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O F SCARY

@ossuary.bsky.social

It's pronounced like 'Ossuary' Pulp novelist + Wildean e-girl Local 210 Ksamkcab yub Ofcieri.com

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Vajra Chandrasekera@vajra.me · 23h ago

Simba Kundizeza's statement on his Caine Prize-winning story "The Blue Fighter" is also worth reading—keep in mind, the evidence-free article slandering him was published in The Atlantic to a mass readership and his defense is a tweet to his eight hundred followers

Simba Kundizeza @S_S_Kundizeza Statement on The Atlantic article concerning “The Blue Fighter” I would like to say at the outset that this statement is not in any way a proffer of an explanation or a defense against the allegations levelled against me in the article published by The Atlantic, because I don’t believe the article warrants either. I am however writing because of the level of public interest generated in its aftermath, and out of respect for the people who have supported and championed my writing, as well as my fellow shortlisted writers for the Caine Prize. I want to set the record straight. For the avoidance of doubt, I wrote "The Blue Fighter." I did not use generative AI to write it. It is entirely my own work. This story did not appear out of nowhere; it has a concrete, documented history. Its genesis was during my LOATAD Black Atlantic Residency in Ghana. While there‚ I read a poem by vangile gantsho titled “my father's hands․” I was inspired by this poem to write a story about my family's experiences in Zimbabwe‚ including my father leaving his accounting profession and the hardships my family faced as a result․ Other aspects of the story‚ including characters and the setting‚ are drawn from events in my own life․There is also a clear chronology to the story's development. I sent the completed first draft of the story to vangile for feedback on May 15‚ 2025․ I then submitted the story to The Shallow Tales Review on May 27‚ 2025․ Fiction editor Nzube Nlebedim accepted the story on June 10‚ 2025‚ and it went through the standard editorial process. vangile then provided her feedback to me on June 25‚ 2025․ On the same day Nzube also provided editorial feedback to me․ In an email dated June 27‚ 2025‚ I sent the final draft and requested that the editor preserve the formatting of an epigraph in the story as originally submitted by vangile as a courtesy to her․ The story was published on June 30‚ 2025․ The Atlantic article seems to question the story's authorship by comparing its style to my other writing. As writers we develop recurring interests, but we don’t produce work from a single fixed template. My debut novel, “Freelance”, and the story titled "The Whistleblower" published in Transition Magazine in 2021 which is referenced by Ms. Vara, are thrillers dealing with political intrigue. "The Blue Fighter," however, is a deeply personal story about economic collapse and familial relationships. The voice shifts because the subject matter demands it. To suggest that a writer cannot write in different styles or genres, or improve his writing substantially after five or more years fundamentally misunderstands the craft of writing.The motive for my supposedly using AI to generate the story is equally difficult to understand. I was under no obligation to write “The Blue Fighter”. I was not commissioned to produce it, nor was I paid a fee for its publication. The decision to submit the piece for consideration for the Caine Prize was made by the editor of The Shallow Tales Review months after its publication. I therefore didn’t write the story with any guarantee that it would be submitted, let alone win anything. The idea that I would have somehow written the story with the express intention of entering and winning the Caine Prize, despite the inherently competitive and uncertain nature of the prize, conjures up a motive that simply did not exist. "The Blue Fighter" is my work, and I stand by it completely. I'm grateful to vangile for her inspiration, to The Shallow Tales Review for giving the story a home, and to the Caine Prize judges for recognizing the work on its merits. I’m also heartened by the numerous messages of solidarity from fellow writers and readers, and to Adrienne Ingrum and Regina Brooks at Serendipity Literary Agency for their support throughout. I look forward to continuing to work with the Caine Prize team, and to celebrating this recognition with the people who helped bring this story into the world. Most importantly, I will continue to write.
Vajra Chandrasekera@vajra.me · 3d ago

Yeah. And if you don't care what Pangram says—it's just another AI company, and I don't care how good they are at hyping themselves—I also don't see what's so "AI" about this story at all. I don't think "trust me, it's bad" is meaningful (and that is quite literally what the article says.)

O F SCARY@ossuary.bsky.social · yesterday

This one is a deep cut but it was in elementary school. I got tired of Britney Spears before the other girls. I wanted to be Sporty Spice when everybody else was fighting over who got to be Posh Spice.

Gail Simone@gailsimone.bsky.social · 2d ago

QUESTION OF THE DAY: This sounds like a joke question, but it isn’t. If it doesn’t apply to you, fine. But it’s a serious question with different levels of meaning. And I am genuinely curious. When did you first realize you were weird?

Sara Century@saracentury.bsky.social · yesterday

Anyone who says "people use AI so companies are just meeting market needs!" should read about plastic companies, which also made their product unavoidable while using this same exact line to justify making more while ignoring the overwhelmingly negative impact on environment and public health.

O F SCARY@ossuary.bsky.social · 3d ago

My campaign to be the 2026 FACE OF HALLOWEEN is LIVE! This contest is run by Colossal Impact and has a $13000 cash prize that I will be using to help with production costs for Voidcon 2027. All you need to do to help is share my campaign and vote for me. faceofhalloween.org/2026/cieri

It’s up to you to decide their fate... Help decide who will haunt the pages of Rue Morgue Magazine, claim $13,000, and meet horror legends!

I'm A Pulp Novelist Based Out Of NYC. I've Written Three Books, Including The Sapphic Satanic Panic Novel Backmask.

faceofhalloween.org

O F SCARY@ossuary.bsky.social · 3d ago

Getting ready for some Halloween stuff

O F SCARY@ossuary.bsky.social · 3d ago

My campaign to be the 2026 FACE OF HALLOWEEN is LIVE! This contest is run by Colossal Impact and has a $13000 cash prize that I will be using to help with production costs for Voidcon 2027. All you need to do to help is share my campaign and vote for me. faceofhalloween.org/2026/cieri

It’s up to you to decide their fate... Help decide who will haunt the pages of Rue Morgue Magazine, claim $13,000, and meet horror legends!

I'm A Pulp Novelist Based Out Of NYC. I've Written Three Books, Including The Sapphic Satanic Panic Novel Backmask.

faceofhalloween.org

O F SCARY@ossuary.bsky.social · 3d ago

Getting ready for some Halloween stuff

O F SCARY@ossuary.bsky.social · 4d ago

I am always, always grateful that I got to work with a human being for my book cover. I gave him an outline and he executed it. Getting to work with another person is so much more exciting and interesting then a machine.

Bild
Malarkey@malarkeybooks.bsky.social · 5d ago

It is hard but we pay human artists real money for covers. Our jacket copy tends to be a joint venture between our writers and our editors. We don’t use AI for anything. We wish absolute destruction on any publisher that is using AI or LLMs for covers, copy, or anything else. ☠️☠️☠️