Susanna Kearsley

now, if someone wants to write about the unstoppable rise of present tense, I'd be interested.

Moreover, 1) I don't actually believe that most people pay a great deal of attention to POV, to the point that I bet they couldn't tell you which it was when they close the book, and 2) I don't need commentary on romance from someone who needs to shoehorn in that they're reading Dostoevksy.

I might be more willing to take this seriously if the author of the piece had interviewed more than one (1) pro-first-person general reader, or if that reader did not in fact read books in 3rd despite preference, or if the author's disdain for romance and fanfic didn't drip off the page.

"readers ... often demand that authors render them to their precise specifications: first person, with a fixed perspective, no omniscient lapses allowed. I have had readers come up to me at book signings and say, to my face, ‘I won’t read this book of yours because it’s in third person.'"

Mmm hmm

We already knew these people had no shame. Nothing's changed.

Purely from an IP law perspective, trying to "opt out" something that is at minimum a right of publicity issue and which has potential reputational issues for the involved experts is a bold move.

A very bold move.

A really really bold move.

I'm gonna bet Grammarly doesn't have in-house.

If they do, they should be yeeted into the sun. Yes, that requires extra energy, but the extra certainty is worth the investment.

I realize this is designed to drive me, specifically, insane, but AI models can do reasonable pastiche of any given writer or style of writing, and the problem becomes more obvious cumulatively. Thus, I'm not sure what the point of a quiz like this is*.

*-it is to drive me, specifically, insane.

Two Working LEGO Printing Presses | LEGO® Ideas The development of mechanical printing changed how ideas move through the world. Once text and images could be printed rather than copied by hand, knowledge was…

Hi #EarlyModern Bluesky - did you know that someone brilliant has built working printing presses using Lego and they are trying to get enough supporters so that Lego will release it as a kit?

They look so cool!

beta.ideas.lego.com/product-idea...

Later in the draft, “expert review” offered up a piece of advice from Kara Swisher — the legendary Silicon Valley journalist and (as it so happens) my former landlord. I shared with her a screenshot of her “advice,” which was designed to be as deceptive as possible: her name appears in blue next to the text, with no suggestion that it is a paid hallucination from Grammarly. The “advice” was nothing like the blunt, clear-eyed, and hilarious suggestions the real Swisher often gives me. Instead, it suggested that we insert a narrative digression of dubious value. Grammarly told me the advice had been “inspired” by Swisher’s podcast. I asked Swisher what she made of her unpaid stand-in, and what she might say to the executives at Grammarly. She responded with characteristic restraint. “You rapacious information and identity thieves better get ready for me to go full McConaughey on you,” Swisher told me over text. “Also, you suck.”

I credit these comments from @karaswisher.bsky.social for the change

Grammarly declined my request to interview CEO Shishir Mehrotra today. But it told me that in response to criticisms, it will allow experts to opt out of the feature by emailing expertoptout@superhuman.com. The company gave me this statement over email: We’ve heard the feedback about this tool and appreciate the engagement from those who have taken the time to raise thoughtful questions about the functionality and the experts surfaced. We agree that the product experience can be improved for both users and experts. The agent was designed to help users discover influential perspectives and scholarship that add value to their work. We want the people behind those perspectives to have greater control over whether their name is used, while providing new ways for influential voices to reach new audiences. Our goal is to improve Expert Review to deliver this outcome.

NEWS: Grammarly tells me it will let "experts" like me opt out of having their names used against their will and for no compensation as part of its "expert review" feature www.platformer.news/grammarly-ex...

Basically, take the amount of money you think your favorite author gets, halve it, and then halve it again, and you have a number that's probably a lot closer to their actual earnings from writing.

"But I don't think they make that much!"

Halve that. Halve it again.

Not my fault. Kevin Brophy wore tight jeans and a leather jacket. And did a lot of loping.

At least the Norwegians are refusing to stand by and do nothing in the face of mass turdification
bsky.app/profile/disa...

Right? I’m 60 and for me, it’s Bowie, Billy Idol and Pat Benatar.

70.

Young authors writing older characters: 70 is not that old. Pls drop the nostalgia for Elvis & fear of smart phones. A 70-yo just left her corporate job a year ago & has been on the internet longer than you have. She isn’t afraid to drive on the freeway, she’s commuted for decades. 🙄

Seems fine
'But a Guardian investigation has shown the money isn’t necessarily real, the datacentres may not be new, the jobs are unaccounted for – and the supercomputer site 12 miles north of London is still a scaffolding yard.'

The guy who voices Master Chief from the video game "Halo," who was featured in a White House meme video showing missiles blowing people up in Iran, calls it "disgusting and juvenile war porn" wapo.st/3NhffGm

I don’t need to say it to you guys, but exceptions for equality mean you don’t actually believe in equality, understand the issue, or give an actual shit about people impacted

ok who else is trying to write through the horrors today for contractually bound reasons

this is like

the thesis statement of our times

This quote has been with me every day since I first heard it and I love her so much for saying it.

holy shit

Video appears to show U.S. cruise missile striking Iranian school compound The ten second video was released by Iranian state media and directly contradicts statements made by President Trump, who said Iran was responsible for the strike.

The ten second video was released by Iranian state media and directly contradicts statements made by President Trump, who said Iran was responsible for the strike. n.pr/4aVMqZi

Building collapses at Glasgow Central Station as fire causes major disruption Dozens of services have since been cancelled and the station will be closed until further notice.

Coverage on BBC.

Fire confirmed to have started in a vape shop this afternoon. The whole row is gutted and collapsing. It looks as though the fire brigade are struggling just to contain the fire.

www.bbc.co.uk/news/live/cd...

I want to do a survey “what tense/POV is your favorite book in?” and see how many people can actually remember.

This whole thing reminds me of what my literary nonfiction program chair told me long (LONG) ago: If you want to write about something you see as a subculture, you have to take the subculture seriously, or YOU end up looking bad.

WHAT EDITOR THOUGHT THIS WAS COOL? "She can read anything now. Ulysses, Middlemarch, The Power Broker—it’s all on the table. Or, as is her prerogative, Lee may very well stick to what she knows best: cute boys and cute girls falling in love over and over again, through God’s eyes or her own."

"My friends and I are what is known as a 'Difficult Book Club.' ... I’m currently adrift in The Recognitions, a 1,000-page tome by postmodern legend William Gaddis that requires a Ph.D.-level appreciation of Flemish painting to fully unlock its nuances."

sakjfhakf BAHAHAHAHAHA OK.