Quote by KatarinaTechgoddess
With so many good stories, I am thrilled to have placed 2nd. Congratulations to the winners and top ten! I highly recommend reading all 12 stories entered if you haven’t done so already. Fabulous talent here on SS!
Well done you. I just wish I had half your talent. I've learned so much from great writers like you. Thank you.
Warmest congratulations to the podium winners. Thoroughly deserved. I’m pleased that I managed to sneak into the top ten (just) with my little effort. It was a lot of fun, and I look forward to the next one.
Quote by AnnaMayZing
I don't know about that, Brad, but yes, it is a wonderful feeling. Almost hard to believe that I have written this. 😊
I forgot to say, I love the cover art. That is certainty eye-catching.
I’ve just started watching, The Consultant, on Amazon. My wife went to bed early so I thought I would have a look at the first episode. I love it, deeply disturbing on so many levels. I ended up watching four episodes before going to bed. I’ll probably watch the next four tonight. Worth a watch if you like things like, The Twilight Zone and Tales from the Crypt. I just hope that it finishes as good as it started.
Quote by Mendalla
Meh. Just James out on an errand, probably. 😊
Scraped a ton of ice off my drive this morning to make it passable. Temps are well below freezing so it might be around for a bit. So far today, just snow flurries.
Getting late in the day so I'll put on some green tea and peppermint herbal.
I was just having a joke with da Bear about a comment he left on one of my stories. Thanks for the tea.
Quote by JamesPBear
Hey! That's me! Where did you get the photo? I wonder if that's my 1960 Pontiac SkyChief?
I kind of made it up. There is an AI website that generates pictures from text. I just put in “polar bear driving a car” and it started producing pictures. It’s great fun. I’ve been using it to make my cover art. https://picfinder.ai
I've just seen a Polar Bear driving a car. I need a drink...
Somewhere out there, are friendly stories waiting to be written.
A new best seller perhaps? I wish you all the luck in the world. It must be a fantastic feeling to see your work in print.
Wow, look at me; I’m a platinum member. Thank you, Molly, and the team.
Quote by Mendalla
There's also DALL-E from the same folks who created ChatGPT. I have played with it and used an image from it for another purpose.
Do be aware that some artists are girding up to go after these sites, arguing that in some cases they are violating IP rights by using elements from artists' work without permission or attribution.
https://www.npr.org/2023/02/07/1155185861/ai-generated-images-breach-copyright-law-artists-say
I think that genie is now well and truly out of the bottle. Much of it is open-source. If AI was a bottle, it has hit the floor and smashed into a million pieces. I don’t think anyone can stop it now.
Hi everyone, if anyone is interested; I have found a website that can generate images using AI. The good thing is, it’s free to use and gives good results. My last two stories have pictures generated from it, Bird in a Cage and Mardi Gras comp entry. It’s worth a look if you fancy a play.
I've just started watching The Last of Us. The first episode was okay. It just seems like another zombie spin-off. This time it's killer mushrooms.
Quote by JamesPBear
Good morning, everybody!
Enjoy the day – even if it is Monday!
❤️☕️😉
Thank you, Bear. As I'm now retired, everyday is the weekend. I'll have a coffee but must give the cookies a miss. I put on a few pounds over Christmas.
Congrats to the winners. I can't believe I made it to 6th place. That's my best result ever. I think I came last, last time. I did enjoy this one. Looking forward to the next one. What will it be?
Thank you, ape man. If I ever come up with a story that sounds anyway half decent (in my dreams) I will give some of them a little tickle. You never know.
Yes, if I thought the job was worth it.
WYE keep a bag full of money that fell from the back of a banks security van if you knew nobody saw you?
Am I allowed to be a smug little git and say that I hit exactly 1,000 words on my first attempt? Thought not...
Quote by Mendalla
It's the SS editor. There's been some discussion in the comp thread. Mods know and take it into account.
Well, my comp entry was accepted today as it was. I'm quite pleased about that. No edits needed. That's the first story I've written with an exact word count. Are these usual rules?
Hi Ape Man, I have one waiting mods approval at the moment. I wasn’t going to enter this comp as I’ve always done so badly in the past. I don’t yet have what it takes to keep up with the proper writers on here. But after they published my Christmas ghost story I thought I would give it a cheeky go. I didn’t have a problem with the 1,000 words as I wrote it on the fly with any number of possible endings. The only thing was, on MS Word it came up at exactly 1,000 words, but once I submitted it on the edit page it came up two words short. I did leave a comment for the mods in the appropriate box saying that I could easily add another two words if needed. That was yesterday and it’s still awaiting approval so I don’t know if my MS Word is wrong or the text editor on SS. I guess I’ll find out if and when it is approved or not.
Quote by gillianleeza
I am watching a fun series on Apple Plus. Bad Sisters. I haven't laughed out loud at a tv show in a while.
I finished a depressing series also on Apple. Five Days at Memorial. It's about a hospital during and five days after Hurricane Katrina hit New Orleans. It's not a heartwarming story, but I found it interesting, even if they don't find out the truth of what happened there.
My pet peeve is too many streaming services. I keep getting free streaming after I buy something new, a phone, tv, etc. I wouldn't have gotten Apple Plus otherwise. It has some great shows but not much content compared to other services. I hate seeing a preview for something I would like to watch, but it always seems to be on one of the other streaming services.
I too am watching Bad Sisters. I agree, it's very funny.
Just finished The Hobbit trilogy. I'd never seen them before. I really enjoyed them but couldn't help feeling that some of the scenes were specifically designed to promote a computer game. Now I have to watch The Lord of the Rings.
Scottish tea? Whatever is the matter with you ape man. It should be English Breakfast Tea. My new pronoun is “I’m offended.”
You know things are bad when a full tank costs more than the car.
It looks like spring has finally arrived in England. I live on the coast so took a walk along the beach this morning. This weekend is a Bank Holiday so we should see plenty of visitors in the village. We got all our shopping in early as the visitors are like locusts. Our small shops sell out quit quickly. I hope you all had a nice Easter. If the weather stays warm we’ll have the grandkids down. It’s always good to see them, but it’s also good to see them go. They have way too much energy. A cup of tea for me please.
I’d give Lost a wide berth. After 121 episodes it turns out they were all dead. This did not come as a surprise to anyone who managed to wade through season one. I agree with you, I'm looking forward to Better Call Saul. I think it's way above anything on offer at the moment.
