Archive - Free thoughts of a writer writing (about writing) freely

Why NOT credit your editor

Shine a light on your writing team (or let us think you are AI)

Apr 27 • I.M. AIken

March 2026

Sincerity to Nonsense in 10 clicks

How to enshitify Substack by not being human, following algorithms, scheduling notes when off-line, and failing to read/listen to human participants

Mar 30 • I.M. AIken

One Author’s Quick Guide to Voice-Over Techniques

Part 3 of Recording Audiobooks - tricks and techniques for doing your own voice-over of your audiobooks, by an author/narrator of 3 novels.

Mar 27 • I.M. AIken

One Author’s Quick Guide to Reaper

Part 2 of Author Recording Audiobooks - basic setup for narrating audiobooks with Reaper.

Mar 26 • I.M. AIken

Author Recording Audiobooks

A quick startup guide for authors who would want to narrate their own audio book includes ACX rules, DAW and equipment suggestions

Mar 24 • I.M. AIken

Inputs and Outputs

Surprise, we tend to write like the works we read.

Mar 23 • I.M. AIken

Captain Henry: 2½ Insurrections, 2 Wars, 1¼ Centuries and a Story of Love

I.M. Aiken's 2026 novel | Centuries and continents apart, two American soldiers deploy in the years after “mission accomplished”—only to discover a land…

Mar 9 • I.M. AIken

Substack and Censorship

Don't like something on Substack, use mute feature or scroll to the next.

Mar 9 • I.M. AIken

The Anxiety Knob

Authors - climb through the page to adjust tension for your readers: up and down. As a panelist invited to discuss how writers create tension, I thought…

Mar 7 • I.M. AIken

Philosophy & The Internet Protocol

One trick for dark, tough, miserable days. Winston Churchill called them Black Dog Days. Recognizing the humility of a data packet, I can sometimes…

Mar 4 • I.M. AIken

February 2026

“Value Statements” from Publishers, Contests, and other outlets for Authors

How We Humans Fail to Fit the Neatness of Venn Diagrams

Feb 19 • I.M. AIken

Finishing a Novel

Where is the finish line?

Feb 16 • I.M. AIken

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