coupland's contribution for the 2010 massey lectures, as opposed to a standard long essay, was 50,000 word novel entitled "player one – what is to become of us: a novel in five hours". coupland wrote the novel as five hour-long lectures aired on cbc radio from november 8 to 12, 2010. according to coupland, the novel "...presents a wide array of modes to view the mind, the soul, the body, the future, eternity, technology, and media" and is set "in a b-list toronto airport hotel’s cocktail lounge in august of 2010."