I get a lot of comments about AI, so let me clear something up.

The Ocoda Chronicles was being written long before today's generative AI revolution. The characters, the universe, the story and the ideas are mine. AI didn't create them.

But I'm also not afraid of new technology.

There was a time when people insisted computers would ruin everything. We had shelves full of encyclopedias because that was how you looked something up. Then came the internet. Search engines. Smartphones. Digital photography. GPS. Streaming. Every generation watches technology replace some of the tools it grew up with.

And every time, some people fight it.

People resisted automobiles while horses still filled the streets. People resisted calculators, computers, digital books and online shopping. None of that stopped the technology from moving forward.

AI is another tool. I use it where I believe it helps me—particularly in bringing the world and characters I've spent years creating to life visually. The story is still mine. The imagination is still mine. And I decide what belongs in my universe.

You don't have to like AI. You don't have to use it. And you certainly don't have to like the way I use it.

But the future moves forward whether we're comfortable with it or not.

Whether you choose to be part of it is entirely up to you.

I'm going forward.