Ink and Algorithms: AI vs. Human Writing

I wanted to test the mettle of AI, so as an experiment I fed Microsoft Copilot the blurb from my novel, The Changeling King. Here is the original prompt complete with the text of my blurb: Write me a chapter of a fantasy story using this blurb: At the height of the Age of the […]

The Influence of AI on Writing: Current Trends and Future Impact

I’ve been meaning to write this post for a while now, but wanted to allow my thoughts on the matter to crystalise a little bit before committing words to digital paper. AI is here. Its been here for a while now but its finally becoming common place in the public domain. Understandably, its making some […]

A Man of Focus

This is my yearly excuse piece on why I haven’t written any new fiction in ages. Same excuse as last year, I’m still working on my PhD. Its started to dray a little bit, and there are plenty of distractions around for me to happily procrastinate with. I need to be more like the guy […]

Ramadan 2024 WK4

In the previous weeks, I have looked at my daily routines during Ramadan, the social and communal elements, and then at the physical benefits of fasting for 30 days. This week, I want to focus on spirituality. Spirituality is difficult to quantify or qualify as its intangible and speaks of an inner life. Nobody can […]

Ramadan 2024 Wk1

The first week of Ramadan 2024 is nearly done. My days have been pretty hectic with very little downtime. I start the morning at 4am to eat breakfast (Sehri) before first light. Usually, breakfast consists of a few dates (Palestinian Medjoul are my current go to dates), a cinnamon bagel and a cup of coffee. […]

We Are Living in a Dystopian World

There was a time when we used to read dystopian fiction as if it was a crystal ball that could reveal potential pitfalls of a future gone wrong. There are the classics like George Orwell’s 1984, Aldous Huxley’s Brave New World and Philip K. Dick’s Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep, as well as newer […]

Gaza

I woke up last night around 3am, gripped by a nameless fear. Unbidden the following words entered my mind: When the missiles stop fallingAnd the tanks stop rollingWhen the fathers stops callingAnd the mothers stop wailingWhen the orphans realise nobody’s comingAnd the last building stops crumblingThe sound that is most deafeningIs the silence were once […]

6 Hacks for Writer’s Block

Writer’s block, two words every writer dreads. It’s something that all writers deal with at various points in their lives and during projects. There’s hundreds of articles that define what it is and why you may have it. It’s when you feel stuck and unable to put clear thoughts onto the page. It’s because of […]

COVID DIARY: A Year of Fear

It has now been a full year since we went into the first lockdown. People were nervous and anxious about what this strange new world would be like. A world behind locked doors, Internet grocery shopping, home exercise and (possibly the worst) home schooling. Two weeks in and we started to hear stories about dolphins […]

COVID DIARY: DAY 356 Back to School

It’s been over a week since I got vaccinated. No further side effects beyond the cold shoulder and the flu(ish) symptoms for a day. I feel well (overweight, but well). The vaccine seems safe enough to me. I’m still shielding but the rest of the family is back to school. My son has gone back […]