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Tony Webb @titansauthor.bsky.social · 03/06/2026

Today's completely unsolicited opinion. With all the recent controversies about AI generated stories scoring publishing deals and awards, plus the constant stream of articles insisting that writers would be fools not to use it, I have thoughts. anthonydwaynewebb.com/blog/why-ai-...

anthonydwaynewebb.com

Why AI Writing Feels So Empty | Anthony Dwayne Webb

Why AI Writing Feels So Empty | Like every creative person living in the twilight of the American Century, I have been thinking about the impact of AI on the human business of wr

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Tony Webb @titansauthor.bsky.social · 12/05/2026

This is the most terrifyingly meta idea ever. I once sent four emails to "Gary" before someone else in the thread finally had mercy and pointed out his name was Greg. I still have nightmares.

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Tony Webb @titansauthor.bsky.social · 08/05/2026

Ok cool, no problem, it's not like I have any preference for accurate information or anything.

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Tony Webb @titansauthor.bsky.social · 07/05/2026

Agreed. The Machine That Won the War is one of the all-time great AI takes, too. Asimov understood 60 years ago that any computer is only as good as it's data, and programs that aggregate subjective human inputs can never really be trusted.

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Tony Webb @titansauthor.bsky.social · 29/04/2026

I wrote an essay in college once about how Brecht's intentional un-realism was an effective criticism of the capitalist class was effective because it showed it's absurdity and Ayn Rand's books are awful for the exact same reason.

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Tony Webb @titansauthor.bsky.social · 25/04/2026

Moving house is like being an archaeologist: What is this obscure object and what are it's uses? Although sometimes it's like being a very low stakes detective, as in this smoking gun in the cold case of "When did the grocery downstairs stop selling shashimi?"

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Tony Webb @titansauthor.bsky.social · 20/04/2026

There is no use case. It's a sideshow. If you actually wanted to chase people, there is literally nothing this can do that a drone can't. I could break that record in that terrain with an RC car too. Just an attention grab.

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Tony Webb @titansauthor.bsky.social · 08/04/2026

This is my science fiction novel about a man who has to reckon with how the stories of his past may not be true. Also theocratic religions, aliens, and giant robots. bookshop.org/p/books/the-...

bookshop.org

The History of Lightning

Check out The History of Lightning - <p>Lightning is the ultimate survivor. After society collapsed on an ecologically devastated Earth, he helped build the ships that carried humanity to salvation on...

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Tony Webb @titansauthor.bsky.social · 06/04/2026

Excellent. Separation Sunday is a masterpiece from an underappreciated band, truly one of the great rock operas. Craig Finn's short stories are good too but they're transcendant with the band behind them.

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Tony Webb @titansauthor.bsky.social · 30/03/2026

I recently got hooked by one of the several In Memoriam articles commemorating the tragic death of D. Boon and have since listened to the Minutemen's entire studio output several times. Holy shit, these guys were unbelievable, especially D. Still smoking, virtuosic music 40 years later.

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Tony Webb @titansauthor.bsky.social · 20/03/2026

Thomas Malthus redux, and just as incorrect now as it was in the sixties and the Victorian age. Predicting the future is hard, folks.

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Tony Webb @titansauthor.bsky.social · 19/03/2026

Nice day at the office. Not pictured: the very confused man cursing at his drone a few feet from where we topped out.

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Tony Webb @titansauthor.bsky.social · 13/03/2026

Nightcrawlers specifically, but the hedgehog had a gluten issue. Hence the pivot to prose leading to the sweet-toothed raccoon a few steps on. Typical circle of life stuff.

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Tony Webb @titansauthor.bsky.social · 13/03/2026

Oddly enough my original choice was between purchasing a Southern Reach novel or buying a hedgehog a canoli. The universe works in mysterious ways.

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Tony Webb @titansauthor.bsky.social · 13/03/2026

Are you telling me you blew through the last 17.44 I sent you already? What did you spend it on, a quarter tank of gas or something?

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Tony Webb @titansauthor.bsky.social · 09/03/2026

For my money smart phones are a bigger narrative obstacle. A lot of possibilities are cut off when your characters can talk to someone whenever they like and can never get lost.

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Tony Webb @titansauthor.bsky.social · 05/03/2026

After having pulled the ripcord on all my social media accounts three years ago (there's a zombie Instagram out there waiting to*maybe* be resurrected) I'm dipping my toe into Bluesky after being assured that this is the least toxic of the current crop. Would anyone else agree with that assessment?

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