↠ Rival Bakers Who Can’t Stand Each Other…
She thinks his croissants are too buttery. He thinks her cupcakes are overrated. They’ve spent years side-eyeing each other from across the town bakery scene, but now? They’re stuck in the same high-stakes baking competition. Forced to share tips, kitchen space, and maybe a few late-night practice sessions, they realize that hate tastes a lot like love, just with extra frosting.
↠ The Nerd vs. The Popular Kid, but Feelings Get in the Way…
She’s the star of the debate team. He’s the guy who doesn’t even bring a backpack to school. They’ve never exchanged a sentence that wasn’t filled with sarcasm, until they’re paired for the biggest project of the semester. Deadlines, arguments, and way too many late-night study sessions later, the real problem isn’t the assignment. It’s the way they suddenly can’t stop looking at each other.
↠ Small-Town War Over a Garden (And Also Their Hearts)…
She wants a peaceful community garden where kids can learn about nature. He wants a shiny new business development that totally doesn’t need another Starbucks. They start as enemies, throwing around legal jargon and passive-aggressive town hall speeches, but somehow, between planting flowers and fighting over zoning laws, their arguments start to feel a little too much like foreplay.
↠ Fairy vs. Guardian... a Magical Disaster (That Ends in Love)…
She’s a reckless little menace with wings. He’s a brooding, by-the-book guardian of the enchanted forest. They get stuck together on one mission and immediately hate everything about each other, until late-night stakeouts and accidental life-saving moments make them rethink everything. Turns out, magic isn’t the most powerful force in the forest. They are.
↠ Two Rival Animal Shelter Volunteers Who’d Rather Strangle Each Other than Fall in Love.
She thinks dogs belong on cozy blankets. He thinks they belong outside, running free. Every time they cross paths at the animal shelter, someone ends up yelling. But when a batch of abandoned puppies needs their help, they’re suddenly stuck working together. Between midnight feedings and arguing over the best chew toys, their rivalry starts feeling a little too much like flirting.
Me leaving comments on fics.
I would have hugged you longer if I knew that’d be the last time we’d hug.
Many people create lists of synonyms for the word 'said,' but what about the word 'look'? Here are some synonyms that I enjoy using in my writing, along with their meanings for your reference. While all these words relate to 'look,' they each carry distinct meanings and nuances, so I thought it would be helpful to provide meanings for each one.
Gaze - To look steadily and intently, especially in admiration or thought.
Glance - A brief or hurried look.
Peek - A quick and typically secretive look.
Peer - To look with difficulty or concentration.
Scan - To look over quickly but thoroughly.
Observe - To watch carefully and attentively.
Inspect - To look at closely in order to assess condition or quality.
Stare - To look fixedly or vacantly at someone or something.
Glimpse - To see or perceive briefly or partially.
Eye - To look or stare at intently.
Peruse - To read or examine something with great care.
Scrutinize - To examine or inspect closely and thoroughly.
Behold - To see or observe a thing or person, especially a remarkable one.
Witness - To see something happen, typically a significant event.
Spot - To see, notice, or recognize someone or something.
Contemplate - To look thoughtfully for a long time at.
Sight - To suddenly or unexpectedly see something or someone.
Ogle - To stare at in a lecherous manner.
Leer - To look or gaze in an unpleasant, malicious way.
Gawk - To stare openly and stupidly.
Gape - To stare with one's mouth open wide, in amazement.
Squint - To look with eyes partially closed.
Regard - To consider or think of in a specified way.
Admire - To regard with pleasure, wonder, and approval.
Skim - To look through quickly to gain superficial knowledge.
Reconnoiter - To make a military observation of a region.
Flick - To look or move the eyes quickly.
Rake - To look through something rapidly and unsystematically.
Glare - To look angrily or fiercely.
Peep - To look quickly and secretly through an opening.
Focus - To concentrate one's visual effort on.
Discover - To find or realize something not clear before.
Spot-check - To examine something briefly or at random.
Devour - To look over with eager enthusiasm.
Examine - To inspect in detail to determine condition.
Feast one's eyes - To look at something with great enjoyment.
Catch sight of - To suddenly or unexpectedly see.
Clap eyes on - To suddenly see someone or something.
Set eyes on - To look at, especially for the first time.
Take a dekko - Colloquial for taking a look.
Leer at - To look or gaze in a suggestive manner.
Rubberneck - To stare at something in a foolish way.
Make out - To manage to see or read with difficulty.
Lay eyes on - To see or look at.
Pore over - To look at or read something intently.
Ogle at - To look at in a lecherous or predatory way.
Pry - To look or inquire into something in a determined manner.
Dart - To look quickly or furtively.
Drink in - To look at with great enjoyment or fascination.
Bask in - To look at or enjoy something for a period of time.
Persephone with cuteness agression.
I got inspired to write a poem--
(please note this poem was not, in fact, made by ai. I stayed up until 1:30 in the morning writing this)
Imagine a world where everyone could write. There’d be no need to argue, no need to start a fight. No need to stay up until all hours of night, No need to squint at the paper and say, “This can’t be right.”
Imagine a world where you could spitball a book. It’s really quite easy, I promise, just look! You don’t need to worry about finding a unique hook, Just borrow this neat one from this author I took.
Imagine a world where you could make a series for tv. It’s quite simple and really stress-free! All you have to do is write a sentence, you see, And our Inkitt AI can turn it into an episode, two, or three!
A single bullet point can turn into a flourishing story. There’s no need to draft, no need to worry. All the “real” writers will run away and scurry. Compared to our stories, theirs looks like an unfinished painting, blurry.
Imagine a world where we took all the joy Out of writing for every girl and boy. It’s our writing they want, our writing to enjoy, And our platforms are as enticing as a small nostalgic toy.
AI is better. This, people just know We’ll steal from all the “real” writers; just keep it on the down-low. Everyone will come to us, and our platforms will grow. We’re practically as iconic and cool as uh… Odysseus and Calypso.
That was the first thing, but this better thing is second: All the helpless writers to our platforms, we beckoned. And here’s a little secret, it’s something we recon, That we’ve turned our silly tools into a weapon.
Imagine a world where people for themselves don't think. And creating a piece could be done in a blink; And they’ll use our tools more and more like the alcohol they’ll drink As their helpless brains and their skills of craft start to shrink.
On our words of wisdom and greatness, they’ll rely While subpar original works out of “writers’” hands we pry And use our cool AI programs to modify— And if they come after us, we’ll simply just deny.
Their brains will grow stupid, tired, and weary, And we’ll have the power to answer all their writing queries. We may do some things that might cause some to be leery, But not to worry, we’ll still write your english essays and letters to mother deary.
Imagine a world where everyone could write. With what we’re doing, everyone’s ideas can take flight. And with the way we’re going, we’ll be All Writers’ sole—blinding—light, And no one will be able to look at what we’re doing and say, “This isn’t right.”
Each week (or so), we'll highlight the relevant (and sometimes rage-inducing) news adjacent to writing and freedom of expression. This week:
Inkitt started in the mid-2010s as a cozy platform where anyone could share their writing. Fast forward twenty twenty-fuckkkkk, and like most startups, it’s pivoted hard into AI-fueled content production with the soul of an algorithm.
Pictured: Inkitt preparing human-generated work for an AI-powered flume ride to The Unknown.
Here’s how it works: Inkitt monitors reader engagement with tracking software, then picks popular stories to publish on its premium app, Galatea. From there, stories can get spun into sequels, spinoffs, or adapted for GalateaTV… often with minimal author involvement. Authors get an undisclosed cut of revenue, but for most, it’s a fraction of what they’d earn with a traditional publisher (let alone self-publishing).
“'They prey on new writers who have no idea what they’re doing,' said the writer of one popular Galatea series."
Many, many authors have side-eyed or outright decried the platform as inherently predatory for years, due to nebulous payout promises. And much of the concern centers on contracts that don’t require authors’ consent for editorial changes or AI-generated “additions” to the original text.
Now, Inkitt has gone full DiSrUpTiOn, leaning heavily on generative AI to ghostwrite, edit, generate audiobook narration, and design covers, under the banner of “democratizing storytelling.” (Bullshit AI? In my democratized storytelling platform? It’s more likely than you think.)
Pictured: Inkitt’s CEO looking at the most-read stories.
But Inkitt’s CEO doesn’t seem too concerned about what authors think: “His business model doesn’t need them.”
The company recently raised $37 million, with backers including former CEOs of Sony, Penguin, and HarperCollins, proving once again that publishing loves a disruptor… as long as it disrupts creatives, not capital. And more AI companies are mushrooming up to chase the same vision: “a vision of human-created art becoming the raw material for AI-powered, corporate-owned content-production machines—a scenario in which humans would play an ever-shrinking role.”
(Not to say we predicted this, but…)
Welcome to the creator-industrial complex.
Major publishers—including The New York Times, The Washington Post, The Guardian, and Vox Media—have launched a "Support Responsible AI" campaign, urging the U.S. government to regulate AI's use of copyrighted content.
Like last month's campaigns by the Authors Guild and the UK's Society of Authors, there's a website where where you can (and should!) contact your representatives to say, “Hey, maybe stop letting billion-dollar tech giants strip-mine journalism.”
The campaign’s ads carry big mood slogans like “Stop AI Theft” and “AI Steals From You Too” and call for legislation that would force AI companies to pay for the content they train on and clearly label AI-generated content with attribution. This follows lobbying by OpenAI and Google to make it legal to scrape and train on copyrighted material without consent.
The publishers assert they are not explicitly anti-AI, but advocate for a “fair” system that respects intellectual property and supports journalism.
But… awkward, The Washington Post—now owned by Jeff Bezos—has reportedly already struck a deal with OpenAI to license and summarize its content. So, mixed signals.
Still, as the campaign reminds us: “Stealing is un-American.”
(Unless it’s profitable.)
We at Ellipsus love a good meme-turned-megaproject. Back in January, the-app-formerly-known-as-Twitter user @lolt64 tweeted a cryptic line about "the frozen wastes of europa,” the earliest reference to the never-ending war on Jupiter’s icy moon.
A slew of bleak dispatches from weary, doomed soldiers entrenched on Europa’s ice fields snowballed (iceberged?) into a sprawling saga, yes-and-ing with fan art, vignettes, and memes under the hashtag #WarForever.
It’s not quite X’s answer to Goncharov: It turns out WarForever is some flavor of viral marketing for a tabletop RPG zine. But the internet ran with it anyway, with NASA playing the Scorcese of the stars.
In a digital hellworld increasingly dominated by AI slopification, data harvesting, and “content at scale,” projects like WarForever are a blessed reminder that creativity—actual, human creativity—perseveres.
Even on a frozen moon. Even here.
Let us know if you find something other writers should know about, (or join our Discord and share it there!)
- The Ellipsus Team xo
- ‘u dont have (insert food/music/restaurant here) over there??’ - ‘wait what time is it. shouldnt u be asleep’ - alternatively: timezoned/clockblocked again - ‘do u need a hug. have a virtual hug’ - weird slang terms - ‘i will fight everyone thats mean to u. i will fight them rn’ - vague embarrassment regarding ur accent - ‘dont maKE ME COME OVER THERE’ - ‘oh yeah i have a friend who lives in (insert country here) and apparently’ - no real hugs :(( - suffering - fahrenheit vs celsius - the measuring of things in feet fucks one of u up, probably
beep >:3
Boop! Hello there <3
Not on ao3 but with my current work, absolutely. This is…. Yeah. No clue how long it’s gonna be. I have a general idea of a plot. I have solid characters who may or may not do what I tell them to
Let’s see how this goes…
The question mark option will never not be funny to me.
Like, how many chapters?
Idk.
I—the author—am just as curious as you are.
does anyone else write a sentence so good you have to lean back in your chair and just vibe with the sheer power of it? like yeah, i, ME, did that.
Hello! Welcome to my silly little corner of the internet.
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