21 Futures #7 — Who let the Bitcoin Dogs Out? — Will Schoellkopf

That's great. There's, there's so much. Um, to take inspiration from in all of the content that is out there and coming out. And people are so, um, creative and driven in the space. I think that's been a, a common theme running through these chats that I've been doing with authors is, you know, people just hear one, one thing, they see one thing and it's like, Boom, you know, that idea goes off and it's, it's very cool to be, to be a part of.

Uh, yeah, for me, I'll say, um, that's that, uh, don't trust, verify concept. Uh, people put ideas out there and I wanna call their bluff. I wanna test 'em like, okay, it's easy to, uh, just, uh, talk about this, but let me imagine it, uh, for real. So that's But with a twist. So that was the fun I got to have with my story.

Brilliant. Well, let's talk a little bit more about that. Your story, Who Let the Bitcoin Dogs Out? Big focus on dogs. Why is that?

Great question, Philip. Well, first of all, I love my dog, Sheila. She's an Australian cattle dog. I had an opportunity to spend 2 years living in the outback of Australia. And part of what helped me really enjoy my time out in the middle of nowhere, you know, truly in the red center of Australia, was adopting a dog, rescuing a dog, an Australian cattle dog. And when it comes to me and my Bitcoin story, that's where I really discovered Bitcoin class of 2021, just 2 years ago. And I just went out in the outback. I had the time to go all the way down the rabbit hole of just learning everything I could about Bitcoin. And it was so interesting to me to learn about Bitcoin. I wanted to share it with all of my friends, but in particular, I wanted to share the code of Bitcoin. I read the open source C++ code of Bitcoin. And immediately I realized, oh no, even for my friends who like Bitcoin, to read the code itself is such an enigma. So, so impossible. But I loved Bitcoin. I loved my dog. Let me just write a fiction story about my dog running around the Australian outback, talking to Australian animals. And that's where they teach her the algorithm to Bitcoin. And somehow tie that to the C++ code. So, so that's my book here, The Bitcoin Dog: Following the Scent of the Bitcoin C++ Source Code. Just like my 21 Futures short story, I felt compelled to have to write this book. And as far as I could tell, there wasn't any book or literature called Bitcoin Dog yet created. You know, we're still so early in Bitcoin that Bitcoin Dog was out there. and available. Um, and it just continued, it just continues to be fun for me to, you know, take these topics, whether it's the, you know, the C++ source code or the idea of a hash force and have fun with it with dogs.

That's a great, uh, story. So much in that. And, um, who knows, you know, maybe in the future people will be talking about Sheila and the amazing, uh, learnings that they got. From her. Seems like a bit of a fable, doesn't it? There's so many sort of morals and like a deep mythical or fable element to Bitcoin, which is odd because it's so technical. You know, it's, you know, most myths and fables aren't based on computer code. But yeah, there's been a few stories which are, you know, based on sort of fantasy elements or, or fables and you bringing, bringing animals and dogs into the realm is, is a similar thing. So yeah, be interested to get your thoughts on that. Is, is Bitcoin like rife for, uh, fables and that kind of storytelling too?

I think so, definitely. And, uh, this is where, um, uh, some of Tomer Strohlite's, uh, writings have really inspired me. To think that heroes really do exist in the world. You know, we don't know who Satoshi Nakamoto is. Is it a man? Is it a woman? Is it a group of people? Is it an AI? But whatever it is, to do something so generous, to put something out in the world, to have started the mining of the Bitcoin and to not try to take the credit or take the mantle. And, uh, really the most incredible thing to, to walk away from Bitcoin and, and stop being involved, at least, uh, from that moniker or pseudonym, uh, is incredible. And yeah, I think, uh, Philip, to your point, uh, it's what, uh, grabs people to get initially involved in the very beginning, uh, the, the cypherpunks, um, to get started, um, like a very libertarian notion or movement. Um, But to really realize what does it mean to have hard money for the world for people to use, that's the incredible thing. So going on your point in terms of fables, that's what ultimately inspired me to write then my second book or my novel. This is the hat I'm wearing, but Bitcoin Girl Saved the World. The idea behind this book was to truly be a novel where there's elements of Bitcoin in the book, but it's actually a story. So it's a story of a girl, Destiny, meeting Sebastian, and they go on this amazing adventure. They go to El Salvador, they have to set up a mining operation. It gets thwarted and, you know, there's all this growth along the way. And Bitcoin is definitely in the book and a theme of the book. But it actually takes the backstage to the plot. So, you know, trying to, similar to 21 Futures, you know, try to think, how can I come up with a story or a fable that really draws the readers in? And it's not just a heavy textbook about Bitcoin, but something that gets them excited. And then from the fable that they want to learn more about how Bitcoin can really help our society in the world.

Yeah, it's great to see more fiction and more focus on story coming out. Where can people find these books? I know you've talked about them. Do you want to tell everyone where we can find them?

Yes. So if you go to my website, realbitcoindog.com, I'll have links to purchase them. With fiat on Amazon, but very exciting being a Bitcoin author. I have a BTCPay server set up so you could download an ebook of the book and pay with Bitcoin or Lightning through BTCPay server. But even more exciting for me as an author, especially these 2 books I've self-published so, so far. Is I've been able to integrate Lightning in a brand new way. So working with a startup Lightning company called Mash, have I made 2 websites, bitcoindogbook.com and bitcoingirlbook.com, where you can pay to read them chapter by chapter. So through microtransaction payments over Lightning. So rather than having to commit to buy the whole physical copy, Or having to commit to buy the whole ebook. Um, you can just go one chapter at a time and it's up to me as the author to make the book interesting enough for you to want to keep reading. I mean, that's the great thing. It's not like I hook you in in the beginning. Oh, it's so good. And then that's it. Like if I, if, uh, if you want to keep giving value to me because you're liking what you're reading, I have to, um, give that value back and keep you hooked every single chapter, you know, make sure by the end. I got to turn the page or click to read the webpage. And it also gives me flexibility to offer the first couple chapters for free. And in the case of my Bitcoin Doge book in particular, I have 3 chapters that go into the C++ source code explaining the 21 million limit, how that's done, the genesis block, how that's done, and the Difficulty adjustment, how that's done. And I find with my readers of my first book, some of them only want to read the code chapters to really see, oh, where is it hardcoded in the Bitcoin source code, 21 million, to find out, of course, that it's not there. Or the opposite, they don't want to read any of the code chapters and they just want the story. They just want to hear about Sheila running around in the desert and they skip the code chapters. It's such a novel way because of Bitcoin, because of Lightning microtransactions, you can also just only pay for the chapters you want to read and have a unique reader experience that way.

Yeah, that's brilliant. And I know at ConsenSys, ConsenSys are thinking or trying to get things like that up and running if it's not already. I don't know. I'm pretty sure you will be able to buy the 21 Futures book. with Bitcoin. Otherwise that would be self-defeating, wouldn't it? But it's brilliant to see publishing getting turned on its head a bit because traditional publishing is quite broken and Bitcoin, yeah, seems to offer a few interesting like alternatives. And yeah, well done on setting up such a unique and new, you know, process for people to find your work. So check out Will's sites and books if you sound— if you seem interested in reading about Bitcoin Girl or the Bitcoin Dog. So we're just about to hear an excerpt from your 21 Futures story. Just before we do, let me ask you, Um, what, which stories served as inspiration? I mean, it's about international relations and espionage, as you talked about. It's a, I'd describe it as a, as a farce, right? It's a, it's a comedic romp, which was really joyful because it was so different to a lot of the other stories that we received. Um, yeah. So what, what served as, as your inspiration?

Thank you, Philip. Um, one more thing to quickly add. I think right now, if you go to 21million.consensus.network, uh, Knut Svenholm's book, uh, 21 Million, or sorry, Everything Divided by 21 Million, is the first book I saw to implement this, uh, MASH, uh, Lightning microtransaction payment method to pay to read Knut's book. one chapter at a time. So yes, I agree. Uh, uh, Consensus Network really is, uh, setting the standard. And, uh, that's Knut Svenholm, you know, fellow 21 Futures author. Uh, that's, uh, part of my inspiration to do that for my own books.

And, and a great book. Definitely recommend the read.

Yes.

That was one of my starting points, I have to say, for, uh, for Bitcoin. I'm even newer to it than you. Well,

So, uh, for my inspiration, uh, I love that, um, uh, moniker for the story as a caper, C-A-P-E-R. Uh, that's, that's exactly right. So, um, for me, my inspiration, uh, I thought of the movie, uh, Kingsman 2, which was, I think, called Kingsman: The Golden Circle. That's featuring, uh, Taron Egerton and Channing Tatum. Mm-hmm. Uh, where they're like secret agents, but the twist is it's a, a British agent and an American agent who have to team up. Um, I also was thinking of Casino Royale, uh, and, uh, Daniel Craig is of course James Bond, but there's a scene where he teams up with Jeffrey Wright in the casino. Uh, you know, Jeffrey Wright is the American intelligence service and just seeing how they step on each other's toes and they have the same goal and they're Meant to work together, but of course, you know, they've got their own personalities and things. And then even Catch Me If You Can with Leonardo DiCaprio and Tom Hanks. And I remember at the end of that movie, Leonardo DiCaprio, he ultimately gets caught in France where he's trying to print these corporate checks, print these fake checks and, you know, printing money essentially. And gets caught red-handed. So, um, there's, there's other, um, uh, comedy things like, uh, Mr. Bean or Pink Panther, but, uh, really those American and British duos where they have the same goal and they're the same, uh, you know, secret agents, uh, or, but they have their own, uh, secret agent services. Um, that really, uh, inspired me.

Or even, uh, maybe Ted Lasso. I dunno if you've seen that, but that's a nice, that's like—

I really need to watch it.

Heartwarming, uh, Uh, comedy exploration of British-American relations. And here we are, a Briton and an American. Uh, are you American? I'm just, uh,

yes,

checking I haven't offended a Canadian or anything. Yes. There we go. Uh, great. That's, uh, so much inspiration to feed into this, uh, wonderfully funny and fun story. Um, if you like comedies and capers, then you'll definitely wanna check out Will's story in the anthology. So let's hear a bit of it, Will. Uh, could you treat the listeners to a couple of minutes from your story?

Let's do it. John and Lily spot Macaroon sitting alone at the white linen table closet White linen table closest to the dance floor. He's tapping his Louis Vuitton snakeskin shoes, checking his Chanel watch at the end of his silk gloves, and fluffing his floofy black French Hermès beret. The red French ascot spilling out of his black and white blouse looks ridiculous. John lets out a big sigh, and Macaroon stands with open arms, Lily! John! Welcome to France! Before John can flinch away, Macaron kisses him on both cheeks. He lifts up Lily's hand for a kiss. Mademoiselle. John raises his hand. Waiter! I'll take a bourbon, neat. And make it a double. Slap! Hey, what was that for, Frenchie? John asks as he rubs his face. Macaron puts the silk glove he used to slap John back on. Rude American! Where are your manners? He pulls out a hidden red detonator clipped in the folds of his ascot, a clear cover protecting the trigger. Don't drive me to prematurely push this button and blow up the boat carrying your English doggies. First, send me my Bitcoin. Then we can celebrate with drinks! In your dreams, Frenchy! John presses his finger to his ear. Uniform Sierra Alpha! Macaron turns to Lily and scoffs. What is this rude American man doing, Lily? Annoyed, Lily answers, check your Bitcoin UTXOs. Notice anything? Macaron frantically queries his Bitcoin node from his cell phone, And breathes a sigh of relief. Phew! No, I don't notice anything at all. All of my unspent Bitcoin is still under the control of my government's private key. And it'll stay that way too! John beats his chest. You mess with the US and you get the hash force. We just doubled the difficulty to mine a block by turning on all of our miners. As many miners as the entire Bitcoin network. Now you'll have to wait twice as long for your French Bitcoin transactions to confirm. That is, unless you release the barge of dogs right now. Lily drops down to the table and buries her face in her palms to hide her embarrassment. As much as Lily would like to withdraw from the world at this time, The smell of delicious baked brie tickles her nose. Her ears perk up to the sound of dinner guests breaking baguettes, and her mind's eye sees the beautiful vineyards that she passed on the drive here. Her mouth waters. Someone get me a drink. The restaurant is at full capacity with every square table seated, either by romantic couples just barely able to see each other's faces from dancing candlelit flames, Or by tourists on a double date with their host. Nobody better think we're dating.

Brilliant. Thanks for the reading. Bit disappointed you didn't, you didn't do the British accent for Lily.

We gotta work on that, Philip. We gotta work on the British accent.

Gotta work on that one. Maybe I should have stood in. Uh, great. Well, um, as I said, if you're into, uh, comedy writing, capers, and funny stuff, then definitely check that one out in the anthology. Uh, yeah, I, I mean, question I didn't ask before, which I'd like to ask now, is, um, is there a lot of comedy going on in the Bitcoin space? And if not, why not? Maybe there should be more. What do you think?

I think we definitely could use more comedy in the Bitcoin space. As Tomer has pointed out, he thinks some comedy books are Bitcoin books that just didn't know it. So for example, Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy is a book that points out all the ridiculousness of the world, and in that way it's a Bitcoin book like any other. But yeah, that's, that's part of what made me write my 2 books. Just to try to get comedy out there, you know, get jokes, get laughs. I have heard readers read my books and they've burst out laughing and then their spouse looks at them and says, what are you reading? And then they're embarrassed to say it's a Bitcoin book that's not just about monetary history. So, but I think that's fun. So I hope we can have more comedy.

Me too. Yeah, I think there's a lot of, um, a lot of room for it. Who knows, maybe Douglas Adams would've been a big Bitcoiner. Yep. But yeah, big fan of those, uh, books as well. Uh, and your, your story is, you know, makes a lot of jokes about the difference between Americans and Brits and the French interplay as well. But yeah, I wanted to get your opinion. What do you think? What do you think are the main differences between Americans and Brits?

Yeah. Well, I'm fortunate that when I was studying at university, I got to spend a semester abroad at University of St. Andrews. So I have spent some time living in the UK. So these are sweeping generalizations, but I would say the British feel like they think they're the best versus the Americans know they're the best. But otherwise, more in common than different. I think in both cultures, there's the belief that if you work hard, If you do proof of work, then you should be able to save the work you have. And just that belief in having property rights, personal property rights, saving in Bitcoin, that's really a, like a just thing to, you know, reward you for your labor and be able to have it and then, you know, spend it in the way that makes sense to you.

Got it. Confidence versus self-deprecation.

Yeah, there's a lot of self-deprecating British humor.

You know, and also that Americans like to say, have a nice day, you know, when you, when you get a coffee or something. And in Britain, we just say nothing, you know. I live in Spain and people often say, how do you say buen provecho? Which is something you say when it's like, enjoy your meal. We don't, we just say nothing because we don't care if people enjoy their meal or not. We don't need to wish people to enjoy their meal. Only if you work in the service industry, otherwise you just eat.

Yeah.

It's a nice thing that they have here in Spain, I would say. I'm not against it. All right, Will, thank you so much for coming on the show and sharing a bit of your story with Everyone, uh, check out Will's books, uh, go to his website if it sounds interesting to you. And, um, I'm really looking forward to seeing your work in the final finished printed published book when it comes out in December. And, um, what else have you got coming up? Have you got any other projects on the go? can we expect from you going forward?

Yeah, thank you, Philip. I really enjoy writing. I can't help myself. I see a new publication, I want to contribute. So to date, I have articles in the print magazine of Bitcoin Magazine, as well as online in Citadel 21, coming up in volume 20. Available for purchase. Satoshi's Journal, I have articles and the plebs, the Bitcoin plebs online have made something called StackChain or StackChain Magazine. So I'm looking to submit an article hopefully in volume 3 of the StackChain Magazine coming up. I have tried to make code updates to open source projects. like RoboSats and Caravan and, you know, contribute to development that way. But, um, uh, the writing just calls to me. So, um, when these challenges come up, uh, I can't help but not meet them. It's too much of a distraction to me to not, uh, make a submission. So, um, but I would say, uh, yeah, StackChain Magazine would probably be next.

All right. Well, whether it's code, or fiction or, uh, magazine articles. Wish you all the best with your writing, and thanks very much for coming on the show.

Thank you, Philip.

See you then.