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Cavyherdcavyherd@wandering.shop
Apr 17, 2026, 12:09 AM
Name That Short Story!
#ScienceFiction short story wherein artists aren't allowed to reference (or even experience) anyone else's work. If they are, the relevant sense is disabled, & they are set to watch over upcoming, naive artists.
I'd had it mentally placed in the Science Fiction Hall of Fame, (or maybe Dangerous Visions?) but I'm not finding a likely candidate in either anthology. <1975?
Edit: Found! >
#whatsthetitle
#whatsthatbook
#storyidentification
#bookstodon
h/t @cptbutton
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Replies

Cavyherdcavyherd@wandering.shop
Apr 17, 2026, 10:51 AM
@cptbutton
h/t @jgamble
Thank you! That's been driving me nuts for years, because—that's not how art works. (Which may have been the point of the story, which is why I wanted to find it & read it again.) >
https://fosstodon.org/@jgamble/116418191951476680
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Cavyherdcavyherd@wandering.shop
Apr 17, 2026, 10:53 AM
@cptbutton @jgamble
Came to mind especially in the context of this video:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nJPERZDfyWc
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Pope Bob the Unsanebobdobberson@kolektiva.social
Apr 17, 2026, 1:18 AM
@cavyherd Harrison Bergeron?
@cptbutton
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Cavyherdcavyherd@wandering.shop
Apr 17, 2026, 2:21 AM
@bobdobberson @cptbutton
Nope, but of similar vintage.
The one I'm thinking of ends in a quiet scene in an isolated artist studio in the woods, I think.
https://ia801400.us.archive.org/30/items/HarrisonBergeron/Harrison%20Bergeron.pdf
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John M. Gamblejgamble@fosstodon.org
Apr 17, 2026, 4:31 AM
@cavyherd
Orson Scott Card had a story with a similar theme, though I think the artists in question were musicians.
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John M. Gamblejgamble@fosstodon.org
Apr 17, 2026, 4:37 AM
@cavyherd
It looks like I'm remembering Unaccompanied Sonata.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Unaccompanied_Sonata
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Cavyherdcavyherd@wandering.shop
Apr 17, 2026, 10:48 AM
@jgamble
Yes! I think we have a winner!
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Space Catitude 🚀TerryHancock@realsocial.life
Apr 17, 2026, 5:03 AM
@cavyherd
I have the vague recollection of reading a story like this in Omni magazine. A lot of years ago, though. 🤔
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Cavyherdcavyherd@wandering.shop
Apr 17, 2026, 10:46 AM
@TerryHancock
Yes, actually, OMNI is a distinct possibility. From this remove, it is of similar vintage to my recollection. (I've reached the age where "a couple of months ago" often turns out to be ten years.)
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John M. Gamblejgamble@fosstodon.org
Apr 17, 2026, 1:16 PM
@cavyherd @cptbutton
That's very good. I like mini-docs like that.
I don't have anything comparable, so I'll just post this link to a mashup I came across while looking up theme songs I liked.
I had no idea who Pierre Henry was.
#MusicTheory #Mashup #Music #Futurama
https://youtu.be/kfatPZbNsZs
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Cavyherdcavyherd@wandering.shop
Apr 18, 2026, 2:58 AM
@jgamble @cptbutton
wut....
This, as the kids say, slaps.
(I'd forgotten how much I like the Futurama theme.)
I like the visual cue to indicate which piece is ascendant.
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argonautargonaut@bonn.social
Apr 18, 2026, 7:46 AM
@jgamble @cavyherd @cptbutton there's a Greek SF novel with a similar theme:
Νίκος Παναγιωτόπουλος (Nicos Panayotopoulos), Το Γονίδιο της Αμφιβολίας (translated to English as "The Gene of Doubt").
https://web.archive.org/web/20130520021934/http://www.andotherstories.org/author/nicos-panayotopoulos/
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