My Writing Endeavours Part Three

Welcome back to my unprofessional yet eager writing exercises with U3A The Writers Collective based in Brisbane, Australia. Each week, give or take, I will post a short story which I have written to read out in our group. The theme comes from our prompt Word of the Week. Each writer gets the opportunity, at least once, to chose the Word of the Week.

This time, I have departed from my usual short story and have written script dialogue. The formatting, layout and presentation may not be to industry standard but I enjoyed writing it.
With thanks to the best playwright of them all, Mr W. Shakespeare.

THE WRITERS COLLECTIVE HOMEWORK MARCH 2026

WORD THEME: Plot
TITLE: ‘Lost The Plot’
SETTING: Old church hall am-dram stage rehearsal
CAST: Fran, Angelo, Elizabeth, Stage Crew
DRAFT: Version One
FONT: Courier New, 12-point
WORDCOUNT: 252
AI Free Zone

~~ACT ONE SCENE ONE~~

Fran: (thinks) I remember the time when Angelo had lost the plot half way through the second act…

She says (shouts) “For heaven’s sake, man, we’ve been through this a hundred times. Lola gives you a hug and you walk away. You do not apologise!”

Angelo: (shrugs) “But she is sad and lonely.”

Fran: (through clenched teeth) “That’s the whole idea. You are leaving her and going to Spain. Of course she will be sad, but comfort is not where the plot is taking us at this stage in our rehearsals. Okay?”

Angelo: (nods) “Okay.”
He leans over and pats Elizabeth on the arm.

Elizabeth: (gives Angelo a wan smile, quick shrug to Fran)
“Can we do it again please?”

Fran: (firm) “Okay, okay, take it from when Lola tells you she will not visit you in Spain.”

Angelo: (a wail) Angelo begins sniffling. He grapples in his pocket for handkerchief. “I can’t go on like this. My one true love has rejected me, pushed me aside for someone new.”

Elizabeth: (smile) “That someone new will be very, very new because I am having a baby.”

Audience of five: director, producer, stage manager, lighting technician, repetiteur, erupt into cheers and whistles.

Angelo: (bemused) thinks everyone has lost the plot.
He glances over at Elizabeth and she is calm, smiling.

Angelo: (shock) “Is this true, wife?”

Elizabeth: (nods, smiles) “Yes, husband, it is true.”

~~END~~

Author Note: This scene is not part of an original performance.
It is a take on the more usual ring-and-surprise marriage proposal.
Rehearsal ended 10pm with coffee and cake at Director’s house.
💗 © Gretchen Bernet-Ward 2026

Violin rehearsal prior to a preview of ‘Lost The Plot’ a stage play never actually performed.
GOMA © image Gretchen Bernet-Ward 2026

National Simultaneous Storytime 2026!

Remember your favourite childhood books? Please make a note that on Wednesday 27th May 2026 at 12.00noon AEST, millions of children, parents, teachers, and library lovers across Australia will come together to read Luna Roo the Kangaroo Baller at the same time.
So much reading fun that I wanted to give it a special mention.
Please mark the date, ready to sit down with young readers at home, school or local library to read this book together!
Last year over 2.2 Million participants were part of National Simultaneous Storytime. Could this year be even bigger? Be part of something very special and join in the free fun wherever you live in Australia. GBW.

My Writing Endeavours Part Two

Welcome back to my unprofessional yet eager writing exercises with U3A The Writers Collective based in Brisbane, Australia. Each week I will post a short story which I have written to read out in our group. The theme comes from our prompt Word of the Week. Each writer gets the opportunity, at least once, to chose the Word of the Week. This story is basically a memoir piece from my early years and yet to be read to The Collective. Also, at 475 words it is well over our set wordcount.

PHILLIP ISLAND REMEMBERED
Unlocking the Past

Back in the 1960s Phillip Island off mainland Victoria seemed to me, a young girl, to be a million miles away from civilisation. It was a very long uneventful drive way-back then but now in 2026 only one hour fifty minutes (142 km) on a wide motorway.
Access was from the mainland is via Newhaven and we drove across the original wooden San Remo bridge onto the island, bouncing in our seats with excitement. Looking to the right there were holiday camping sites which sat among the tea-trees and scrubby saltbushes. To the left were sand dunes and the blue, blue sea. In many places the road was sand and gravel but small houses had started to pop up so the narrow main road had a reasonably better surface than my father’s younger days. I don’t remember the small village of Cowes but no doubt today it has the obligatory coffee shops, supermarket and mod cons. There were always small fishing boats bobbing in safe havens and people fishing on the only pier I can remember.
The native animals and bushland was intacked back then and you could see Koalas in the gumtrees on either side of the road but they were high up and usually sleeping. Windows down, my brother spotted a brownish koala in the fork of a eucalypt tree watching us from one sleepy eye. My father craned his neck peering through the windscreen to see it. The car tyre hit a pothole, the vehicle slewed to the left and crashed into the tree. The koala did not blink. Whereas my mother started shouting. I was embarrassed that we had done such an undignified thing and my brother wanted to take a photograph of the whole incident with his little black and white camera.
No other vehicles were around and we were able to drive away unscathed except for the ding in the front left mudguard. I remember we found a picnic spot to eat our packed lunch of sandwiches, fruit and thermos flask tea then drove to Cape Woolamai, a rugged surfing beach with gritty sand, squalling seagulls and huge curling waves which sent salt spray into the wind.
I can recall later visiting the dusk parade of Fairy Penguins (Eudyptula minor) coming up the beach to their burrows in the sand dunes, no lights, no crowds, just small penguins going home for the evening.
Regrettably here was no mention of the local indigenous people and I am now aware that the social history of Phillip Island dates back over 40,000 years to the Bunurong people, the original inhabitants of the Western Port region. Not long ago I was appalled to discover that Phillip Island hosts car and motorcycle events on the Phillip Island Grand Prix Circuit. An even more tragic outcome, this time for the native plants and wildlife.
Unbeknown to me, our family jaunt around Phillip Island was probably packed with nostalgia for my parents. My parents and grandparents loved the place, my grandfather FC Bernet was an artisan, a skilled craftsman and he painted and sketched many aspects of the island. My father and his siblings had spent school holidays there, swimming and fishing from the jetty beside the small boats, back when the area was relatively unknown and perhaps a more peaceful destination.
I would like to be brave and re-visit Phillip Island again one day.
May this precious piece of rock and sand be preserved forever.

💗 © Gretchen Bernet-Ward 2026

Personal collection – Campsite Phillip Island Victoria Australia
Artist of many skills FC Bernet c1950
Image © Gretchen Bernet-Ward 2026

National Simultaneous Storytime 2026!

Because my story remembers my childhood, please make a note that on Wednesday 27th May 2026 at 12.00noon AEST, millions of children, parents, teachers, and library lovers across Australia will come together to read Luna Roo the Kangaroo Baller at the same time.
So much reading fun that I wanted to give it a special mention.
Please mark the date, ready to sit down with young readers at home, school or local library to read this book together!
Last year over 2.2 Million participants were part of National Simultaneous Storytime. Could this year be even bigger? Be part of something very special and join in the free fun wherever you live in Australia. GBW.

My Writing Endeavours Part One

Perhaps you have read my previous posts about The U3A Writers Collective (Brisbane) 2026 but whether or not, I will now proceed to post my classroom endeavours once a week (or when the mood takes me) for your perusal, critique, enjoyment or just plain ‘Goodness me, I can write better than that!’
Since I do not activate a Comments Section, you will have to say your critique out loud to your partner, family, cat, dog, budgerigar, nextdoor neighbour or other writers in your group. As long as you keep writing!
So far I have attended February through to April 2026 and currently in Term Two coming to grips with being the incumbent Convenor/Tutor.
This position changes to someone else each term, and while not prestigious nor a paid position, it is a position to take seriously.
I suggest different writing methods, attending author events, entering short story competitions and keeping our classroom offerings to at least 300 words so everyone gets a chance to read.
I am tossing around introducing well-known authors books and styles for inspiration. Also Ekphrastic Method and Pomodoro Method but currently it may be a bridge too far.
Each week a different person chooses the Word Of The Week which we all have to write about then read out to The Collective.
Some members prefer to email their short stories ahead of meeting but most read out in class.
We are not very stringent with critiquing others work. Too sensitive, too shy, too lacking in confidence? Don’t want to offend? Maybe none but possibly all of these reasons. We really do have to overcome this otherwise we are just choosing a writing prompt word and reading nice short stories to each other each week.
By the way Captain James Cook is the man in my photograph, he sailed in the Endeavour and did a lot of charting, plotting and writing. He was not the first person to ‘discover’ Australia but he sailed widely and spun a good yarn.

THE WRITERS COLLECTIVE HOMEWORK MARCH 2026
THEME WORD: Bounty
TITLE: ‘A Good Haul’
CHARACTERS: William, Emily
DRAFT: Version Two
FONT: Times New Roman
WORDCOUNT: 343
AI Free Zone

Every year William and his family attended The Royal Queensland Exhibition Show, colloquially known as Ekka. It was show-time when rural farmers came to town bringing their abundant produce and prize-winning animals to parade before thousands of city folk. It was always fun when a cow or horse kicked up its hooves and galloped towards the nearest exit.
William’s thoughts swirled. Many things would grab his attention like scary rides, food stalls, toffee apples and fairy floss, the prize-winning cakes, vigorous woodchopping, farming equipment, the dogs and bird judging, the baby animal pen and show-stopping events in the main arena.
However, this year was different. William was now a teenager and he didn’t want to attend the Ekka with his family. He had asked classmate Emily if she would like to go with him. She said yes, so now he was a bundle of pre-Ekka nerves.
Also William was unsure if his pocket money would stretch enough to cover food for two. Could he afford his all-time favourite licorice from the Showbag Pavilion? In his opinion it was the best item in the whole of the Ekka.
He waited at the main gates for an hour because he had caught the bus too early and was relieved when Emily was dropped off by her older brother, eliminating an interrogation by her father.
“Hi Em,” he blushed.
Miraculously Emily was loaded with cash. “We can buy anything we want,” she laughed, eyes sparkling.
The quantity they accumulated was impressive by any standards and only after walking through every corrugated iron shed, eyeing every produce stall, did they stop to rest in the grandstand to reveal toys and devour sugary treats.
They shared hotdogs for lunch and drank Coca-Cola, regretting it later when bile rose in their throats on the spinning Cyclone.
William declined a ride home, scared he would be sick in their car.
Emily looked green but before she got into the vehicle she handed him a licorice showbag. The bounty had lost its attraction but her smile said there would be other days.

💗 © Gretchen Bernet-Ward 2026

Information Swamp Sink or Swim

Today’s world, our world, is more connected than ever before. I really don’t need to list the ways we are, but basically written words still survive (should survive) among the many electronic devices and ways to contact family, friends, associates, writers, businesses, deliveries, entertainment, leisure time, sport, gaming, education, medical, self-help, the list is endless and it’s sink or swim.

Here is my Weekly Whinge and Whine about the World:

I like the internet, but it’s not like picking up a newspaper or opening a letter. With new online contacts and sites popping up every day, readers need to be discerning and check validity. Every website clicked will track you, send you emails, log your details for future reference, etc. Personally I dislike this insidious spreading of my personal details but often there is no way around it to make a website entry function correctly. Then I have to unsubscribe.

Not all connections work, e.g. mobile phone confirmation where you are required to tap the square Y or N and hope for the best. No personal contact, no confirmation personal or otherwise, in fact according to my work ethic no human has had a hand in my recent online booking even when it will involve many of my hard-earned dollars. Impersonal website contact and auto-generated emails make me nervous. Especially when there is no human follow up to my enquiries.

Is this accepted business practice now? Total reliance on electronics? How secure is the safety for my personal data? And that coup de grâce (death blow) of total silence bothers me. That ‘no response’ attitude is weak in this internet connected world. Should I try again, follow it up again, give this supposedly reputable company my money? If not, that means here I go again, wasting time searching, searching, for a company with good human office staff (e.g. brain cells) and a credible work ethic. Ditch the Y and N. It’s impolite.

💗 © Gretchen Bernet-Ward 2026

Waiting, waiting, waiting. © *image Gretchen Bernet-Ward 2024*

My New Year Future Prediction

**May you soar to great heights in the New Year 2026**
*Abian window washers Brisbane City © image Gretchen Bernet-Ward 2023*

An author researches background facts and yet most students cringe at the word ‘research’ because it means hours of time drained by facts, figures and fundamentals which are as dry as woodchips. Now I am ‘older’ and ‘more mature’ I realise that apart from travel this is the best and perhaps only honest way to get to know our big wide world. My father was an advocate, as was most of my family, for that immortal volume The Dictionary.

Everything was in The Dictionary, well, almost everything you wanted to know was contained in The Dictionary. Of course, newspapers were also a source of information but often lacking in credibility and more on the side of sensationalism than facts. Television was, and still is, a different source of knowledge. Here today I will not venture down the rabbit hole of the World Wide Web, computers, electronic devices and mobile phones, but I will go
‘so last century’.

My family owns big beautiful well-used old dictionaries with faded gilt covers woefully out-of-date, plus a Readers Digest three-dictionary set named in gold lettering ‘Great Encyclopaedic Dictionary A-Z’ and various smaller versions of Australia’s unique Macquarie School Dictionary. No batteries no recharge.

**Are you bored yet?** © *image Gretchen Bernet-Ward 202*6

I still like reading what is call ‘non-fiction’ and there is always a dictionary or two on the bookshop shelves, not forgetting our local library, often translated into foreign languages, but naturally the go-to source is now the internet and Google and the ubiquitous AI. Speed or laziness?

Cars, indeed most forms of vehicular transport, will soon drive itself/themselves so likewise there will be no need to carry a drivers licence when you are microchipped.

Yes, I do believe human body microchips will be the next big thing. Officially named BEAM (no relation to ‘beam me up Scotty’) an acronym for Body Electronic Access Management, it will become a burgeoning industry supplying, among other things, microchip eye enhancement. This deal would include a swipe-or-tap bonus pack of wrist (LW) or (RW) microchips for personal data and an optional wrist cover (plastic or tattoo) designed on the style of an old-fashioned watch and intended to protect from bumps. Unfortunately wrist tug-and-swipe and/or kidnapping could become prevalent in some unhealthy countries.

The universal word for wealthy citizens will become Imp short for ‘implant’ and the mega-rich will be the first to go tap-tapping their wrist-chip at the Screen Of Life every morning, indeed throughout their day. For the average citizen (Chippers) there will be an official standard ID microchip in wrist or thumb for daily purchases and regular street screen interactions but these users will have a set daily limit on their chip. Employers will offer a workplace microchip for access, email and payday.

Most living things will be microchipped including The Trees since they are still in decline. Basically every living human in the outrageously wealthy countries of our world will have a microchip. Quite rapidly we will forget how to interact with each other live (as in for-real) and have no need to write or remember anything. Perhaps we can’t or won’t need to do anything, just exist in an artificial Earth version similar to Sir Thomas More’s Utopia. You’ve read my blogosphere version here first, what you predict may be entirely different!
Get writing!

From my window I look at the real world outside, previously a balmy sunshiny subtropical day sinking gracefully into late afternoon and now a soft evening.🌞🌴🌜

To my readers, family and friends Happy New Year 2026!
💗 © Gretchen Bernet-Ward 2026

**Who is watching you while you are watching your screen?**
*© image Gretchen Bernet-Ward 2019*

World Explorers or Destroyers of Ancient Cultures?

No disrespect to the descendants of these guys but they really did not know what they were messing with when they traversed vast lands, sailed the seven seas and crossed seemingly endless oceans, heading towards different lands and entirely different civilizations to anything they knew or expected to find. In so doing they named everything they saw with their own names without a thought for the culture, religion, tribal or family practices nor a sustainable way of living that preceded their arrival, possibly for thousands of years. The plan seemed to be “bemuse, plunder, kill if necessary and get plenty of provisions to get back home for much kudos and acclaim.” They certainly received acclaim and got their names in the history books.

Captain James Cook has, for a long long time, got his name plastered everywhere in Australia but surely it is time to look at new explorers, new pioneers in the area of 21st century preservation. Save what we have, not bulldoze it and pour more concrete. Keep big chunks of the natural land, places for native animals to remain safe, eco-friendly homes and lots of safe walking paths to minimize vehicle traffic. One of my pet dislikes is huge off-road vehicles and the advertisements where they race a 4-wheel-drive through creeks, over sand dunes and across rugged bushland without a care in the world for flora or fauna habitat. Off-road destruction by any type of wheel or tyre causes land erosion and damage is far greater than walking.

At least Captain James Cook and his fellow explorers, those navigators and discoverers of ancient civilisations and “new” worlds, got to see pristine environments of great wonder and people with different lifestyles. Such a shame that they were not open and broad-minded enough to work out a peaceful and harmonious meeting of minds instead of injury and death. Or not use the exploration funds on getting a good reputation back home and impressing the Royals by plundering and carting valuable goods back with them. In the case of those land explorers who came after Captain James Cook, mainly to grab as much acreage as they could, it would appear that they did not have a masterplan but brooked no argument or discussion from the original Indigenous first nations people.

So I say, much in all as I loved History in school, what I now know is a load of PR rubbish any 21st century spin-doctor would be proud to write. Explorers were first-line invaders like the lone black ant which gets into my kitchen, exploring the benchtops. Tough, inquisitive and not too afraid of me, it is no doubt the strongest and bravest in the hive to seek out a new food source. I cannot kill it, I put it outside in the hope it will explore further afield. I know in due course it will return with reinforcements.

Famous and incredibly brave explorers pictured top to bottom: Vasco da Gama, James Cook, Abel Tasman, Christopher Columbus, Ferdinand Magellan, Marco Polo.

Further information https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Age_of_Discovery

💗 Gretchen Bernet-Ward 2025

Holmes and Watson Live Auditions 2025

Attributed to Joseph Mallord William Turner (English 1775-1851)

Great excitement is being generated by the forthcoming stage production from Centenary Theatre Group featuring the famous crime duo Sherlock Holmes and Dr Watson.
Script by Jeffrey Hatcher.
Directed by Gary Kliger.
Audition time: 10am Saturday 23^rd August 2025
Place: Cnr Queenscroft and Halsbury Streets, Chelmer, Brisbane, Queensland Australia.

SYNOPSIS QUOTE:
The world is shocked! The famous detective Sherlock Holmes and his nemesis Moriarty are dead, locked in combat, both falling into the treacherous Reichenbach Falls. Holmes is dead — but is he? Dr Evan’s who runs an asylum on an island, a desolate location, has in his care three men who each claim to be the real Sherlock Holmes. Who can work out which of them is the real Holmes? Who else but Dr Watson. Surely Holmes’ best friend and confidant?

AND: That’s just the start! This is a twisty, teasing romp, designed to baffle and entertain in equal measure.
Come and be part of the theatre fun!

CAST REQUIRED:
Dr Evans – age open though probably best 30s to 50s.
Dr Watson – age open though same range suggested as for Evans.
Orderly at the asylum – age range the same.
Matron/The woman doubling up role – age open dazzle us.
Holmes 1 tall, thin, sharp featured classic Holmes.
Holmes 2 same as H1 but with long hair, moustache and beard.
Holmes 3 same as H1 but shaved head, pale face, glazed look.
The Inspector’s age is open and may double with a Holmes depending upon timing and costuming.
The Client wears a mask/doubles with Moriarty.
Moriarty age open seen in flashbacks.

STAGE NOTE:
There is fight scene choreography needed so anyone with stage combat skills come and make yourself known!
This is an escapade of the most exhilarating kind, perfect as the CTG end of year production.
They cannot wait to have you be a part of it!
So don’t forget Chelmer auditions 10am Saturday 23rd August 2025.

CONTACT:
The Director Gary Kliger on 0417 012 418
Or Julie Collins (Stage Manager) directorjules27@gmail.com
Twitter, Facebook, Website https://centenarytheatre.com.au/
Information CTG enquiry@centenarytheatre.com.au

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS:
Holmes & Watson audition details received from Centenary Theatre Group Inc, Queenscroft and Halsbury Streets, Chelmer, QLD 4068 Australia.
Sign up to get their opening night news direct.
https://centenarytheatre.com.au/faqs/

I will certainly book tickets when the box office opens.
💗 Gretchen Bernet-Ward 2025

Commissariat, Prison, Asylum? © image Gretchen Bernet-Ward 2022

Does Try Try Again Really Work?

Home baked Vanilla Cupcakes waiting for vanilla icing. Recipe ingredients are 2 3/4 cups plain flour, 2 tsp baking powder, 200g unsalted butter softened, 1 3/4 cups caster sugar, 4 eggs, 1 tsp vanilla extract, 1 cup milk. Preheat oven to 170C and line two muffin trays with cupcake papers.
Food by Dot Bernet © Photographs Gretchen Bernet-Ward 2025
See website for Vanilla Buttercream icing:
https://www.bestrecipes.com.au/recipe/vanilla-cupcakes-L6950.html

A wonderful children’s author I have known for some time, Cate Whittle, posted on her Substack page about success and failure and trying again. A cooking failure was turned around and she will experiment further to refine her recipe.
Read here: https://catewhittle.substack.com/p/having-your-cake

Home baked Red Velvet Cupcake with White Chocolate Icing. Food by Dot Bernet © Photographs Gretchen Bernet-Ward 2025

My reply to Cate was prompted by a happy memory and perhaps an old lesson people could use more often. ‘If at first you don’t succeed, try, try, again.‘ Here is what I wrote on Cate’s July Substack page:

“Lovely, just what I needed to read with my cuppa! Your warming newsletter brought back some lovely memories of my daughter’s first foray into cooking. Initially, her first attempts were not that good and one particular dish was a disaster. I said ‘Oh well, let’s try it again and see what happens‘ and fortunately it worked. She is now an excellent cook and will try most recipes including exotic international dishes which are beyond me. We keep a photo file of my daughter’s greatest triumphs. Recently she told me that ‘Let’s try it again‘ day was a pivotal moment for her cooking skills.

Looking forward to another version of your tea cake, Cate!”
Follow Cate’s literary life ‘A Cuppa With Cate’
Substack https://catewhittle.substack.com/

Food choice by Dot Bernet. Mandarin from our tree. Bread home-baked © Photographs Gretchen Bernet-Ward 2025

‘Happy 6th WordPress Blogaversary Cake’ First attempt Battenberg Cake by Dot Bernet © image Gretchen Bernet-Ward 2023

https://thoughtsbecomewords.com/2023/09/14/review-starberries-and-kee-cate-whittle/
https://catewhittle.substack.com/p/my-books

(1) Strawberries from greengrocer (2) Side Salad by Dot Bernet © Photographs Gretchen Bernet-Ward 2025

A Word for New Life

Our current era has been around for 60 million years and gradually comprised every species including mammals currently living on earth today – regardless of their circumstances or how much they sleep.

What is this Cenozoic Era? A time when Earth’s flora and fauna evolved into those of the present day.

The Cenozoic ‘New Life’ era can also be named ‘Age of Mammals’. Interestingly we humans often don’t care very well for other humans or our animal mammals do we?

My theory: This could be why past civilisations and animal species died out and are still disappearing.

Killing does not make for success in the future.

My slogan: Be kind to a mammal today!

Hazel outside her treehouse with some of her adorable Aussie mammalian friends. https://www.walkerbooks.com.au/book/9781760657260/

AI Found My Blog!

‘Searching’ Image © Gretchen Bernet-Ward 2022

Is this a good thing or a bad thing? I personally dislike AI on the grounds that it does not enhance knowledge, it takes away incentive to pursue and learn. Anyway, I was scanning my stats and noticed that twice I have been viewed and possibly, hopefully, ‘recommended’ by Artificial Intelligence as a source for two readers. Okay, that’s kind of flattering but what post of mine was viewed/recommended? Who was the reader? Will this offer any benefit to me?

Importantly, have I been acknowledged as the original source?

I guess once I put my work out there, it stands to reason it will be seen and read and maybe used, but we bloggers always acknowledge our source or include a website link especially to anything we re-post.

Artificial Intelligence (like most of the internet) has been launched on the world wide web without workable social, legal, ethical or cultural boundaries. Humankind may melt down into one homogenous mass. Perfect conditions for a maniacal dictator.

Lots of questions need to be answered, especially since an AI ‘borrower’ cannot be traced. At least not by me, so I may never know the source or where my material ends up. How can I truly know where my blog posts end up anyway? Certainly readers can cut and paste anything they like but they are genuine readers. I think a faceless nameless Artificial Intelligence is invasive until proven otherwise.

Ask a human novelist about AI rip-offs and AI non-existent royalties.
Meta allegedly used pirated books to train AI.
Jonathan Franzen, John Grisham, Jodi Picoult, George R.R. Martin and others have filed a class-action suit, still unresolved, alleging OpenAI Inc copied their works without permission or payment.
https://www.theguardian.com/books/2023/sep/20/authors-lawsuit-openai-george-rr-martin-john-grisham

Of course many people will benefit. There are quite a lot of AI sites out there, Gemini, Claude, Copilot, etc, the first being Perplexity AI. Also Character.ai is a neutral (as if!) language model chatbot service. Another human job lost? Of course, there are strong opinions on all of this and numerous disagreements for various reasons.

We humans like shortcuts more than memory retention. Ask anyone studying. Internet users can take a detour but often it can misdirect or misinform, as in the case of a person who used ChatGPT for a literary book club review and gave a dry, soulless analysis of the story. In my opinion, do your own homework.

I like to personally do my own web surfing and pick up interesting and genuinely human stuff along the way – alternatively I read words on real paper. Under my mythical (as in not real) Creepy or Could-be section, I imagine one future day an AI bot will activate a microchip implant in a school student’s brain which will find web logs (blogs) or text books and release classic volumes straight into their grey matter.

Unlike young generations before them who opened a real book and discovered the works of Charlotte Brontë, Charles Dickens, J.K. Rowling, John Marsden, Jackie French and Maurice Sendak, they will probably use an inside-head reading app. I certainly hope not but who knows!