iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

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Melanie Walsh @mellymeldubs.bsky.social · 24/06/2026

The original WildChat authors made a website where you can explore all their ChatGPT-user conversations: wildvisualizer.com We made a viewer for only the fiction conversations so people can study how real users are generating fiction: ai-fiction-wild.com Heads up: it is very NSFW.

ai-fiction-wild.com

AI Fiction in the Wild

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Melanie Walsh @mellymeldubs.bsky.social · 24/06/2026

Excited to share this. @neel2112.bsky.social, @mariaa.bsky.social, and I analyzed 500K anonymous ChatGPT convos (shared w/ consent from WildChat) to see if people were generating fiction. We found tons of stories, fanfiction & erotica. Many users iterated on the same stories for days and weeks.

Screenshot of paper abstract that reads:

AI FICTION IN THE WILD Neel Gupta Maria Antoniak Melanie Walsh

Some professional authors are beginning to use AI tools to help produce their fiction writing. Are readers using AI to generate fiction, too? Drawing on over 500,000 anonymized, English-language ChatGPT-user conversations (Zhao et al.), we find that more than one third of the conversations involve some form of fiction generation—including original stories, roleplay, fanfiction, and erotica. This AI-generated fiction is notably dominated by power users. We identify common fiction generation patterns and profiles among these users, including what we call infinite story demanders, who repeatedly request and revise variations of the same or similar narratives over extended periods of time. We show that users especially gravitate toward fanfiction and erotica, and that they are broadly drawn to generic forms, repetition, immediacy, and niche combinations of story elements. Our findings motivate two theoretical provocations. First, we argue that AI technologies may lead to a shift in the conventional relationship between the author and reader, potentially producing what we call a solipsistic reader-writer, who both generates and consumes fiction within a closed conversational loop, interacting with a machine rather than a human other. Second, we note that LLMs enable interactivity, play, and permutation in ways that are seemingly pleasurable for users, raising questions about where AI will fit into contemporary storytelling and entertainment ecosystems. We situate these developments within broader transformations in literature and media, including self-publishing, fanfiction, and pornography, and suggest that AI-generated fiction shares structural affinities with on-demand, personalized, and repetitive cultural forms.

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Paula Krebs @paulakrebs.bsky.social · 23/06/2026

A big thank you to the NEH grantees who are getting their grants after all and who have reached out to us to thank us and, in some cases, to make donations in recognition of the work of the lawsuit. So glad you'll be able to do your projects after all. www.mla.org/About-Us/Sup...

mla.org

Donate to Funds That Support Particular Activities

MLA funds help defray the cost of convention travel for graduate students and underemployed members, support advocacy on behalf of contingent faculty members, promote the study and teaching of languag...

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Shannon Mattern @shannonmattern.bsky.social · 31/05/2026

Among the many lost opportunities I observed — repeatedly — across decades in the academy: how infrequently universities recognize or tap into resident experts and local knowledge. Faculty expertise is valued mostly as a funding magnet or PR opportunity; it's rarely seen as locally applicable.

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Matt Seybold @mattseybold.bsky.social · 19/05/2026

Hard to keep up with Kang's hackery. Probably not worth the trouble. But... The primary source for this story is Kevin Carey (who has never worked for a school). He has been an EdTech shill for decades, promoting a series of failed rollouts. His think tank is funded by technofeudalists.

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Deidre Lynch @drbibliomane.bsky.social · 14/05/2026

And the book stack for summer keeps growing (even as for me at least summer seems still just over the horizon in this never-ending semester).This week I also got this helpful, beautifully conceived new book by @samcohen.bsky.social. I'm excited to plan some of my fall semester teaching around it.

Cover of Banning Books in America: Not a How-To, edited by Samuel Cohen, published by Bloomsbury. The cover depicts a sadly depleted book case, emptied of most of the books.

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Laura Heffernan @laheffernan.bsky.social · 13/05/2026

For everyone trying to login to eGMS Reach to see their NEH message, it just says that they are notifying us of the court’s Opinion and Order — “NEH will update you with further information as it becomes available.”

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Danielle Spratt @dlspratt.bsky.social · 13/05/2026

Did we all just break the NEH/eGMS login system? Or is the slowness indicative of, well, how things are rn?

Message saying to log in to read a response to the recent ruling against termination of NEH grants.

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Scott Selisker @sselisker.bsky.social · 06/01/2026

New book going to press: *Character Networks in Contemporary U.S. Fiction.* It’s about social networks as context for—and formal element of—the novel. For contemporary lit, novel/narrative theory, DH, lit and sociology, network analysis crowds. Here’s what it’s about: (1/n)

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andy hines @andyhines.bsky.social · 22/12/2025

Sarah made an incredible index for University Keywords and highly highly recommend her work. What a gift to work with her!

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Yale Classics Library @yaleclassicslib.bsky.social · 19/12/2025

New The Papers of the Bibliographical Society of America Vol. 119, No. 4 (2025) www.journals.uchicago.edu/toc/pbsa/202... @chicagojournals.bsky.social @bibsocamer.bsky.social @jsench.bsky.social @wynkenhimself.bsky.social @laheffernan.bsky.social @rbuurma.bsky.social @amndw2.bsky.social

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Ryan Cordell @ryancordell.org · 06/11/2025

Job alert! @ischoolui.bsky.social is hiring in 4 areas this year Early literacies: illinois.csod.com/ux/ats/caree... Information behavior/HCI/UX: illinois.csod.com/ux/ats/caree... Information, Culture & Society: illinois.csod.com/ux/ats/caree... Open IS: illinois.csod.com/ux/ats/caree...

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naviyuk @naviyuk.bsky.social · 21/10/2025

hey if you’re seeing this please DONATE to Western Alaska Disaster Relief: alaskacf.fcsuite.com/erp/donate/c... Oh yeah cover reveal. And preorder link. And blurb the first and perhaps only. DID YOU DONATE TO WESTERN ALASKA DISASTER RELIEF YET? 🫶🏽🖤🦭🙏🏽🦅🙏🏽🖤 upittpress.org/books/978082...

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Ted Underwood @tedunderwood.com · 07/10/2025

The full announcement is now up at this link. Deadline still 31 Oct.

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Miriam Posner @miriamposner.com · 01/10/2025

UC faculty are fighting through the courts to save the UC system. Our funding has been swept by central admin. We can’t pay to travel or research. Every time we lecture we’re at risk of attacks by right-wing mobs. Fortunately the UC Regents are on the ball: they’re…finding new ways to discipline us.

The same is true for faculty extramural speech, which may be protected under APM - 010 only insofar as it is consistent with the standards of professional conduct set forth in APM - 015. The standard provided in APM - 015 allows for discipline only for conduct which is not justified by the faculty's ethical principles stated in APM
- 015 and which significantly impairs the University's central functions, as defined in APM - 015's preamble.
This analysis must recognize the particular context of the University as an environment that encourages free inquiry and the exchange of ideas and, as described in APM - 015, "seeks to provide and sustain an environment conducive to sharing, extending, and critically examining knowledge and values, and furthering the search for wisdom."
Faculty, like all University employees, are also entitled to First Amendment protection for speech on matters of public concern, but only insofar as the employee's expressive interests outweigh the University's interests in fulfilling its public service mission.

Coordination with UC Police Departments: Beginning in Fall 2025, the Systemwide Office of Civil Rights will coordinate on developing systemwide guidelines in partnership with the UC Police Departments for sharing information in all misconduct cases, including expressive activities cases.

Notices to Respondents of Proposed Range of Disciplinary Sanctions: The Chancellor already has authority to propose a range of disciplinary sanctions in the notice of proposed discipline under APM - 016. Pursuant to the authority already provided in APM - 016, beginning, in the Fall 2025 term, when a Chancellor issues a notice of proposed discipline, the notice should include a range of proposed disciplinary sanctions. Also, in Fall 2025, campuses should begin including the dates the administration is available to participate in a hearing, providing five (5) or more options, in their notices of proposed discipline.

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Ted Underwood @tedunderwood.com · 01/10/2025

I want this to be true so badly that I can’t trust myself: I have to refuse to believe it until I see a dotted line physically connecting the smoking gun to the body. If it were true the consequences would be huge.

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andy hines @andyhines.bsky.social · 09/09/2025

It's publication day for UNIVERSITY KEYWORDS. Across 27 sharp essays, the book offers a critical account of the political economy of US higher education, how it came to be structured this way, and how together we might build a better university together.

green and yellow cover of University Keywords, ed by Andy Hines

Table of contents for University Keywords

University: An Introduction, Andy Hines

Academic Freedom, Jennifer Ruth and Ellen Schrecker
Adjunct, Heather Steffen
Admissions, Scott Gelber
Alternative Institutions, Andy Hines and Eli Meyerhoff
Athletics, Wayne L. Black
Board of Trustees, Asheesh Siddique Kapur
Budget, Juan Pablo Pardo-Guerra
Campus, Davarian Baldwin
Classroom, Richard Simpson
Critical University Studies, Rana M. Jaleel, Isaac Kamola, and Heather Steffen
Debt, Eleni Schirmer and Jason Wozniak
Degree, Christopher Newfield
Discipline, Vineeta Singh
Diversity, p.s. kehal
EdTech, Annie McClanahan and Louise McCune
Endowment, Dennis M. Hogan
Entrepreneurship, Jesse Goldstein

Table of contents for university keywords

Fiction, Jeffrey J. Williams
Legislation, Elizabeth Tandy Shermer
Noncitizen Student, Abigail Boggs
Police, Yalile Suriel and Grace Watkins
Ranking, Jelena Brankovic and Stefan Wilbers
Revenue, Dan Nemser and Brian Whitener
Risk Management, Mattie Armstrong-Price
Sustainability, Kai Bosworth, Jesse Goldstein, Andy Hines, and Eli Meyerhoff
Title IX, Rana M. Jaleel
Union, Zach Schwartz-Weinstein

Appendix: Questions to Consider for Composing a Keywords Entry

Contributor Bios
Acknowledgments
Index

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Dan Sinykin @dan-sinnamon.bsky.social · 08/09/2025

If you're in or near Atlanta, or *super juiced* 😜 about close reading and love to travel, come to Close Reading for the Twenty-First Century: A Symposium at Emory University on Friday, November 7. And hear from these superstars...

A program for a close reading symposium at Emory University on November 7, 2025, in Room 208 in Convocation Hall, from 8:15 to 5:15, with breakfast, lunch, and panels on studying, teaching, and evaluating close reading, and close reading across the disciplines

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Dan Sinykin @dan-sinnamon.bsky.social · 05/09/2025

Extremely enthused to have Matt joining us to launch Close Reading for the Twenty-First Century with a star-studded symposium and Vandal Live! episode in November ✨

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Melanie Walsh @mellymeldubs.bsky.social · 03/07/2025

Me listening to the first 20 mins of this episode: wow they're scrutinizing something I co-wrote on a podcast hey they're scrutinizing something I co-wrote and not giving me any credit I am not a Spreadsheet Man!!!

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Matt Seybold @mattseybold.bsky.social · 01/07/2025

This one’s for the hardcore. But they’re gonna love it. @dan-sinnamon.bsky.social & I bicker! @rbuurma.bsky.social shocks @laheffernan.bsky.social with confession! @jdconnor.bsky.social outs the Hopkins Mafia! @manshel.bsky.social, Fred J in ‘77, & more! podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/t...

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eileen chengyin chow @chowleen.bsky.social · 20/06/2025

Suppose I say summer -Raymond Carver, “Hummingbird” (For Tess) From “A New Path to the Waterfall," completed in the last weeks of Carver's life and published posthumously #everynightapoem #summersolstice

HUMMINGBIRD
For Tess
Suppose I say summer,
write the word "hummingbird,"
put it in an envelope,
take it down the hill
to the box. When you open
my letter you will recall
those days and how much,
just how much, I love you.

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Kendra Albert @kendraserra.bsky.social · 13/06/2025

We made it to Friday! I'm going to share three tips on using Signal from someone who has been using it for both work and personal communications for...a long time.

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Paula Krebs @paulakrebs.bsky.social · 10/05/2025

I have discovered that lots of people who are not professional humanists are eager to help fund a lawsuit against the administration by professional humanists. Join us. Every $10 makes a difference. Tell your friends who want to do something.

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Nelson @dacostaramos.bsky.social · 02/05/2025

“An author ought to write for the youth of his own generation, the critics of the next, and the schoolmasters for ever afterward.” In this, he was wildly successful. High-school English didn’t make “Gatsby” great, but it has certainly kept it so.

newyorker.com

How “The Great Gatsby” Took Over High School

The classroom staple turns a hundred.

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Karin Wulf @kawulf.bsky.social · 30/04/2025

Who will staff and who will review? Preservation & Access like all program areas lost (almost all of their) staff? That’s in addition to wondering why grants already doing exactly this work were terminated.

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Hannah Alpert-Abrams @halperta.bsky.social · 29/04/2025

So relieved to see that Mellon will be providing emergency relief funding the US’s state and jurisdictional humanities councils. If I learned one thing during my years at NEH, it was how crucial these organizations are to our public humanities infrastructure. www.mellon.org/news/america...

mellon.org

Mellon Foundation

The Mellon Foundation makes grants to actively unlock the power in the arts and humanities that helps connect us all.

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Deidre Lynch @drbibliomane.bsky.social · 27/04/2025

It is so exciting that Tom's new 📘 will appear this summer. (Full disclosure: I am lucky enough to have the galleys!) For what other writer working today is in a position to tell us that they have "sprinkled" texts "throughout the book for their snuff box descriptions" & "references to Catherines"?😉

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Jason Rhody @jasonrhody.bsky.social · 08/04/2025

We've aggregated relevant @modernlanguage.bsky.social resources, including tips for NEH awardees, links to webinar recordings on threats to higher ed, MLA statements, & links to other resources. Share resources w/ us through the google form, and sign up for the first Strategy Session (April 22).

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Meredith Martin @mmvty.bsky.social · 22/04/2025

Today's the day! I invite close readers to see if they can find the places where I channeled the most rage into this project. It is supposed to make you uncomfortable. You are supposed to try to dismiss it as "praxis" vs. "theory" and then you are supposed to be convinced otherwise.

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Deidre Lynch @drbibliomane.bsky.social · 22/04/2025

Adding herewith to my (very) intermittent series, A JANE AUSTEN GUIDE TO FACULTY MEETINGS: "Female economy will do a great deal my Lord, but it cannot turn a small income into a large one."--The Watsons (Apposite at a time of catastrophic threats to funding for the humanities, here & everywhere ...)

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Josh Marshall @joshtpm.bsky.social · 15/04/2025

Working through these documents sent to grantees who had NEH grants terminated. So bizarre. They're like the Nigerian Prince version of grant terminations. They're not even sent from a government email but rather a onmicrosoft dot com address. So the Microsoft equivalent of a gmail account.

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Josh Marshall @joshtpm.bsky.social · 16/04/2025

A Nigerian Prince Canceled Your NEH Grant. No Really … talkingpointsmemo.com/edblog/a-nig...

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Eleanor Courtemanche @ecourtem.bsky.social · 18/04/2025

Apologies for cross-posting, but here’s some advice for people with NEH grants

Rosemary G Feal
27m • ₫8
From Leah Middlebrook:
NEH related news:
If you are on a rescinded grant, take a look at the terms and conditions of the letter you signed when you accepted the award.
Everyone I have been talking to has language in there stating that if the grant is terminated or rescinded, the recipient has 30 days to send in an end-of-fellowship/grant report (I don't have the language in front of me, but go back and take a look). Awardees also have 30 days to appeal.
We're 2 weeks in, so the deadline is in about 2 weeks. If you haven't talked this matter over with the sponsored projects office on your campus, it's a good idea to do that asap.
A few items to talk over: filing a FOIA request for notes/materials relevant to the termination; the question of whether filing a final report precludes resumption of the grant; question of whether to take the time away from your research to do the work of filing an appeal (some sponsored projects offices are doing that work for affected faculty and researchers).
This is what I gleaned from a recent conversation.
All corrections/caveats welcome in the comments

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andy hines @andyhines.bsky.social · 09/04/2025

JOB! The Aydelotte Foundation at Swarthmore College is hiring a technology and social justice postdoctoral fellow to begin fall 2025. More details in the linked posting on interfolio. Please share widely and I'm happy to answer questions if you have them. apply.interfolio.com/165877

apply.interfolio.com

Apply - Interfolio {{$ctrl.$state.data.pageTitle}} - Apply - Interfolio

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Katina Rogers @katinalynn.bsky.social · 07/04/2025

🔥 📝 FOLKS — I'm working on a piece for Slate about the NEH cuts. If you've been affected in ANY way and would be willing to talk with me, please message me! I would love to learn more and include your story. katina [at] katinarogers [dot] com #humanities #neh #education #highered

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Asheesh Kapur Siddique @asheeshks.org · 08/04/2025

It's hard to really wrap your head around the scale of it, but Trump has now cancelled almost all NEH funding programs. Such terrible times. Thinking of the many dedicated staff members at the NEH who are losing their jobs and seeing programs they've worked so hard to build and maintain being cut.

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Anna Kornbluh @annakornbluh.bsky.social · 08/04/2025

policy people! apropos the minuscule budget for NEH, whose theft is nonetheless devastating: looking for sources (academic, perhaps journalistic) that array data for internationally comparing state funding for media, arts, and culture grateful for links, citations, names, graphs!

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Karin Wulf @kawulf.bsky.social · 04/04/2025

A clearinghouse for gathering info on NEH (see second post) and a toolkit for advocacy. ⬇️

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AAUP @aaup.org · 04/04/2025

DOGE has now turned its sights on a small agency that provides support for community programs in every state. The National Endowment for the Humanities, which funds museums, historic sites, libraries, educators and media outlets across the country, has been told to slash staff by 70-80 percent.🧵

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Perry Collins @perrycollins.bsky.social · 03/04/2025

PSA: NEH awardees should always feel free to email chairsoffice@neh.gov with questions, feedback, or concerns. You can also message staff and access (NEH-generated) files in eGMS Reach reach.neh.gov. Any of this correspondence is subject to FOIA.

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kottke.org @kottke.org · 05/02/2025

A Programming Note. “I have pivoted to posting almost exclusively about the coup happening in the United States right now. My focus will be on this crisis for the foreseeable future.” [kottke.org]

kottke.org

A Programming Note

Hey, everyone. I just wanted to update you on what’s been happening here at KDO HQ. As you might have noticed (and if my inbox is any indication, you have), I have pivoted to posting almost exclusively about the coup hap

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