Ben Lerner Explores Fiction and Tech in Novel ‘Transcription'

In writer and poet Ben Lerner’s latest novel, “Transcription,” an unnamed narrator travels to interview his elderly mentor. But shortly after checking into his hotel, the narrator knocks his phone into water, ruining the only recording device he brought. What unfolds is an exploration of all of the mundane and profound ways technology intersects with our lives. There’s the bad: the mental offloading and trust we place in our smartphones and the uncanny valley of glitchy Zoom calls. But there’s also the good: how it can sometimes be easier to express ourselves through phone calls rather than in-person, or how ASMR videos can actually benefit some children. We’ll talk with Lerner about novels’ long history of documenting human relationships with technology, and his own expanding definition of fiction. Guests: Ben Lerner, author, “Leaving the Atocha Station,” “10:04,” and “The Topeka School,” which was a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize; his latest novel is “Transcription.” Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices