iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Stephen Ullstrom @stephenullstrom.bsky.social · 16/10/2025

Thanks for stopping by. I am currently not active on Bluesky or on any social media. But if you’d like to connect, there are other ways! You can contact me through my website or sign up for my newsletter, Indexing Matters. www.stephenullstrom.com/contact www.stephenullstrom.com/indexing-mat...

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Stephen Ullstrom @stephenullstrom.bsky.social · 10/07/2025

Congrats! Great to see you are still at it.

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Reposted by Stephen Ullstrom

Editorial Freelancers Association @efafreelancers.bsky.social · 02/07/2025

Learn what a non-indexer should know about indexing with #EFA instructor Jolanta Komornicka on August 14 at 5 p.m. ET in her live webinar "Indexes Explained for Non-Indexers." Will you be there?

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Stephen Ullstrom @stephenullstrom.bsky.social · 14/06/2025

Yes, that could be another possibility.

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Stephen Ullstrom @stephenullstrom.bsky.social · 10/06/2025

True, best not to blame. I am simply so surprised at the error. The book is beautifully written and produced otherwise. And I agree the author or an editor should have noticed it too. Almost like the error was intentional.

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Stephen Ullstrom @stephenullstrom.bsky.social · 08/06/2025

Or maybe the indexer was overruled. That happens too. But surely this is an error easily recognized, once pointed out?

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Stephen Ullstrom @stephenullstrom.bsky.social · 08/06/2025

I'm surprised, as that seems like information that should be common knowledge or would be easy to fact check. I'm also not sure what to think about the indexer. I mean, they followed the text (a good practice), but also apparently failed to flag the mistake (also a good practice). #IndexSky

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Stephen Ullstrom @stephenullstrom.bsky.social · 08/06/2025

Noticed today a reference, in a book I'm reading, to "Pope Francis II," referring to the recently deceased pontiff. Except that is incorrect. Pope Francis was the first pope to use that name, and he did not use a regnal number. I checked the index and there it is, again: "Francis II, Pope."

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Stephen Ullstrom @stephenullstrom.bsky.social · 20/04/2025

Christ is Risen! A beautiful sermon. Always a treat to hear proclaimed at the paschal liturgy.

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Stephen Ullstrom @stephenullstrom.bsky.social · 06/04/2025

I agree. And now I really need to deliver a great index!

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Stephen Ullstrom @stephenullstrom.bsky.social · 06/04/2025

I won't attend, alas, as the conference is too far away for me to reasonably travel. But I do appreciate the invite. It's nice, as a freelancer working on the book, to be recognized.

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Stephen Ullstrom @stephenullstrom.bsky.social · 06/04/2025

So I was just invited to a conference that will revolve around the book I will begin indexing next week. I've been invited to book launches before, but this is the first I've seen where the launch is an entire two-day conference. What fun! #IndexSky

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Stephen Ullstrom @stephenullstrom.bsky.social · 25/03/2025

I think the US lawsuits are only for Americans? I'll see what happens. I'm not aware of one in Canada right now.

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Stephen Ullstrom @stephenullstrom.bsky.social · 24/03/2025

Thanks, Jola. Sounds like there are a couple of class action lawsuits already underway. I'm curious to see how that plays out. This tool from The Atlantic just makes it all more visible, which is perhaps good as more people realize they are affected?

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Stephen Ullstrom @stephenullstrom.bsky.social · 21/03/2025

And is all this training really doing AI any good? Still not impressed by the writing and editing that generative AI produces. Perhaps there is value for AI somewhere, but it is not writing. Real humans only, please. 5/

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Stephen Ullstrom @stephenullstrom.bsky.social · 21/03/2025

Another takeaway: it is not just the big-name authors affected by having their work stolen to train AI. Even nobodies like me writing about a niche professional program are being caught up. 4/

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Stephen Ullstrom @stephenullstrom.bsky.social · 21/03/2025

I feel somewhat resigned to companies like Meta getting ahold of my writings to train their AIs. I mean, what am I going to do against Meta? Though I suppose that is how they justify stealing people's work, knowing that the average person lacks the resources to fight back. 3/

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Stephen Ullstrom @stephenullstrom.bsky.social · 21/03/2025

It looks like Meta has also pirated other Indexer articles, as well as a few books on indexing. Obviously I didn't consent to Meta using my writing. 2/

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Stephen Ullstrom @stephenullstrom.bsky.social · 21/03/2025

So I looked up my name and it looks like Meta has pirated my article on the Mary Newberry Mentorship Program to train their AI. Why that article and not others I have published in The Indexer? Maybe Meta will get to my other articles later. 1/ #IndexSky www.theatlantic.com/technology/a...

theatlantic.com

Search LibGen, the Pirated-Books Database That Meta Used to Train AI

Millions of books and scientific papers are captured in the collection’s current iteration.

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Reposted by Stephen Ullstrom

Jola (Close Reading) @closereadingie.bsky.social · 18/03/2025

Curious about indexing? I’m teaching Introduction to Book Indexing thru Library Juice Academy. Starts April 7. It may only be 6 weeks, but it’s an intensive course designed to teach you what you need to get started as an indexer. #IndexSky #edibuddies libraryjuiceacademy.com/shop/course/...

libraryjuiceacademy.com

Introduction to Book Indexing - Library Juice Academy

The purpose of the course is to prepare you for a career as an indexer—whether you wish to be one full-time or as a supplement to your library career. This six-week course will introduce you to the f...

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Stephen Ullstrom @stephenullstrom.bsky.social · 15/03/2025

It's out! Enid Zafran and I take a look at what indexers currently think about embedded indexing. I'm already curious to see how the situation will change in ten years.

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Stephen Ullstrom @stephenullstrom.bsky.social · 05/03/2025

Thanks for the mention! I appreciate it.

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Stephen Ullstrom @stephenullstrom.bsky.social · 03/03/2025

Sale is part of Smashwords' annual Read an Ebook Week, and ends Sunday, March 8. And if I may, please support Smashwords if you enjoy ebooks. In my experience, Smashwords pays the highest royalties and pays the quickest of all the online retailers. I love all their support for indie authors.

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Stephen Ullstrom @stephenullstrom.bsky.social · 03/03/2025

Sale time! The ebook version of my introduction, Book Indexing: A Step-by-Step Guide, is 50% off at Smashwords. I wrote this book for all those curious about indexing, or just starting their indexing careers. I think you'd be hard pressed to learn at a cheaper price. #IndexSky buff.ly/HvA41z8

smashwords.com

Book Indexing: A Step-by-Step Guide

This book teaches you how to confidently write an excellent index. Written for authors, editors, and the index-curious, and with dozens of examples from the author's own work as a professional…

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Stephen Ullstrom @stephenullstrom.bsky.social · 23/02/2025

I imagine the publisher thinking, "Screw it! The book is long enough and no one is going to use the TOC anyway." Which may well be true. Also, no index, which is a shame for a book with about 650 indexable pages. *Sigh Otherwise, a beautifully designed book.

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Stephen Ullstrom @stephenullstrom.bsky.social · 23/02/2025

That's odd. Bought a book today and discovered it lacks a table of contents. Granted, the book is a diary that hasn't been divided into chapters, but there is a foreword and acknowledgements. I also don't see any spare pages that could have been turned into a TOC.

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Stephen Ullstrom @stephenullstrom.bsky.social · 15/02/2025

Great to hear! Glad you were able to do it.

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Stephen Ullstrom @stephenullstrom.bsky.social · 04/02/2025

Dear Business, If you ask me to call to make an appointment, please either answer the phone or have a voicemail inbox that isn't perpetually full. Or answer your emails. I shouldn't need to come in person. Sincerely, A customer now wondering if this is the best option after all

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Stephen Ullstrom @stephenullstrom.bsky.social · 31/01/2025

While indexing today, was surprised to come across someone I knew (now deceased). Didn't like his politics nor his sense of righteous entitlement, but damn, he made an impact. My grandparents worked with him fifty-odd years ago and I unexpectedly shared a church with him in his old age. #IndexSky

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Stephen Ullstrom @stephenullstrom.bsky.social · 28/01/2025

Out of curiosity I asked the AI tool on my computer to rewrite something I wrote. The result was very generic and strangely promotional in a way that was unnecessary. It didn't feel like me at all. Which is, perhaps, a roundabout way to recognize that I have a writing voice and being unique is good.

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Stephen Ullstrom @stephenullstrom.bsky.social · 21/01/2025

At least tomorrow is garbage day. I can put them with the recycling to be picked up.

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Stephen Ullstrom @stephenullstrom.bsky.social · 21/01/2025

Windy day today, and for some reason my driveway seems to be a magnet for empty cardboard boxes that have blown in.

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Stephen Ullstrom @stephenullstrom.bsky.social · 17/01/2025

Not that I'm complaining. It's just odd and unexpected.

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Stephen Ullstrom @stephenullstrom.bsky.social · 17/01/2025

Is someone at Oxford UP recommending me? Though I've heard that OUP doesn't recommend indexers to its authors. Up to now, I can probably count on one hand the number of queries I've received to index OUP books. Now, in the last month or so, almost every query is for an OUP title. #IndexSky

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Stephen Ullstrom @stephenullstrom.bsky.social · 11/01/2025

First index of the year done and I'm off for the weekend.

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Stephen Ullstrom @stephenullstrom.bsky.social · 09/01/2025

Climate activism index drafted. I'll begin editing tomorrow. For now, am starting the index for a scholarly book on Moses and political philosophy. Book begins with an overview of the biblical account, which...covers a lot. Which details are indexable? Time to skip ahead to figure out. #IndexSky

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Stephen Ullstrom @stephenullstrom.bsky.social · 09/01/2025

That's great, Erin! I like how editing and indexing can be different ways to engage the same text, a point I don't think non-indexers always appreciate.

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Stephen Ullstrom @stephenullstrom.bsky.social · 09/01/2025

The human rights argument is an interesting argument. Will it be enough to enact change? I wonder.

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Stephen Ullstrom @stephenullstrom.bsky.social · 08/01/2025

Am kicking off the new indexing year with a collection of essays by a queer, non-binary, working-class journalist on radical strategies against the climate crisis. A real kick in the ass for change. #IndexSky

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Stephen Ullstrom @stephenullstrom.bsky.social · 08/01/2025

Hello Bluesky! Looking forward to getting to know the scene here, especially #IndexSky.

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Stephen Ullstrom @stephenullstrom.bsky.social · 07/01/2025

What a great idea! Thanks for making this list. I'd appreciate being added to it as well.

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