"Digital minimalism is a philosophy that helps you question what digital communication tools (and behaviors surrounding these tools) add the most value to your life. It is motivated by the belief that intentionally and aggressively clearing away low-value digital noise, and optimizing your use of the tools that really matter, can significantly improve your life."
– Cal Newport
Rodney was halfway through his Manhattan the other evening when I made the mistake of telling him about yet another conversation I’d had with ChatGPT at the library that morning. I’d gone there convinced I was writing a chapter about high blood pressure. An hour later, I realized I wasn’t. More accurately, Chat had spent…
The dog in the photo accompanying this post appears to have appointed itself Chief Gatekeeper. Every industry has them. Publishing has agents. Academia has tenure committees. Bookstores have buyers. Social media has influencers. And now the writing world has people conducting purity tests on AI. I’ve spent much of my career bumping into various forms…
There’s not a parent alive who doesn’t remember the day their child becomes a parent. I don’t mean the day you overhear your son or daughter lecturing their own child. I mean the day they start lecturing you about your behaviour. I’ve had more than a few of those moments in the past year, usually over AI, and usually…
Mad. Sad. Bad. That’s what the news does to me within minutes. In that exact order. Mad about the state of the world. Sad about the behaviour of my fellow human beings (including my own unwillingness to shut it all out). And ultimately very bad about myself. At this particular moment in history, as a…
The other day, I received an automated e-mail response from an editor at a major Canadian newspaper. Along with the paper’s writing guidelines, it came with this warning: “Please confirm that no AI was used at any stage in the creation of the article.” No AI. At any stage. In the creation. Think about that for a…
Over a decade ago, I was taken to the ancestral home of British playwright George Bernard Shaw. There, tucked away in the garden, was his writing hut. Ever since that visit, I’ve wanted one of my own. Like Shaw, I want to escape the noise of a troubled world. My own hut would serve as…