It Takes Two to Duo

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iA Writer and iA Presenter have been updated to fully support the new iPhone Duo, adapting to its dual-screen design by optimizing for both the inner and outer displays. iA Writer embraces a minimalistic “baby typewriter” interface for fast, focused writing, while iA Presenter allows users to write and present slides in plain text directly from their phone without additional equipment. These enhancements aim to leverage the unfolded screen for improved usability, offering a fresh approach to writing and presenting on the go.

https://ia.net/topics/it-takes-two-to-duo

Critique and Writing

Cory Doctorow emphasizes that the most valuable aspect of a writing workshop is the act of critiquing other writers’ work, which cultivates critical skills that improve one’s own writing more effectively than receiving feedback. He argues that while editorial notes or AI-generated feedback can help fix individual stories, consistent peer-based critique fosters the creative instincts and discipline necessary to develop a sustainable body of work. Doctorow outlines key principles and structures for effective peer workshops and contrasts their benefits with the limitations of relying solely on AI editorial feedback.

https://pluralistic.net/2026/10/23/better-to-give/#than-to-receive

Finishing Your First Draft with Scrivener

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Scrivener offers several features to help writers complete the first draft of their novels by supporting regular writing habits, setting word count targets, and tracking progress with statistics and writing history tools. The article emphasizes that a first draft should be a rough but coherent scaffold of the story, encouraging use of story structures like Save the Cat to manage plot and pacing. After finishing the draft, Scrivener also aids the revision process through tools like revision mode, annotations, and comments to refine the manuscript over multiple drafts.

https://www.literatureandlatte.com/blog/finishing-your-first-draft-with-scrivener

TextEdit Vs. Pages

Dr. Drang compares TextEdit and Pages, favoring Pages for word processing despite Allison Sheridan’s praise of TextEdit. He critiques TextEdit’s always-visible, non-customizable toolbar and coarse zoom controls, while highlighting Pages’ customizable, space-efficient toolbar and useful document templates. Although TextEdit uses less memory, Drang prefers Pages’ flexibility and styling features for one-off documents.

https://leancrew.com/all-this/2026/10/textedit-vs-pages/

Michel Chaouli: “Do You Actually Have to Finish That Novel?”

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Michel Chaouli explores the moral pressure readers feel to finish novels, examining the tension between the impulse to complete a book and the freedom to abandon it. He argues that a novel’s end shapes its entire narrative by bestowing meaning on preceding events, much like how death retrospectively defines a life, and that this structural demand explains both the reader’s compulsion to reach the conclusion and the significance we derive from it.

https://yalereview.org/article/michel-chaouli-ending-it

What Makes a Good First Draft of a Novel?

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The first draft of a novel serves as the foundational scaffolding of a story, containing the essential elements such as the main plot arc, point of view, characters, setting, and dialogue, though none need to be fully polished or finalized. Writers are encouraged to include major story events and character motivations while leaving room to revise or add details later, using notes and placeholders to maintain writing momentum. This approach views the first draft as a discovery process rather than a finished product, supporting subsequent revisions that deepen and refine the narrative.

https://www.literatureandlatte.com/blog/what-makes-a-good-first-draft-of-a-novel

Pangram: AI Detector for ChatGPT, Claude & Gemini

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Pangram offers an AI detection tool that identifies AI-generated and AI-assisted text with over 99.98% accuracy, verified by independent research from institutions like the University of Chicago and the University of Maryland. It supports detection of content from major language models including ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, and Llama across 20+ languages, and integrates with platforms such as Google Docs, Chrome, and learning management systems, helping educators, publishers, and enterprises maintain content authenticity. Pangram combines AI detection with plagiarism checking and provides detailed analyses, segment highlights, and ongoing model updates to adapt to the latest AI-generated writing styles and tools.

https://www.pangram.com/

New Research: These 3-Word Phrases Make You Sound AI Generated

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Researchers at Graphite analyzed 10,000 AI-generated articles from Anthropic’s Claude Opus 5.5 and compared them with human writing, identifying specific words and phrases—such as “dependable,” “matters because,” and certain three-word phrases—that occur significantly more often in AI text. Although Opus 5.5 produces more natural communication than prior models, these linguistic patterns remain strong indicators of AI-generated content. Writers seeking to avoid sounding artificial may benefit from steering clear of these common AI “tells.”

https://www.fastcompany.com/91617559/new-research-3-word-phrases-that-sound-like-ai-generated-writing-chatgpt

Write Now with Scrivener, Episode No. 67: Jaima Fixsen, Mystery and Thriller Author

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Jaima Fixsen’s novel Don’t Look Close is a historical mystery set in 1950s Canada, featuring a polio survivor and a nurse protagonist, inspired by personal and family experiences. Fixsen uses Scrivener extensively throughout her writing and editing process, appreciating its flexibility for managing multiple viewpoints and evolving storylines, which supports her creative workflow in crafting the novel’s tension and structure.

https://www.literatureandlatte.com/blog/write-now-with-scrivener-episode-no-67-jaima-fixsen-mystery-and-thriller-author

Why Plain Text Is Still One of the Best Technologies We Have

Plain text remains one of the most durable and reliable file formats due to its simplicity and wide compatibility across systems, making it highly accessible and easy to preserve over time. While it lacks rich formatting features, plain text allows for straightforward inspection, editing, and processing using a vast array of tools, and formats like Markdown enhance its usability by providing readable structure without sacrificing its fundamental openness. This longevity and flexibility make plain text a valuable foundation for many writing and computing workflows despite the availability of more complex, application-dependent formats.

https://deadparrotbbs.com/why-plain-text-is-still-one-of-the-best-technologies-we-have/

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