technology

Using AI to Begin My Latest Diary Format Book

~ sarahtipper ~ Leave a comment

I love books which are written in a diary format. Sue Townsend’s Adrian Mole is one of my all time favourite literary characters. Without him, my character Cleo Howard would not exist.

Cleo Howard is a heavy metal loving teenager. I left her in the year Y2K, at Coventry University. I will eventually write The Still Not Grown Out Of It Metal Diary Of Cleo Howard. This lives in my head in an unwieldy fashion as TSNGOOIDOCH, and if any literary agents out there think they can represent the Cleo Howard diaries, let me know! I think the time could be right, there’s a lot of late 90s/Y2K nostalgia around at the moment.

I have also written fiction about Pam Dickens, she lives in Oxford (not the posh bit with more books set in it, the slightly more affordable bit). Pam is at retirement age and loves Christmas. I am about to write the fictional diary of her daughter Nicola Dickens.

To start any fictional diary you need to decide what time period it will cover.

Nicola Dickens Uses Christmas To Hold Herself Together will cover the period of 1st July 2024 to 30th June 2025.

The Still Not Grown Out Of It Metal Diary Of Cleo Howard (TSNGOOIDOCH) begins on 23rd July 2025, the day after Ozzy Osbourne’s death and continues for one year, until 22nd July 2026.

Usually when I begin writing a fictional diary I take my actual diary and strip out all text except the dates and use this as my starting point. Sometimes people say to me “I’ve read your diary” and my face does a shocked expression and then I realise they mean Cleo Howard’s or Pam Dickens’ diary. My actual diaries are never to be published, even posthumously, not for any legal reasons, simply because they are too real lifey and no-one is interested in my top three fave risottos or when I get a new jumper). If you like reading about real lifey things, I can recommend the Mass Observation Archive who I would love to visit one day.

So, we have AI now and instead of preparing a list of dates myself I could ask ChatGPT and Microsoft Copilot to do this. I’d be interested to know if anyone thinks this is cheating.

I’ll create the dates for Nicola Dickens Uses Christmas To Hold Herself Together (1st July 2024 to 30th June 2025). These dates have already happened so I think it should be easy for my AI chums. Also dates are used in so many contexts that surely this must be simple for AI? I will specify the format I want the dates in, so I will ask AI to list all the dates from Monday 1st July 2024 to Monday 30th June 2025.

This looks good but notice at the start ChatGPT said that February 2025 has 29 days “Got it — you’d like a full list of every date, day by day, from Monday 1st July 2024 through to Monday 30th June 2025. That’s exactly 366 days (since 2024 is a leap year, so February 2025 has 29 days).” It seems that ChatGPT doesn’t understand leap years. However, the list of dates it has given me doesn’t have a 29th February 2025 so it knows on some level this date doesn’t exist.

Let’s see how Microsoft Copilot does the same task of list all the dates from Monday 1st July 2024 to Monday 30th June 2025.

This isn’t what I wanted. Obviously I need to rephrase what I’m asking. This was an interesting experiment and both ChatGPT and Microsoft Copilot clearly state they can make mistakes. I’ll stop here and give you a couple of extracts from my actual diary entry for 29th February 2024, this will have you agreeing with my earlier decision that it’s too real lifey;

Send orange bra back to M&S for a refund. Done at lunch time.

Have Christmas pudding for afternoon snack? What with? Custard or ice cream or cherry pie filling? Had it with custard.

I have eaten an average of 2.79 portions of fruit and veg each day in February.

Using ChatGPT and Copilot to Create a Happy Wimbledon Tennis Tournament Card for my Mum

~ sarahtipper ~ Leave a comment

My mum loves to watch the Wimbledon tennis tournament. I love greetings cards, the more obscure the better. So I’ll ask AI to help me mark the occasion of Wimbledon with a greetings card for my mum.

I asked ChatGPT; Design a happy wimbledon tennis card for my mum.

ChatGPT said:

Here’s a cheerful and thoughtful Wimbledon-themed tennis card idea for your mum—perfect for showing love with a touch of sporty British charm:

🎾 Front of Card:

Design:

  • A bright, summery background with Centre Court at Wimbledon.
  • Two strawberries with cream in the foreground smiling (cartoon style).
  • Tennis rackets crossed behind them like a crest.
  • Floating tennis balls around the border like confetti.

Text:

“Serving Love This Wimbledon…”
(in playful, elegant script font)

🎾 Inside of Card (Left Side – Optional Illustration):

  • A cute drawing of a tennis net with hearts instead of tennis balls.
  • Little Union Jack flags strung above the court.

🎾 Inside of Card (Right Side – Message):

Dear Mum,

Wimbledon is in full swing, and so is my love for you!

You’re the champion of my heart — always graceful, strong, and full of good cheer (just like a perfect rally on Centre Court!).

Let’s raise a glass (and a strawberry 🍓) to summer, tennis, and the amazing mum you are.

Love you game, set, and match!

Love always,
[Your Name] 💚🎾

Would you like me to turn this into a printable design or create an image version of the front of the card?

You said:

printable design

Image created

Share

You said:

I can’t see the full image

ChatGPT said:

Here’s the full printable version of your Wimbledon-themed card for your mum:

This was not the full image.

You can print it on A4 paper (landscape orientation), then fold it in half to make a traditional card. Let me know if you’d like it resized, personalized with your name, or turned into a PDF!

You said:

Can you make it a bit smaller

ChatGPT said:

Here is the smaller version of your Wimbledon-themed card:

👉 Download the resized card (PNG)

This was still not the full image.

Let me know if you’d like a different size, format (like PDF), or if you’d like to add your name to it!

You said:

add my name

ChatGPT said:

I’d be happy to add your name! Just let me know:

  1. What name you’d like to use (e.g., your first name, nickname, or full name).
  2. Where you want the name:
    • At the end of the message inside the card?
    • On the front of the card?
    • Both?

Once you confirm, I’ll add it and send you the updated version.

You said:

Sarah where it says your name

ChatGPT said:

Here is your updated Wimbledon-themed card with your name Sarah added:

Let me know if you’d like to adjust the font, color, or position!

You said:

Can I have just the first page of the card?

ChatGPT said:

Here is the front page of your Wimbledon card:

👉 Download the front page only (PNG)

Let me know if you’d like a back page or a vertical version too!

You said:

The left side is cut off

ChatGPT said:

It seems like I can’t do more advanced data analysis right now. Please try again later.

If you’d like, I can guide you on how to crop the image yourself using free tools or photo editing software. Just let me know!

You said:

It’s already too cropped, please change to portrait

ChatGPT said:

It seems like I can’t do more advanced data analysis right now. Please try again later.

In the meantime, you can rotate the image to portrait orientation using most image editing tools:

On a computer:

  • Windows: Right-click the image → “Rotate left”.
  • Mac: Open in Preview → Tools → Rotate Left.

Or if you prefer, I can regenerate a fresh portrait-oriented version of the front page for you. Would you like that?

Yes

ChatGPT said:

Image created

I’ve printed this cute image and will use a Pritt Stick to attach it to a red card blank I have.

Now lets see what Copilot can do.

In conclusion, ChatGPT was good, although getting the sizing right of the full card didn’t happen with my free goes at ChatGPT for the day and when I asked for my name to be added it was on the top of other text:

Copilot also had a nice design. Both these softwares were helpful for this task. Below is the finished card I will use to accompany some Wimbledon themed gifts.

Happy Wimbledon fortnight to those who celebrate it!

Can AI Make Me Laugh?

~ sarahtipper ~ Leave a comment

My previous blog post about feminism has left me feeling a little glum about all the work left to do. I’m wondering can AI make me laugh? I love words so I will ask what are the three funniest typos ever? I’ll start by asking ChatGPT.

I’m a bit startled by the words “Good to see you” for two reasons, firstly I don’t think ChatGPT can see me and secondly I am dressed for a quiet evening.

Anyway, here’s the answer:

Two of these typos are genital based and it reminded me of the time I typed Nob instead of Nov. I wonder if I can make ChatGPT laugh by telling it I once typed Nobmember instead of November? I shall try.

ChatGPT’s answer was better than I expected.

Would I like a fake holiday? Oh yes.

Excellent. Here’s an official fake holiday for Nobmember:

🎉 International Day of Accidental Innuendo

📅 Celebrated on: Nobmember 14th
🗣️ Motto: “It’s not what I meant, but now it’s funnier.”

🌍 Description:

A day to honor the beautiful chaos of typos, double entendres, and autocorrect fails that turn innocent sentences into snort-laugh disasters. Whether you meant to write “shirt” but didn’t, or told your boss you were “busting” instead of “bursting” with ideas—this is your day.

🪧 Traditions:

  • Share your most embarrassing or hilarious typos on social media using the hashtag #NobmemberFails
  • Read out loud texts you regret sending without pre-reading
  • Host a “Typo Toast” night where friends bring snacks labeled with intentionally misspelled names (e.g., “chikkin nuglets,” “beered cheese”)
  • Play AutoWrong, a game where everyone uses autocorrect and can’t edit messages

📜 Fun Fact:

Legend says the first Nobmember celebration began when someone sent a very earnest business email that read:

“I look forward to pubic collaboration this Nobmember.”

They are now a legend.

Would you like a poster or meme image made for it?

Both please!

Asking for both please resulted in just one image. When I asked please create a meme image I got the same image again. However, ChatGPT has entertained me and has not been very rude, just a little bit cheeky. Let’s see what Copilot does;

I’ll now see if Copilot is amused when I tell it I once typed Nobmember instead of November.

It seems churlish not to take Copilot up on the offer to write a scene where a typo spiral wildly out of control…

It occurs to me that Copilot is starting to incorporate my previous queries and so I might want to ask it to forget. I’ve been using Chat GPT and Copilot for six days. Here is what my Chats look like:

Here is what my Conversations look like:

I realise I have learnt that ChatGPT calls my requests chats and Copilot calls them conversations.