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No, AI Does Not Learn Like a Human, and This Is Why

March 14, 2025
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One of the most common arguments you hear from fans of generative ‘AI’ is that it’s not plagiarizing people’s work, it’s just learning like a human learns. So I’m going to break down why that’s just not true, and why it can never be true, with the existing systems. Before I start, I’d like to make the distinction between…

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How the Creative Industries Are Built on Free Labour

January 8, 2025
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Let me tell you about the weird business that delivers art into our lives, and what it means for the long-term careers of artists. This piece was prompted by yet another newspaper article on how authors are paid, and the inevitable reactions from the ‘people-would-pay-if-it-was-worth-it-to-them’ brigade, but much of it applies to the arts more generally. First, it’s important…

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One Stubborn Book and the Changing Face of Publishing

December 9, 2024
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I wanted to talk about this, not just because the making of this book has been an interesting process, but also because it gives some insight into the growing overlap between traditional and self-publishing. Publishing books is an uncertain business for all but the tiniest proportion of authors, but the story of this particular book covers a period where…

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Masculinity Without the Toxic

August 26, 2024
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The problem with the barrage of mixed signals teenage boys receive about how to define masculinity, is that if you’re a mature, confident man, YOU’RE NOT CONSTANTLY RANTING ABOUT WHAT IT MEANS TO BE A MAN. That’s just not something most grown-ups do. This means that the strongest signals coming through online are from people who are going on…

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A Protective State of Mind or ‘We Are Not as Odd as You Think’

August 14, 2024
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I’m waiting for a new writing project to kick off, so I have some time to kill, and I want to talk about something that I think a lot of professional creative people will recognize, though each person might experience it differently. It’s the development of a state of mind that helps us deal with the essentially uncertain nature…

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‘Where Do You Get Your Ideas?’ AI and the Creative Industries

July 7, 2023
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Where do I even start with this? I’ve never been particularly worried that the world will be wiped out by the singularity, that Skynet and the Terminators will come for us in an onslaught of self-replicating, intelligent machines or Blade Runner’s more-human-than-humans. I’m more interested in how technology influences our lives in subtle ways now, who has control over…

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The Roald Dahl Debate: Editing Dead Authors

February 25, 2023
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Right then . . . the Roald Dahl thing, and Is It Ever Okay to Change a Dead Writer’s Text? I’m going to focus on the idea of the deceased writer, because living writers can change their own text if they want to, and if they don’t, they can fight their own corner. First, let me say that I…

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Celebrity Children’s Books – A Measured Response

December 20, 2022
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There always seems to be some controversy in the world of literature about the latest celebrity who’s decided to have a go at writing a book, or indeed an entire series, for children. It’s a trend that’s increasingly dominating the industry and is having an undeniable impact on those of us who do this for a living. I’ve never…

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Known to the Police? What I’ve Learned About Garda Vetting

November 18, 2022
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In just about any profession in Ireland, if you work with children or vulnerable people, you’ve probably had to go through a background check by the Gardaí – Ireland’s police force – but for children’s writers and illustrators, it can get especially complicated and repetitive. If you’ve been doing this long enough, you’ll know exactly what I mean. I’ve…

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Going Full-Time: Life as a Self-Employed Artist

June 11, 2022
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Ah, the things we do for love! I’ve seen a lot of different elements of this discussed on social media, but I thought it was time to write a proper breakdown of what you should expect if you decide to go full-time as a self-employed artist. This is aimed particularly at those of you in Ireland, and specifically writers,…

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