I’ve been listening to some AI things (stories? podcast? audio short stories?) and I’ve noticed something very strange: They use the words “specific” and “particular” a lot. They’re not used incorrectly, just so often. What makes that strange is that these AIs are trained on our data. We don’t use those words so frequently. WhyContinue reading “Specific and Particular”
Author Archives: Mark
My Competition – Two
Another “two” post. Unlike the first one, this one isn’t awful. The cover image is a link. Note that the cover checks all the boxes: Weapons, Something that Glows, Monsters, Color, Not Photo-Realistic, and Serif font (sort of). (The lighting is wrong; there’s another light source about four feet above and ten feet forward ofContinue reading “My Competition – Two”
Feedback Two
I should just start out numbering all posts. I always seem to write at least a second one. Anyway… The back and forth between Luke and Tom, especially at the start of the book seems… off? I can’t describe it. It doesn’t flow well. Oddly the conversations Luke has with other people are better. IContinue reading “Feedback Two”
Town Defense
I will happily admit that I don’t understand how towns and modern warfare work together. From what I’ve read, it seems ridiculous, which means that I’m certainly missing something. Thankfully, that problem doesn’t matter, here. The “biker gang attacks town” idea has encountered the agency problem. Our good townsfolk are not going to be willingContinue reading “Town Defense”
What is Plot?
I’m sure there are plenty of books about it and several AIs are standing by ready to answer the question, but that’s not helpful for internalizing it. Somewhere in all these writing posts, I’m sure I’ve mentioned this before, but I realized something years ago: All my favorite TV shows are layered. There’s a showContinue reading “What is Plot?”
Feeding the Dungeon
I need to toss some people into the dungeon to feed it. The dungeon doesn’t care who but our intrepid heroes do. That means I need a couple/few bad guys. There are plenty of places around to find them. An obvious possibility: People in jail (for something serious, of course). There are problems with that.Continue reading “Feeding the Dungeon”
Balance of Power
LitRPG universes generally survive due to Mutually Assured Destruction. When you’ve got people – and “not that many” is literally billions in a multiverse of any size – who can sterilize planets and blow up stars, something needs to keep them in check. The answer is usually “a coalition will gang up on you andContinue reading “Balance of Power”
Learning 2 Bake From Scratch – LXXXVII
Sweet Cherry Pie The interesting thing about this one is the crust. I used half butter and half lard. The crust is much improved. It didn’t need a chisel to be sliced. I think maybe 2/3 butter, 1/3 lard, though. It’s a bit “sandy”. The filling is just cherries with one grated apple. I haveContinue reading “Learning 2 Bake From Scratch – LXXXVII”
Agency
One of my pet peeves with humans is that they deny each other agency. The “I’m not going to tell her to protect her” trope is ridiculously common in fiction and it’s not uncommon in real life. Everyone has agency. They should be allowed to make their own decisions, even (or perhaps “especially”) if IContinue reading “Agency”
Self Sufficient – Peas
That’s a five foot (about) row of peas. I planted them on 10 May. It’s now seven weeks later. I picked about a quarter of them yesterday. It was two small servings. That means eight serving in five feet, let’s round that to four feet for an even 2 servings per foot, which could probablyContinue reading “Self Sufficient – Peas”
Marked Up 