In today’s Journal
* Quotes of the Day
* Welcome
* My Final Word on Generative AI
* Finished the Novel
* Of Interest
* The Numbers
Quotes of the Day
“If you want a happy ending, that depends, of course, on where you stop your story.” Orson Welles
“You gain strength, courage, and confidence by every experience in which you really stop to look fear in the face.” Eleanor Roosevelt
Welcome
Welcome to Philip T and to any other new subscribers or readers of the Journal. I hope you will find it useful.
Be sure to check out the Archives and other free downloads at the Journal website.
And here’s a video where Vin Zandri and I are chatting about writing and a bunch of other stuff.
My Final Word on Generative AI
See “Of Interest” for probably the last time I’ll ever mention AI in this Journal.
Whatever anyone thinks or believes and however they justify use of generative AI in the arts, only a human mind can or will ever create and convey a unique, original fiction of any length. This is not opinion. It is fact.
Those who use generative AI to “write” stories and novels are not writers. They are shysters and thieves. Yes, even if they admit to using AI to generate the story. Admitting they stole something or received or used stolen property does not make them less culpable, much less “cutting edge.”
“Generate” is the key word here. Using an automated spell checker or even a grammar checker (shudder) is not the same as generating content — the story — with AI.
Everything generated by chatbotGPT or any other AI platform is plagiarism, period. And theft is theft. If you disagree, please feel free to unsubscribe from this Journal. You will never find support here. Upright is not a matter of degree.
AI has tons of application in science and engineering, and I’m sure it can be very useful in those disciplines.
But not in the arts. Ever.
As for those who first created ways to steal other writers’ work to “train” AI programs in the first place, I hope with every fibre of my being they all end up in prison.
Finished the Novel
Not a lot to write about this morning and I’m anxious to get to the next novel, so a fairly short post today. I’m sure many of you are relieved. (grin)
About 4:30 yesterday afternoon (writing day 11) I ran a final spell check and shipped Blackwell Ops 11: More Jeremy Stiles off to my extremely talented first reader.
After I have received and applied Russ’ feedback, I’ve decided to give it away (free) to any of you would like to study it for suspense, tension, and pacing. NOTE: This offer is valid only for readers of the Journal. Please do not share it.
It doesn’t feel good to have it off my desk. Each morning as the story unfolded, I could barely wait to get out of bed and rush out to the Hovel to write. I’m grieving a little, and the only cure for that is to begin a new story and celebrate that beginning.
I hope to begin that process today with a new psychological suspense novel featuring a psychopath. (That’s all I know at this point. Not even the POV character’s name.)
(Why do so many writers celebrate ending a story or novel? I mean, I understand celebrating a milestone, but not that a story is over. In every other endeavor in life, we grieve endings and celebrate beginnings.)
Anyway, the novel wrapped at just under 40,000 words, so in keeping with the Blackwell Ops tradition and by the numbers I use to determine such things, it’s a “short novel.” (If you’d like my take on fiction lengths, email me at harveystanbrough@gmail.com.)
In writing it, I also wrote 1258 words that didn’t make it into the novel (cuts). Meh. As should always happen, the story became what it was meant to be, an accurate account of what happened and what the characters said and did in response as the story unfolded.
For my money, it’s the best I’ve written. Which, of course, is also as it should be.
My advice will always be to learn as you go. Always be faithful to the story that unfolds around you and the characters as you run through it with them, folks. There really is no better way.
Recommended Reading
Thanks to Alexander Teut
Pulp Jungle by Frank Gruber (look around, you can find copies)
Writing Secrets of the World’s Most Prolific Authors by Sean McLachlan
Talk with you again soon.
Of Interest
so you want to be a writer? THIS! Too good not to post again. This should be mandatory reading for all fiction writers.
Why a Little-Known Copyright Case May Shape the Future of AI I’m posting this only because it has to do with IP (intellectual property). See PG’s take.
The Numbers
The Journal……………………………… 810
Writing of Blackwell Ops 11: More Jeremy Stiles (novel)
Day 1…… 5214 words. To date…… 5214
Day 2…… 2657 words. To date…… 7871
Day 3…… 2481 words. To date…… 10352
Day 4…… 0923 words. To date…… 11275
Day 5…… 3424 words. To date…… 14699
Day 6…… 3649 words. To date…… 18348
Day 7…… 3334 words. To date…… 21682
Day 8…… 4633 words. To date…… 26315
Day 9…… 4761 words. To date…… 31076
Day 10…. 4109 words. To date…… 35185
Day 11…. 4726 words. To date…… 39911 (done)
Fiction for October…………………… 27314
Fiction for 2023………………………… 249582
Fiction since August 1………………… 135035
Nonfiction for October……………… 10420
Nonfiction for the year……………… 208760
Annual consumable words………… 458282
2023 Novels to Date……………………… 4
2023 Novellas to Date…………………… 0
2023 Short Stories to Date……………… 6
Novels (since Oct 19, 2014)…………… 75
Novellas (since Nov 1, 2015)…………… 9
Short stories (since Apr 15, 2014)…… 234
Short story collections…………………… 31
Disclaimer: I am a prolific professional fiction writer. On this blog I teach Writing Into the Dark and adherence to Heinlein’s Rules. Unreasoning fear and the myths of writing will slow your progress as a writer or stop you cold. I will never teach the myths on this blog.