Elle Fielding: February Newsletter

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Dearest readers,

Like millions of other people, I’ve been unable to resist experimenting with ChatGPT. I’ve gone from believing Judgement Day is here to singing its praises to anyone who will listen. I once thought that artists would be the last to be replaced by AI, but I was wrong. As one YouTuber (I can’t remember who I was watching) says, the days of writing every word and painting every brush stroke are over for us artists.

At first, I was depressed and grieving the 'old days,' but I've now done my best to embrace this huge advance and find the advantage in it. Although I can't bring myself to let it write for me and put my name on work that isn't mine, I've discovered other uses, like editing, structuring, and outlining. I'm still experimenting with its limits. I've even attempted to use it to change POV, tenses, and eliminate head hopping from some of my older books.

AI is here to stay, and I think most writers will eventually embrace it. I've already seen many serials written entirely by AI popping up in ads on my Insta feed. Those stories sound like they've been written by AI, and they're horrible, but I can understand the temptation to use it. I even tried to get it to write this newsletter. It did a pretty good job. The problem? Even with careful prompting, it still didn't sound 100% like me. I did, however, keep part of it. Can you tell which part?

Now, onto more personal updates. I know it's been a while since I've been in touch. Life has been a bit hectic over the past couple of months. Not only have the kids been home from school on school holidays, but my best friend from Sweden came to visit me. Due to the pandemic, it had been three long years since we saw each other, so being able to catch up in person was truly special. Of course, in a classic case of horrible timing, I tested positive for COVID about two days after she arrived in the country. Head desk. Once I got over the thankfully mild dose, we reminisced about old times, made new memories, and talked about the future.

Unfortunately, we also had to make some tough decisions about our business, Sheila & Swede. After operating for nearly five years, we've decided to dissolve the business. It was a difficult choice, but we felt it was the right one for both of us at this time. We're grateful for all the support and encouragement we've received over the years and will always cherish the memories we've made through the business. And no matter where we are or what we’re doing, we’ll always be a Sheila and a Swede. AJ has always been heavily involved in my works as my editor (because she’s an awesome writer and editor) and will continue to be.

I want to offer a special apology to those who have been following my serial, Rockstar Bay Academy. I know I left you all hanging, and I'm truly sorry for that. I've been frantically working on finishing all the remaining chapters so that I can publish the rest of them in one go. Trust me, with the cliff-hangers coming up, you’ll appreciate being able to go straight to the next chapter.

For those of you who haven’t read Trusting the Enemy Next Door, it’s available for free on Amazon for the next twenty-four hours. Grab your copy now!

In other news, I've published The Other Brother. This book was previously published as It Started One Christmas and was part of the romance Christmas anthology Wrapped in Romance. Unfortunately, the anthology is no longer available for sale, but I have taken my story from it and published it on several platforms. You can now find The Other Brother for free on Rakuten Kobo, Apple Books, Barnes & Noble, and Google Play Books. It is also available on Amazon for $0.99, but I am requesting a price match to make it free on Amazon as well.

And here is the link for Amazon. You can ask for a price match if you beat me to it.

Just to reiterate, if you have read It Started One Christmas, then you have read The Other Brother.

I'm truly sorry for the long break and the lack of communication, and I hope you can forgive me. I'm looking forward to reconnecting with all of you and sharing more about my writing journey. As always, if you have any questions or thoughts to share, please don't hesitate to reach out.

Thank you for your understanding, and I'll be in touch soon!

All my love,

Elle

XOXO