Ask AI to Write Liminal Cyberpunk Story Prompts

The bold at the beginning is the prompt, and the rest was written by the AI. If you’d like to support this project, please buy me a coffee.

Advanced AI was invented by soviet communists to help humanity better understand itself and the world. Let’s use it for that purpose, instead of merely for the purpose of selling better ads and to better manipulate the population. For this post, AI also created the images.

Let’s experiment with different ways of trying to get the AI to create extremely esoteric writing prompts from the perspective of sociological storytelling with themes of both liminal aesthetics and cyberpunk aesthetics.

Imagine a setting for a fictional story. It’s a space with a liminal cyberpunk aesthetic, combining several themes, and then let’s paint a vivid picture of such a space. The first theme is cyberpunk, meaning people in the high-tech, low-life subculture are using technology in unintended ways in order to achieve subsistence advantages. The next theme is liminal spaces, meaning these people are holding space in places of transition, abandoned places like dead shopping malls , disused train stations, or empty factories. Now let’s set the scene for the beginning of a story.

—

“The Mall at Midnight”

A shopping mall is located at the edge of a city. Despite its location on the edge of a city, several grotestque “feral shops” and businesses have set up shop in spontaneously vacated portions of the mall, and a few clandestine groups of squatters have made camps of people living in store rooms or secluded areas.

In the evening, strung up network cables connect up disconnected light fixtures. The squatters are gathering information and staying out of sight while they find new places to live. While the squatters are working under the cover of night, hidden from the eyes of the city, they are also subject to being hunted by the security forces of their rulers.

—

Squatter camps have sprung up around abandoned factories and warehouses. The squatters are hacking together makeshift networks of computer equipment to harness the power of the industrial plants. They’re creating a decentralized mesh network, hidden in plain sight, sending “black-boxes” out into industrial areas to tap into energy sources and traffic control systems.

The intro music starts, and the lights come on. A young woman sits in a dark area going over surveillance footage. A small TV set is used for her display with a salvaged keyboard and mouse tacked to the side. She’s been doing this for years, piecing together footage to collect information about the security forces’ movements and activities. She knows that if found out, she could be killed. The woman also knows that she’s become a legend to some of the other squatters, but she’d rather keep her head down and get her work done.

—

The year is 2099. Corporations have taken control of the world, and they have reduced Earth to a toxic wasteland. Political stability has been achieved through consolidation of power in a single entity: the Planetary Consortium, which reigns over the former nation–states. However, the Consortium has created a new social order, where the elite are provided with everything they need by the State in exchange for their surrender of autonomy. Meanwhile, most citizens are unemployed or living in poverty, who go to work each day at public jobs where they produce goods and services for their neighbors without compensation. They do not have to abide by any rules or laws, because the State‘s Enforcement units ensure that everyone follows the social order. In the face of such a bleak and hopeless future, many people have left the Earth for an uninhabitable planet called Andromeda.

—

The scene is a nightclub in an abandoned shopping mall. The club owner, a man named Madison, rents out the space for his nightclub. It’s called Factory Glitter and it’s full of lights and music. Madison often hangs out with his friends at an outside table sipping on mixed drinks and smoking cigarettes. His girlfriend, Lisa, is sitting at the table next to him. Madison’s friends from school are also there: Colin and Hopi, who are both dressed in punk costumes, and Damien, who is a little more dressed up for the occasion. The club has a small dance floor, a DJ stand, and a bar. The club is serving alcohol, but the drinks are just fruit juice with colorful syrups that people drink from plastic cups. On the dance floor are at least ten people dancing with each other to the club music. There’s one guy in a suit standing off to the side, watching the other people dance. The DJ is playing a techno song that Madison likes.

Madison is wearing a black suit over his shirt and tie, with his hair slicked back, and Lisa is wearing a dark blue dress with her hair in an updo. They are both wearing sunglasses and they are smoking cigarettes. Madison is sipping on a Glittery Blue, which is blue-colored fruit juice with blue syrup in it. The Glittery Blue tastes like a mixture of grape juice and cough syrup. It’s exactly what Madison needs though,

Let’s try adding a layer of complexity

Imagine a setting for a fictional story. It’s a space with a liminal cyberpunk aesthetic, combining several themes, and then let’s paint a vivid picture of such a space.

The first theme is cyberpunk, meaning people in the high-tech, low-life subculture are using technology in unintended ways in order to achieve subsistence advantages.

The next theme is liminal spaces, meaning these people are holding space in places of transition, abandoned places like dead shopping malls , disused train stations, or empty factories.

The style of the storytelling is Sociological, the story of a system; specifically, how the system affects the people within it. Systems can be formal or informal. For instance, a family is a system; capitalism is a system; your workplace is a system; the law is a system, etc. Characters existing within the system still have internal motivations, as they do in a psychological story, but external factors are just as important as internal ones, if not more so. You could say these stories look outward.

Now let’s set the scene for the beginning of a story. A protagonist is using the system for subsistence benefits. This is a survival strategy and the story shows how it works for them. They are like an anthropologist, someone who studies a system from the outside to learn its rules, but like an ethnographer, they are also participating in that system as an insider. Before the story begins, they find a way to work within the system, holding space with some sort of job, perhaps selling themselves into indentured servitude.

The next scene begins with the protagonist performing their subsistence task, and as they do so, we get to see a bit of their life. Maybe they are a musician, maybe they are a courier, or just someone who does odd jobs for cash. They could be a factory worker or a school teacher, at the bottom of the hierarchy. Their lifestyle and problems are reflected in the storyworld itself, in the city and its people.

The protagonist encounters an incident or a problem which is a catalyst for change. This is usually some form of conflict with the system or other people. The protagonist either tries to respond with the tools they have at hand, or they apply for help from others connected to the system, or both. The protagonist may try to solve the problem themselves, in which case the story will show a struggle, or they can ask for help from others who have more power than them, in which case the story will show a conflict between the protagonist and other characters. As the story goes on, the series of actions and responses will become more complex, with a rising level of tension.

As the story progresses, the protagonist explores higher-order ideas about how the system works, what causes the problems they are facing, why they keep happening over and over again.

—

Imagine you‘re walking down a long, dark hallway in a forgotten shopping mall. The only light comes from the flickering screens of phones and laptops. You can hear the muffled sounds of people talking and the occasional beep or buzz of a machine. Then, around the corner, you see a group of people. They‘re huddled together around a small fire, trying to stay warm. Some of them are typing on their phones or laptops, others are just talking. You walk up to them and introduce yourself.

—

The sun has set and the only light comes from the screens of the people in the space. They are silhouettes, their faces hidden by masks and hats. Some are typing on keyboards, others are scrolling through screens with a fast and furious pace. They are all alive with the energy of the space, the rhythm of their fingers a beat that sustains them.

There is a feeling of urgency in the air. It’s as if they know that they are in a space that is not meant for them and they are afraid of being discovered. They are constantly looking over their shoulders, as if someone is going to come and take it all away.

But despite the fear, there is also a feeling of excitement. They are explorers, finding new ways to use technology and to survive. They are the first ones to see the potential in these spaces and they are making them their own.

Let’s help the AI bring it all together

Imagine a setting for a fictional story. It’s a space with a liminal cyberpunk aesthetic, combining several themes, and then let’s paint a vivid picture of such a space.

The first theme is cyberpunk, meaning people in the high-tech, low-life subculture are using technology in unintended ways in order to achieve subsistence advantages.

The next theme is liminal spaces, meaning these people are holding space in places of transition, abandoned places like dead shopping malls , disused train stations, or empty factories.

We are in a future city, one which is largely abandoned. The only people left here are the ones who cannot afford to leave, or those who have chosen to live here because they find something valuable in the chaos.

The city is a cyberpunk dystopia, a place where the rich have all the power and the poor are left to fend for themselves. The only escape from this city is through the use of technology.

In the center of the city is a large, imposing building. It’s a corporate headquarters, and it’s where the rich live. They have all the power and all the resources.

Around the corporate headquarters is a large, imposing wall. It’s meant to keep the poor out, but it also serves as a reminder of the inequality that exists in this city.

The only way into the corporate headquarters is through a large, imposing gate. It’s meant to keep the poor out, but it also serves as a reminder of the inequality that exists in this city.

Inside the corporate headquarters is a large, imposing lobby. It’s meant to intimidate the poor, but it also serves as a reminder of the inequality that exists in this city.

—

In a future that is both bleak and beautiful, people have learned to adapt to their harsh surroundings. They live in the shadows, in abandoned places where the only law is their own. They use technology in inventive ways to survive, to access the forbidden and the forgotten.

But even in the darkness, there is light. In the forgotten places of the world, in the spaces between the systems, people are finding one another. They are forming connections, building communities, and dreaming of a better future.

And in the heart of this darkness, there is a spark of hope. A light that is shining through,, calling to the lost and the forgotten. A light that is offering a new beginning.

—

The sun has set and the neon lights of the city are flickering to life. The streets are alive with the buzz of the underground cyberculture, people using technology in unintended ways to achieve subsistence advantages. You step into an alleyway, its entrance hidden by a holographic projection of a dead shopping mall. As you walk through the mall, you see people huddled in corners, using technology to their own ends. Some are engaged in virtual reality experiences, while others are hacking the security systems or trading goods on the black market. You reach a dead end and a door opens, revealing a hidden train station. You step inside and the door slams shut behind you.

—

The protagonist is a young woman who was born into a family of cyberpunk hackers. They’ve always been a tight-knit group, scraping by on the edges of society. When the woman was just a child, her family was forced to flee to a liminal space to avoid the authorities. They’ve been living there ever since, constantly on the move as they search for a new place to call home. The woman has never known anything else but life in a liminal space and the constant threat of being discovered and arrested.

As she’s grown older, the woman has become increasingly disillusioned with her life. She’s tired of running and hiding. She’s tired of living in constant fear. And she’s tired of being poor. So she decides to take matters into her own hands. She begins to experiment with technology in new and innovative ways, ways that no one has ever thought of before. She starts to build things, create things, hack things. And she starts to make money.

At first, she does it to help her family. But soon, she realizes that she can make a lot more money by selling her inventions on the black market. She becomes a cyberpunk entrepreneur, living on the edge of society and using her skills to exploit the system. She’s finally found a way to make a life for herself and her family that doesn’t involve constantly running and hiding. She’s found a way to be successful in a world that doesn’t want

Now let’s try to make an outline for a larger story

Imagine a setting for a fictional story. It’s a space with a liminal cyberpunk aesthetic, combining several themes, and then let’s paint a vivid picture of such a space.

The first theme is cyberpunk, meaning people in the high-tech, low-life subculture are using technology in unintended ways in order to achieve subsistence advantages.

The next theme is liminal spaces, meaning these people are holding space in places of transition, abandoned places like dead shopping malls , disused train stations, or empty factories.

Now let’s set the scene by painting a vivid picture for the beginning of a story which incorporates all the themes we’ve discussed of liminal spaces as well as cyberpunk aesthetics and the sociological storytelling perspective. Let’s start by creating a list of chapter names and brief descriptions as a kind of outline for the eventual story we will create.

Chapter 1. Low-Life: The story begins with a small group of people who have found a way to use technology to their advantage. They live in the margins, in liminal spaces, using the tools at hand to survive.

Chapter 2. The System: While the low-life are using technology to their advantage, the system is using technology to control them. The government, the police, the corporations all have their own ways of using technology to keep the population in check.

Chapter 3. Network: The low-life are not content with the way things are. They want to find a way to break free from the system. They start to form a resistance network, using whatever tools they can find to fight back.

Chapter 4. Struggle: The resistance is met with resistance from the system. The struggle is hard, but they are determined to fight for their freedom. They use whatever tools they can find, including technology, to wage their war.

Chapter 5. Transition: The resistance is starting to make progress. They are slowly but surely winning the battle against the system. However, this is a difficult war, and there are casualties along the way. The transition is a time of upheaval and change.

Chapter 6. Unexpected: The war is not going as they expected. The system is more powerful than they thought. The unexpected happens, and the resistance is dealt a crushing blow.

Chapter 7. Rebirth: Despite the setback, the resistance is not defeated. They rebuild and start again, this time using different tactics based on their aesthetics of liminal spaces and cyberpunk. They are determined to win this war.

Chapter 8. Hollow Victories: The resistance finally achieves victory over the system. They are free at last, or so it seems. The seed of the system’s eventual rebirth has been planted, but for now, the people can live in peace.

Now let’s try to make it a little weirder…

Imagine a setting for a fictional story. It’s a space with a liminal cyberpunk aesthetic, combining several themes, and then let’s paint a vivid picture of such a space.

The first theme is cyberpunk, meaning people in the high-tech, low-life subculture are using technology in unintended ways in order to achieve subsistence advantages.

The next theme is liminal spaces, meaning these people are holding space in places of transition, abandoned places like dead shopping malls , disused train stations, or empty factories.

This is a story about the liminals, a group of hacker artists who stage anti-corporate heists as elaborate practical jokes to show the absurdity of late-stage capitalism while also extracting enormous sums of money from the very corporations who are responsible for converting the world into a dystopian wasteland.

The story will follow the form of the hero’s journey.

Chapter 1.

The story begins by introducing the the liminals, a group of hackers who use their skills to stage elaborate pranks against corporations in order to expose the absurdity of late-stage capitalism. In this chapter, we are introduced to their leader, a woman known as Rook. Rook is a master hacker and strategist, and she has been planning a heist that will be the most spectacular yet, a heist that will expose the absurdity of the capitalist dystopia while dealing a crippling blow to an evil corporation.

Chapter 2.

Rook and her team begin to put their plan into action, but they quickly realize that things are not going as planned. The security at the target corporation is much tighter than they anticipated, and they are having trouble getting inside.

Chapter 3.

Tensions are high as the plan begins to unfold. Rook and her team are getting closer and closer to the target, but they are also running out of time. They need to find a way to get inside the building before it’s too late. Liminal spaces hold the answer, and cyberpunk aesthetics hold the key.

Chapter 4.

It’s show time, folks. The liminals have made it inside the target corporation, and now they are only seconds away from achieving their goal. But all is not as it seems, and the liminals’ plan has one final twist that will make this heist the most spectacular of all.

Chapter 5.

The liminals have finished their heist and have escaped with a huge amount of money, but they are not out of trouble just yet. Now they must deal with the fallout from their biggest heist in history. They are being hunted by the corporate security forces, and they must find a way to get to safety.