Dr Stew Hotston (he/him)

Fuck @officialgrammarly.bsky.social

Grammarly turned me into an AI editor against my will and I hate it The company tells Platformer it will let experts opt out of the controversial feature — but how different is it than what every other AI company is doing?

"Indeed, no one asked me for permission to use my name in this way, much less compensate me for whatever expert-reviewing labor my AI clone was apparently now doing on my behalf. (An annual subscription to Grammarly costs $144.)"

That is definitely grounds for a complaint.

I regard you as a vaguely weird friend.

there's been a baffling lack of self awareness in many of the rants on the subject by people who...well you'd think they'd know better.

dude, all the comfort to you

Book Review: The Misheard World by Aliya Whiteley A story of misdirection that refuses to be pinned down, even to the last A young woman, Elize, stuck in a dreary fortress far from the fro...

The Misheard World feels, at every moment, intensely carefully crafted, and it is a delight to be left unsettled by it, all the way to the last says @chloroformtea.bsky.social at the NOAF blog:

www.nerds-feather.com/2026/03/book...

Post your favourite LotR character. Weong answers only. Radagast the brown.

Blue Labour need to fight for their lives and lose (and this plaintive 'won't someone think of the conservative white men' piece is exactly that process starting at last. maybe). They are a political anachronism who want power more than they want to govern with equity and on behalf of everyone.

The NHS has now stopped all medication - puberty blockers and hormones - for trans minors. For most, unless they get drugs from other sources, this means a lifetime, in an increasingly violent and transphobic society, unable to pass. Under Wes Streeting NHS policy is harm and death for trans people.

A reminder that billionaires don’t care what happens to prices because they are *checks notes* billionaires. The oil price is irrelevant to rich people trying to wreck the world for the sake of their own ego.

"What are the experiences of people of color in the publishing industry?"

arleysorg.com/by-the-numbe...

Just finished The Many by Sylvain Neuvel and about ti start Between Two Fires by Christopher Buehlman.

lol. Yeah...teenage me has a lot to answer for. I definitely wanted that maximalist approach as a kid - I didn't really know any better.

the updating did two things for me - it reminded me that they were doing as good as they could back in the day but also shows that they give a shit now. It is funny, sweet and, above all, kind. two thumbs up.

Why am I talking about this? Because sometimes you might see only the activity or only the illness but the reality for many people in my life is that we are both things all at once and there is no part of me that needs hiding.

It has been a week. I've been quite active but I also lost two whole days midweek to fatigue/ME migraines. The challenge of navigating stress exacerbated chronic illness when your insides are burning to challenge the injustices you see all around.

Strong cheddar? Absolutely yes!

I mean it feels...symptomatic of the times we're in and I say that with much sadness.

hot take: thick cut marmalade and peanut butter together on toast is good actually.

sign up for more hot food takes*

*There were, in fact, no other hot food takes.

cool, well if you're able it's be good to catch up

Oh god yes. 100% yes.

in the same way that I don't need to watch 1950-60s movies to understand and enjoy movies made now.

@tadethompson.bsky.social are you at Eastercon? Asking for a me who would like to have a cup of something noncaffinated quietly somewhere if you were.

Hmmm. Let me have a think. @jamiebgall.co.uk feel free to hit me up direct if you have a brief you can share.

FT reporting that Axel Springer has bought the Telegraph…

The lower court findings in the US last year probably had more of an impact but it will definitely impact thinking going forward. But the public fury over it seems to have been decisive so far.

UK to delay difficult decisions on AI copyright rules Government goes back to drawing board after its proposals triggered backlash from creative industries

In the FT today: UK to delay difficult decisions on AI copyright rules. It may be behind a paywall, sorry, but confirms the consult results upended their original proposals. @chronicleflask.katday.com of interest - not gone away but means there’s more opp to influence final outcome

it's preoccupation isn't the same - not in language as you describe it, but it is very much about looking at social differentiation through social schema that use crime as a jumping off point and (in text) deliberately ignores the efficacy of such strategies while interrogating them metatextually .

is it reasonable to see this as a companion piece to Fríða Ísberg's, The Mark?