Stephen Cox
@stephencoxauthor.bsky.social
Novelist+comms. London, bi, Quaker, parent. Spooky? THE CROOKED MEDIUM's GUIDE TO MURDER. "A pleasure from start to finish"
Also Our Child of the Stars/Our Child of Two Worlds.
https://stephencox.co.uk/ https://linktr.ee/stephencoxauthor
Also Our Child of the Stars/Our Child of Two Worlds.
https://stephencox.co.uk/ https://linktr.ee/stephencoxauthor
Pinned
"A book I've been looking for all my life. Queer found family all wrapped up in a supernatural murder mystery. Absolute perfection.”
The Crooked Medium's Guide to Murder - Out worldwide!
#womensleuths #mystery #sapphic #spooky #books #booksky #LGBT+ #Victorian
stephencox.co.uk/books/upcomi...
The Crooked Medium's Guide to Murder - Out worldwide!
#womensleuths #mystery #sapphic #spooky #books #booksky #LGBT+ #Victorian
stephencox.co.uk/books/upcomi...
Reposted by Stephen Cox
If AI hasn’t helped revenue and C-suites are the only ones who seem to think AI can do part of their job, I feel forced to conclude that C-suites are useless and that they are a lot more replaceable than they pretend.
The disconnect between management and employee on AI usage is big. At the same time, CEOs are reporting they aren't seeing any revenue growth from AI.
🤷
www.wsj.com/lifestyle/wo...
🤷
www.wsj.com/lifestyle/wo...
CEOs Say AI Is Making Work More Efficient. Employees Tell a Different Story.
How much time workers say the technology saves them on the job is vastly different from what executives report.
www.wsj.com
January 21, 2026 at 7:57 PM
If AI hasn’t helped revenue and C-suites are the only ones who seem to think AI can do part of their job, I feel forced to conclude that C-suites are useless and that they are a lot more replaceable than they pretend.
Reposted by Stephen Cox
Tangentially related, I’m watching the normally brain-soothing Landscape Artist of the Year and one of the artists is using AI to “help him imagine that Busbys have taken over” St. James Park
I want to throw something through my TV screen, particularly when he shows the image
I want to throw something through my TV screen, particularly when he shows the image
January 21, 2026 at 9:41 PM
Tangentially related, I’m watching the normally brain-soothing Landscape Artist of the Year and one of the artists is using AI to “help him imagine that Busbys have taken over” St. James Park
I want to throw something through my TV screen, particularly when he shows the image
I want to throw something through my TV screen, particularly when he shows the image
Reposted by Stephen Cox
I cannot tell you how absolutely infuriatingly this stuff comes across to Europeans.
When we say America is no longer a reliable ally, it goes considerably deeper than Donald Trump himself. This kind of complacent, condescending shit is a *huge* part of it.
When we say America is no longer a reliable ally, it goes considerably deeper than Donald Trump himself. This kind of complacent, condescending shit is a *huge* part of it.
Newsom: "It was remarkably boring. It was remarkably insignificant. He was never going invade Greenland. It was never real."
January 21, 2026 at 4:22 PM
I cannot tell you how absolutely infuriatingly this stuff comes across to Europeans.
When we say America is no longer a reliable ally, it goes considerably deeper than Donald Trump himself. This kind of complacent, condescending shit is a *huge* part of it.
When we say America is no longer a reliable ally, it goes considerably deeper than Donald Trump himself. This kind of complacent, condescending shit is a *huge* part of it.
Reposted by Stephen Cox
This will get massively overshadowed today and as ever the devil is in the detail, but is should be one of the best things Labour has done. It has the potential to improve the lives and finances of millions of people.
www.businessgreen.com/news/4524489...
www.businessgreen.com/news/4524489...
'A national project to turn the tide': Government unveils £15bn Warm Homes Plan
Long-awaited plan aims to help millions of families to cut energy bills by installing solar panels, batteries, heat pumps, and insulation
www.businessgreen.com
January 21, 2026 at 7:17 AM
This will get massively overshadowed today and as ever the devil is in the detail, but is should be one of the best things Labour has done. It has the potential to improve the lives and finances of millions of people.
www.businessgreen.com/news/4524489...
www.businessgreen.com/news/4524489...
Laughter matters even if this time
In the 2010s, the Icelandic tv station Channel 2 accidentally added subtitles from a gritty crime drama to an episode of Teletubbies.
I have translated some of the highlights
I have translated some of the highlights
January 21, 2026 at 9:43 AM
Laughter matters even if this time
Reposted by Stephen Cox
This should be posted under every post Farage sends and quoted at him in every interview he gives - forever.
January 21, 2026 at 7:27 AM
This should be posted under every post Farage sends and quoted at him in every interview he gives - forever.
Reposted by Stephen Cox
I have also heard that when they user-tested Clippy, most of the women who used it were like, "It's so creepy, we hate it, can we turn it off?" and the all-male design team took that as a sign to proceed.
January 20, 2026 at 7:03 PM
I have also heard that when they user-tested Clippy, most of the women who used it were like, "It's so creepy, we hate it, can we turn it off?" and the all-male design team took that as a sign to proceed.
Reposted by Stephen Cox
Reposted by Stephen Cox
"Comms is easy"
I stopped being a fan for obvious reasons, but Scott Adams made a really good point in one of his books about how senior management often undervalue people. 'I don't know how to do what you do, so I assume it must be easy - if it wasn't, I'd have learned to do it'. And this ties straight into AI.
January 19, 2026 at 3:46 PM
"Comms is easy"
Reposted by Stephen Cox
I have seen MANY opinions about this but honestly, if you put The Liberator on TV again I'm happy.
Don't blow it up this time.
Don't blow it up this time.
[In development] Blake’s 7 reboot 🚀
"Emmy-nominated The Last of Us director Peter Hoar has launched a production outfit and is working on a reboot of cult British sci-fi classic Blake’s 7."
We'll see if it really happens, but I'm interested.
"Emmy-nominated The Last of Us director Peter Hoar has launched a production outfit and is working on a reboot of cult British sci-fi classic Blake’s 7."
We'll see if it really happens, but I'm interested.
‘Blake’s 7’ Reboot In The Works From ‘The Last Of Us’ Director Peter Hoar & ‘A Good Girl’s Guide To Murder’ Exec Matthew Bouch
A 'Blake's 7' reboot is coming from 'The Last Of Us' director Peter Hoar and Matthew Bouch and their Multitude Productions indie.
deadline.com
January 19, 2026 at 3:37 PM
I have seen MANY opinions about this but honestly, if you put The Liberator on TV again I'm happy.
Don't blow it up this time.
Don't blow it up this time.
#PLR came in, the author gets a few pence when their books are borrowed from #libraries. More than 250 people borrowed mine last year, second doing as well as the first. It's not riches beyond the hopes of avarice but it's a lunch out for the family sometime.
Support libraries, PLR and authors
Support libraries, PLR and authors
January 19, 2026 at 11:45 AM
#PLR came in, the author gets a few pence when their books are borrowed from #libraries. More than 250 people borrowed mine last year, second doing as well as the first. It's not riches beyond the hopes of avarice but it's a lunch out for the family sometime.
Support libraries, PLR and authors
Support libraries, PLR and authors
Reposted by Stephen Cox
What is it about Game of Thrones that makes its creator worry that finishing it won’t make its fans happy ever? Where has he got that idea from?
George R.R. Martin has said that if he never completes Game of Thrones sequel Winds of Winter (or the book after that), there's no plan for anyone else to step in. Instead, his Song of Ice and Fire series simply "won't be finished."
Game of Thrones Writer George R.R. Martin Says There's No Plan if He Dies Before Completing Winds of Winter, and the Series Simply 'Won't Be Finished'
bit.ly
January 19, 2026 at 8:15 AM
What is it about Game of Thrones that makes its creator worry that finishing it won’t make its fans happy ever? Where has he got that idea from?
Reposted by Stephen Cox
Today the Church of England remembers Wulfstan, Bishop of Worcester, a reconciler, a great pastor (and a very able administrator), and last but not least, the man who abolished the slave trade in Bristol and across his diocese.
Wulfstan died this day in 1095.
Wulfstan died this day in 1095.
January 19, 2026 at 8:43 AM
Today the Church of England remembers Wulfstan, Bishop of Worcester, a reconciler, a great pastor (and a very able administrator), and last but not least, the man who abolished the slave trade in Bristol and across his diocese.
Wulfstan died this day in 1095.
Wulfstan died this day in 1095.
Reposted by Stephen Cox
Yes!!!
Open AI loses copyright case in Germany.
Judge Elke Schwager summarized the case saying that if you want to build something and need components, "then you purchase them and do not use the property of others."
Judge Elke Schwager summarized the case saying that if you want to build something and need components, "then you purchase them and do not use the property of others."
Blow for OpenAI in Germany as court rules song lyrics used illegally
A German court ruled on Tuesday that OpenAI violated copyright on nine popular songs in a lawsuit that marked another attempt to prevent the free use of artists' content online. The Munich Regional Co...
www.yahoo.com
January 18, 2026 at 10:23 PM
Yes!!!
Reposted by Stephen Cox
The perfect is the enemy of the good.
Thinking you have to be perfect paralyses you. If you think about one small change (move an email account from gmail to proton.me and set up forwarding; use vinted sometimes instead of amazon; use ecosia not google) it seems possible.
Thinking you have to be perfect paralyses you. If you think about one small change (move an email account from gmail to proton.me and set up forwarding; use vinted sometimes instead of amazon; use ecosia not google) it seems possible.
January 18, 2026 at 12:26 PM
The perfect is the enemy of the good.
Thinking you have to be perfect paralyses you. If you think about one small change (move an email account from gmail to proton.me and set up forwarding; use vinted sometimes instead of amazon; use ecosia not google) it seems possible.
Thinking you have to be perfect paralyses you. If you think about one small change (move an email account from gmail to proton.me and set up forwarding; use vinted sometimes instead of amazon; use ecosia not google) it seems possible.
Reposted by Stephen Cox
Hi my spooky sapphic Victorian Murder Mystery is "absolute perfection" "hugely enjoyable"
Can two female con artists stop an MP murdering his wife?
#WomenSleuths #booksky #indieauthor
Can two female con artists stop an MP murdering his wife?
#WomenSleuths #booksky #indieauthor
January 18, 2026 at 1:19 PM
Hi my spooky sapphic Victorian Murder Mystery is "absolute perfection" "hugely enjoyable"
Can two female con artists stop an MP murdering his wife?
#WomenSleuths #booksky #indieauthor
Can two female con artists stop an MP murdering his wife?
#WomenSleuths #booksky #indieauthor
Reposted by Stephen Cox
Hi! So I have a thing about buying books from Indie/Self Published authors. My main genres are: Murder Mysteries/Thrillers, Fantasy, and Horror. Drop your books on this pin and I promise at some point I'll get to it. And yes trad pub are totally able to drop their links here as well.
February 4, 2025 at 3:51 AM
Hi! So I have a thing about buying books from Indie/Self Published authors. My main genres are: Murder Mysteries/Thrillers, Fantasy, and Horror. Drop your books on this pin and I promise at some point I'll get to it. And yes trad pub are totally able to drop their links here as well.
Reposted by Stephen Cox
Good policy will almost always get you good comms, as long as you don't eff the latter up. Good comms will never get you good policy. Governments are re-elected on the basis of success and failure in policy. So focus on policy and get good people to communicate it.
One of the most astounding things about this government is their failure to grasp the primary lesson from the last one was so obviously "Don't mess about with Comms all the time, just do stuff that will probably work".
This is why there's a whole chapter in my book about the damage the grid has done to policy making.
January 17, 2026 at 10:14 AM
Good policy will almost always get you good comms, as long as you don't eff the latter up. Good comms will never get you good policy. Governments are re-elected on the basis of success and failure in policy. So focus on policy and get good people to communicate it.
Reposted by Stephen Cox
I left university in 2019 with £49,600 of debt. A few months later, I became an MP and have since received a salary that puts me in the top 5% in the country. 6 years on, the repayments from my salary have brought this total to down to £48,600 - just £1,000 less.
January 15, 2026 at 2:57 PM
I left university in 2019 with £49,600 of debt. A few months later, I became an MP and have since received a salary that puts me in the top 5% in the country. 6 years on, the repayments from my salary have brought this total to down to £48,600 - just £1,000 less.
Reposted by Stephen Cox
I also enjoyed this very good Asda collection - Who Will You Save? By Gareth L Powell www.runalongtheshelves.net/blog/2026/1/...
Who Will You Save? by Gareth L Powell — Runalong The Shelves
I would like to thank Titan for a copy of this collection in exchange for a fair and honest review Publisher - Titan Published - Out Now Price - £9.99 paperback £7.99 ebook Action-packed ...
www.runalongtheshelves.net
January 17, 2026 at 9:38 AM
I also enjoyed this very good Asda collection - Who Will You Save? By Gareth L Powell www.runalongtheshelves.net/blog/2026/1/...
Told you
January 17, 2026 at 7:32 AM
Told you
Reposted by Stephen Cox
Art Nouveau is High Elves, Wood Elves would be Arts and Crafts? Hobbies be Vernacular. And High Gothic or Classical (to me) would be Valar? Sauron is mandated, clunky, mock Classical (evil cannot make anything, it can only mock).
January 16, 2026 at 4:45 PM
Art Nouveau is High Elves, Wood Elves would be Arts and Crafts? Hobbies be Vernacular. And High Gothic or Classical (to me) would be Valar? Sauron is mandated, clunky, mock Classical (evil cannot make anything, it can only mock).
Reposted by Stephen Cox
The Times interview records: "Hodge, who presided over the case with two female justices, defended the decision and pointed out that the case before the court had nothing to do with how or where single-sex spaces should be created. 'These points weren’t argued before us,' he said.
January 15, 2026 at 11:24 AM
The Times interview records: "Hodge, who presided over the case with two female justices, defended the decision and pointed out that the case before the court had nothing to do with how or where single-sex spaces should be created. 'These points weren’t argued before us,' he said.
Reposted by Stephen Cox
“The Free Speech Union’s commitment to free speech would seem to end where transparency about itself begins.”
@petergeoghegan.bsky.social and @mc00.bsky.social blow the lid off the backers of Toby Young’s outfit:
https://democracyforsale.substack.com/p/who-funds-the-free-speech-union-toby-young
@petergeoghegan.bsky.social and @mc00.bsky.social blow the lid off the backers of Toby Young’s outfit:
https://democracyforsale.substack.com/p/who-funds-the-free-speech-union-toby-young
Who funds the Free Speech Union?
Toby Young’s outfit went to court to hide its donors. Today we reveal that funders include US anti-abortion groups, Brexit politicians and Tufton Street insiders.
democracyforsale.substack.com
January 15, 2026 at 10:59 AM
“The Free Speech Union’s commitment to free speech would seem to end where transparency about itself begins.”
@petergeoghegan.bsky.social and @mc00.bsky.social blow the lid off the backers of Toby Young’s outfit:
https://democracyforsale.substack.com/p/who-funds-the-free-speech-union-toby-young
@petergeoghegan.bsky.social and @mc00.bsky.social blow the lid off the backers of Toby Young’s outfit:
https://democracyforsale.substack.com/p/who-funds-the-free-speech-union-toby-young