[hosh]

This is less about the deceased's desires over that of the living and more about creative control. Any creator will want to polish their work. It's already difficult enough to articulate and express the source of inspiration, and even polished, the material expression almost never matches its source.

[ghaff]

I can see both views. On the one hand, authors aren't always the best judges of their own work and executors can hire someone who may do a good job of polishing. On the other hand, there are unfinished works that are relatively mediocre (True at First Light) or just clearly unfinished (The Last Tycoon).

Of course, a movie studio is almost certain to finish off a movie if a director dies and may remove them for other reasons.

[hosh]

It’s true, a good editor or producer collaborates with the creative to get it across the finish line, flawed as it is.

It works better if there is mutual respect.

My point though is when generalizing and reframing this about the deceased vs living, more often than not, it is no longer about respecting (even respectfully disagreeing) with the creative and more about disrespecting the deceased.

[ghaff]

>It’s true, a good editor or producer collaborates with the creative to get it across the finish line, flawed as it is.

If it's a studio film, they may well fire the director and hire a new one. And, of course, screenwriters are casually script doctored with or without their consent.

[hosh]

Sure, because it is funded by a commercial concern and they are in the business of selling entertainment.

With books, the balance of power isn’t so skewed to the publisher, though I suppose it depends on what it is.

I don’t know what circumstances Tolkien’s unfinished work was released, though it seems like his son toiled away at them for years.

[ghaff]

True, and there's typically far less money (or big expenses) involved with books.

I always assumed Christopher Tolkien had some sort of "do with them what you think best" agreement with his father although I don't actually know. Not that there's anything particularly special in written word beyond Tolkien's originals.

[chasil]

Well, I guess that we all need to stop listening to Schubert's unfinished symphony.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Symphony_No._8_(Schubert)#Earl...

[vidarh]

I've published two novels, and I have tons of notes for all kinds of things, and frankly while there is lots I have written that I don't want to publish until/unless I rework it, and some things I don't want to publish at all, I couldn't give a shit what gets published after I'm dead other than to the extent it'd harm or embarrass anyone I care about. I don't think I have anything that'd harm anyone, but I do have things that might embarrass some. Like love poems written in my youth that has sentimental value for me, but might be embarrassing to my present or then girlfriend, for example.

Frankly, all I'd ask of a literary executor would be that they 1) humor my requests while I'm alive, 2) respect the wishes of my family. Other than that, whether they actually follow through on my wishes? Put it this way, if I find myself in an afterlife, as an atheist, I doubt whether my executor stuck my wishes will be high on my list of things to care about. And without an afterlife it's not as if I'd be able to care. Or know,

[BeFlatXIII]

…but destroying it deprives a future creative from putting in the polishing touches. Shoulders of giants and all.

[westhanover]

Do I have permission to desecrate your corpse? You are dead after all.

[NavinF]

I don't see why not. My body is no different from my other possessions

[GloomyBoots]

Are you fine with desecrating the bodies of others against their wishes?

[bitzun]

Not GP but: Dead bodies? Sure, they're dead. Everything meaningful and special about them is gone.

[saberience]

Ok so you’d be fine with having sex with a dead child’s corpse then? You seem like quite a guy.

I mean they’re dead right? Everything meaningful and special about them is gone.

[reilly3000]

I hope you remember the night when you made the pedonecrophila strawman argument fondly, but I trust you won’t.

[pfdietz]

Do what Steven Wright plans and donate your body to science fiction.

[jkestner]

I'm donating my body to art, so sure.