The pandemic taught us that large swaths of free time don't necessarily result in more writing. Focus and the ability to concentrate and to relax deeply also matter. Are you stressed to the max right now? #WritingCommmunity #WritingLife

Do a quick assessment (preferrably on a sheet of paper): What are your top three stressors? Then put it aside for now.

What is one small, completely mundane habit you picked up from someone who is no longer in your life that you still catch yourself doing every single week?

A deceptively thoughtful book. Usually we think of Dr Seuss as one thing but this is another thing and it’s good

Just 10 minutes of AI help may make hard tasks tougher afterward | Knowridge Using an AI chatbot for only a short time may make people less willing to keep working when the help disappears. New experiments found that people who relied on AI often struggled more with difficult questions after the tool was taken away. The results raise questions about a growing habit: letting AI handle the hardest parts of learning or problem-solving. The technology can improve performance in the moment, but that does not always mean users are building their own skills. Researchers involving the University of California, Berkeley, carried out randomized experiments with 1,222 online participants. An updated version of their study was presented at the Conference on Language Modeling. In one test, 354 people worked through basic fraction questions. Some answered independently, while others could use ChatGPT to help solve problems or supply answers. At first, the group with AI support performed better. But when the researchers removed the tool partway through the task, that group’s accuracy fell sharply compared with participants who had been working without assistance. A second experiment involving 667 people produced a similar pattern. Those who had used AI were more likely to give wrong answers or stop trying after access was withdrawn. A third test asked 201 people to complete a reading-comprehension task. Again, participants who lost AI support showed lower persistence and accuracy. The researchers suggest that struggling through a difficult problem can be useful. Working out an answer independently may help people develop patience, understanding and confidence that immediate automated assistance does not always provide. The experiments examined short tasks under controlled conditions, so they cannot show that every use of AI damages long-term thinking. They do suggest that how people use AI matters, especially when the goal is to learn rather than simply finish quickly. The research is especially relevant to schools and workplaces, where AI tools are becoming part of everyday tasks. Getting the correct answer quickly can be useful, but learning often requires understanding why an answer works. Someone who skips that effort may have more difficulty when facing a similar problem alone. The researchers are not arguing that all AI assistance is harmful. A tool that offers hints, asks questions or helps people check their reasoning might have different effects from one that simply supplies answers. The findings suggest that designing AI around learning and independence could matter as much as making it fast and convenient. Further work will help determine how broadly these findings apply beyond the conditions examined in the original research. knowridge.com/2026/10/just-1…

When I go see the Magician’s Nephew in IMAX, I’m going to buy tickets in the center back of the theatre so I can keep telling my family we have to go farther up and farther in to get to our seats.