Apparently, interviews with an AI recruiter are becoming more common. I just had one, and the experience was a bit weird, but actually more normal than I would have thought. The irony was that it was for a job teaching an AI. The job application I don’t really need a job, but I am always…
There is a noticeable trend in modern publishing. Many of today’s most popular novels are getting longer Over the past few decades, data suggests that novels (particularly bestsellers and literary fiction) have gradually increased in length. One widely cited analysis of more than 2,500 notable titles found that average book length rose from around 320…
Happy New Year, everyone! Lots of people I know seemed to have had a pretty crap 2025 – I hope you aren’t one of them – but I think we can all agree that 2026 currently has unlimited potential for greatness. At least I hope so. This year, I am shifting focus slightly. I am…
Every Writer Should Spend Time on Short Stories Short stories have always waxed and waned in popularity. Their earliest incarnations were myths, fables, and fireside legends, but the modern short story emerged alongside the rise of the novel in the 19th century. Now, thanks to technology, the format is enjoying something of a renaissance, and…
I’ve been writing on Medium and Substack for a while now. There is quite a lot of overlap in terms of content, but they are slightly different. Especially in the tone I use – Substack is a bit more conversational, while for Medium I tend to go full journalist. I have bundled both under the…
A morning writing routine is something I’ve heard of, but due to general slothfulness, not a practice I’ve tried. But I’ve been travelling a lot recently, from one side of the planet to the other. As a result, I recently woke up at 6 am in the morning by accident. I normally get up at…
Listing outstanding books about writing is obviously going to be highly subjective. But these are definitely among the best loved and reviewed, and have all stood the test of time. So no complaints about about things that should be included. These books aren’t just about how to write. They also discuss the art of writing,…
Repurposing articles is a great tool in a writer’s repertoire. When it comes to the wonderful world of online content, productivity, (namely speed and efficiency,) is key. As writers, we pour our heart and soul (most of the time) into crafting compelling articles, blog posts, and stories. But what if you could extend the lifespan…
I love productivity methods and Dr Huberman is one of the big names in the biz. I think I spend too much time searching for these things because I’m innately lazy, but feel bad about it. Searching for these clips feels kind of productive. I was browsing YouTube a couple of months ago and stumbled…
I used to do a lot of ghostwriting, and it has its pros and cons. I should preface this piece by noting that, as I have written 100s of ghostwritten articles over the years, I am generally ok with it, but am now easing off a bit for multiple reasons I will go into. Some…
I have been binge-watching Silicon Valley on HBO Max, and it has made me want to code. I think I am having a mid-life crisis, which might be related, but at 52, I have decided to learn Python and HTML. I am such a novice that I don’t even know what type of coding I…
I have been paid per-word or per-hour for about five years now. In my previous bouts of freelance writing, dating back decades (I’m old), it was the same. For writers, the two options are the most obvious and easy way to work out how much your work is worth. I used to calculate my hourly…
Or a pittance. Time will tell… The popularity of short stories has waxed and waned over the decades. They have always been around as myths and fables like the Arthurian tales or 1001 Arabian Nights. Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales are essentially a collection of short stories. Short stories really rose in parallel with the modern novel…
And how to make an AI assistant I use AI to cure my colossal procrastination but don’t use it for any writing – you can probably tell. I was a journalist for 30 years, which has given me vague confidence in my ability to string a sentence together. The nature of the work also helped…
I listen to tunes when I write. This is often to drown out the noise of fellow humans, but I also really like it and it can induce flow state. And everyone loves a good flow state. It also goes without saying that nearly everyone loves music. I just checked and found that apparently 3%…
I don’t use ChatGPT for writing, as the output is a bit bland. You can probably tell by my garbled syntax. Writing is also my livelihood, and I am mildly resentful of letting an AI do it because then I would just be doing data input. Plus, it scrapes info from people who want to…
I hit 100 subscribers on my Intriguing Times Substack yesterday and am pretty damned excited about it. ‘Astonishing’ is admittedly a bit hyperbolic, but it is apparently good for SEO. This is the world we live in now. As you can see from the page above, the publication’s front page now looks more impressive. It’s…
AI is so damned useful that I am overwhelmed and am still thinking of ways to use it. You can probably tell that I don’t use for writing by looking at my garbled syntax and poor word choices. But I do use it for images, titles, and research, and if it is a long piece,…
I listen to music and use a few apps that really help when writing, and consequently, I thought this might be something helpful for others. I write for a living. It is literally the sole source of my income. I am also pretty lazy, which is a hindrance when you’re your own boss and find…
It has been around a month and a half since I launched my shiny new Substack. Previously, I’d had a science fiction and fantasy newsletter for a month and it got me one whole subscriber. She was a nice older lady, who had no real interest in either the sci-fi or fantasy genre but wanted…