AI Gone Wild
Every year, it seems that once Halloween arrives, the pace of life dramatically quickens.
Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Year’s Eve all seem to rush by in a blur, leading us rapidly into a brand new year. Suddenly, it’s 2026!
Thinking back to the iconic film, 2001: A Space Odyssey—originally released in 1968—many of us remember how its depiction of advanced technology and artificial intelligence felt almost unreal at the time. The leaps made since then are truly astonishing.
From the Author’s Desk: AI Enters the Story
A few newsletters ago, I shared my experience attending an Author’s Festival, where I had the opportunity to listen to a presentation by Sal Khan, the founder of Khan Academy. He discussed the future of Artificial Intelligence (AI), especially its potential impact on education.
Inspired by his talk, I decided to explore AI in my own work, transforming all four novels from my Simon Hall series into audiobooks. I hope you’ve had a chance to listen, and as always, I welcome your feedback.
AI’s Unexpected Role in My Inbox
Recently, I discovered another side of AI: its ability to flood my inbox. I now receive at least 20 emails daily, each one promoting my books, offering interview opportunities, suggesting spotlight appearances, promising to make me a bestseller—even though I’ve already achieved that status—and offering to introduce my novels to international audiences. Some emails focused on Redemption: The Aftermath, while others pitch Climatized. I was flattered by the detailed summaries of my plots, characters, and underlying themes, but also curious about this sudden surge of interest.
However, it didn’t take long for the detective in me to investigate further. So, I asked AI, “Summarize the book Climatized, by Sally Fernandez.“ The response sounded eerily familiar—almost identical to the flattering emails I’d been receiving.
Staying Vigilant Against AI-Solicited Offers
I’ve always maintained that “just because they’re conspiracy theories, doesn’t mean they aren’t true.” Recognizing that AI is now a favored tool among solicitors, I developed a strategy to manage my inbox: I delete any email without a subject line, any email lacking a proper salutation, any email with a generic salutation like “hi, sallyfernandez,” and any that follow a standard, easily identifiable format.
While I have found a few legitimate business inquiries worth following up on, most are unfortunately nothing more than duds. Nevertheless, I remain hopeful and will keep an eye out for a genuine review from The New Times book reviewer.
AI’s Positive Impact with a Little Shameless Promo
On a very positive note, using AI to create an audiobook library for The Simon Hall series allowed me to revisit the plotlines I originally crafted between 2010 and 2015. I was pleasantly surprised to see how relevant these stories remain in today’s geo-political landscape, almost a decade later.
One reviewer’s comment about Redemption: The Aftermath captured this sentiment perfectly:
“It felt like Tom Clancy and The West Wing got into a caffeine-fueled fistfight and America’s sanity was the prize. Political chaos, collapsing economy, secret cabals, and a president pulling a Manhattan Project to fix it all? Ma’am, that’s not a novel, that’s a masterclass in adrenaline diplomacy.”
Perhaps the reviewer used AI, but I wholeheartedly agree with their assessment. 😊 You might want to consider giving The Simon Hall series as a gift for that special reader in your life!
Whatever your literary taste, we wish all of you a very happy holiday season and a healthy New Year!
Stay curious. Stay brave. And always question the narrative.
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Please remember, all reviews are more than welcome!
