.
Whether it’s on YouTube, blogs, socials, etc., internet storytelling favors first-person “I made/did/think this” over the third-person “look at what these other people are making/doing/thinking” that’s common in broadcast media.
Read around your field instead of in your field. Intellectual silos are a human fiction—in the real world, everything is interconnected. So, wander. Dabble. Grow.
When a friend shares an idea, it's easy to point out flaws, obstacles, and opportunity costs. It's harder, and much more useful, to suggest possible paths to realizing their idea, to remind them that everyone is making things up as they go and difficult things are worth doing.
Thanks for reading. We all find our next favorite book because someone we trust recommends it. So when you fall in love with a story, tell your friends. Culture is a collective project in which we all have a stake and a voice.
Best, Eliot
Eliot Peper is the author of Foundry, Reap3r, Veil, Breach, Borderless, Bandwidth, Neon Fever Dream, Cumulus, Exit Strategy, Power Play, and Version 1.0. He also consults on special projects.
“Whatever Peper writes about is what we'll be talking about for the next year, and grappling with for the next decade.”
-James Cham, partner at Bloomberg Beta