What 20 Years of Editing Has Taught Me
When I started editing professionally more than 20 years ago, I thought my job was about correcting grammar. I couldn’t have been more wrong. After working on thousands of translations, research papers, marketing campaigns, websites, technical documents and, more recently, AI-generated texts, I’ve learned that the biggest challenges are rarely grammatical. They’re usually about clarity, […]
The AI Writing Tell Everyone Is Talking About
Darren Chastney | 16 July 2026 Recent headlines have been buzzing about a curious discovery: researchers have identified a writing habit that appears far more frequently in AI-generated text than in human writing. The pattern is called negative parallelism. You’ve almost certainly seen it. It’s not just about technology—it’s about people. This isn’t simply a […]
🎬 Another Outstanding Fest Anča!
The curtain has fallen on the 19th edition of the Fest Anča International Animation Festival, and what a fantastic week it has been. Once again, Žilina became a meeting place for filmmakers, artists and animation enthusiasts from around the world, celebrating creativity, innovation and the power of storytelling through animation. This year’s theme, FAKE, proved […]
🎬 The Countdown to Fest Anča 2026 Begins
Darren Chastney | 24 June 2026 In just a few days, Žilina will once again become the home of international animation as the 19th edition of Fest Anča International Animation Festival opens on 30 June. This year’s theme, FAKE, could hardly be more timely. In an age of AI-generated content, deepfakes, manipulated images and competing […]
Slovakia’s AI Ambitions: Can Regional Investment Transform the Innovation Landscape?
Recent reports highlighting artificial intelligence investment initiatives linked to the Trenčín region raise an important question: can targeted AI investment help reshape Slovakia’s economic future? Across Europe, governments and regional authorities are increasingly viewing AI not merely as a technological trend, but as a strategic driver of competitiveness, productivity, and long-term economic resilience. Slovakia faces […]
AI Doesn’t Just Learn From Authors. It Learns From Researchers Too.
When people talk about the copyright implications of artificial intelligence, the conversation usually centres on novelists, journalists, musicians, and artists. But there is another group whose work has quietly become part of the AI story: Researchers. Every journal article, conference paper, textbook chapter, and academic publication represents years of specialised work. Behind each publication are […]
AI and Authors’ Rights: Can Innovation and Fairness Coexist?
Artificial intelligence is transforming the way we create, publish, translate, and consume content. Yet one of the most important questions remains unresolved: Who should benefit when AI systems are trained on the work of others? As part of my current editorial work with LITA (the Slovak Literary and Information Centre), I have been following ongoing […]
The Sydney AI Controversy Isn’t About Cheating. It’s About Disclosure.
Darren Chastney | 3 June 2026 A recent controversy in Australia has sparked intense debate after a university academic reportedly used AI to help draft a newspaper opinion piece that warned students against relying on AI in their academic work. Predictably, accusations of hypocrisy followed. But I think many people are focusing on the wrong […]
If Even Literary Prize Judges Can’t Tell, What Happens Next?
Darren Chastney | 28 May 2026 A major literary controversy last week has raised an uncomfortable question for publishers, prize judges, and readers alike: Can we still reliably tell the difference between human writing and AI-generated fiction? The debate emerged after concerns were raised over one of the regional winners of the 2026 Commonwealth Short […]
“Book Club” Scam Targets Content Producers
Darren Chastney May 25, 2026 A few days ago, I received an email from someone claiming to run a literary organisation called “vermontbookclub”. At first glance, it looked entirely legitimate. The sender referenced my recent posts about AI guardrails, translation ethics, and the challenges of preserving meaning between languages. They mentioned my work in Bratislava, […]