A Very UnLIKELY Story
VT No 287 I Video & UnLIKELY Book
Hello Everyone,
Finally the PREMIERE of the most UnLIKELY BOOK YOU WILL EVER READ, with the most UnLIKELY VIDEO YOU WILL EVER SEE. I hope you love, watch, read and comment on them.
The original idea had been bouncing around my brain for ages. Eventually, I wrangled it into a story. Are you brave (or slightly unhinged) enough to explore a brand-new Children’s Book Genre that’s about to explode:
Human-AI Children’s Picture Books?
I have included an outline of the programs I used and samples of the prompts. I hope you share it with your students and encourage them to experiment.
AI is changing the game, learning to ask the right questions and using AI tools is a real SUPERPOWER. This books help kids get comfortable exploring, prompting and thinking critically, skills more valuable than ever.
Of all the books and videos I’ve written so far, this one was by far the most
UnLIKELY
and definitely the most challenging.
This is how creativity works, right? Confusion, chaos… then suddenly, BOOM, clarity!
It took ages. Like, epic saga ages.
And in the end? I put a monkey in the video. Naturally.
Because when adapting a book to a video, things change. Just like in Hollywood, where a quiet, poetic novel becomes an action blockbuster with explosions, a car chase and someone shouting “GET DOWN!” in slow motion.
And I thought a TALKING MONKEY was pretty UnLIKELY Blockbuster touch!
Here are links to the other Human-AI Children’s Picture Books, I have produced.
They are stories for all Humans, great hopeful stories, no agenda.
A New Jumper, A New Jumper with some Monkey Business, What a Disaster! AMAZING WORLDS all with videos and books. What a joy to be able to control the whole process.
HERE’S to more amazing adventures.
Check out Virtualteacher.com.au, a one-stop destination for quick creative ideas in the world of AI & Education. Use the YouTube Videos directly in your class & learn along with your students.
Enough of the chat, check out the Making of UnLIKELY!
MAKING AI EASIER, MORE PRODUCTIVE
& A WHOLE LOT MORE FUN!
PS
Virtual Teacher is.......... FREE FOREVER
Making Something UnLIKELY
Pirate Parrots in the Newsletter, pretty UnLIKELY
SO HERE’S HOW I DID IT - and it wasn’t easy.
Step 1: I wrote the Story. Used AI to expand my thinking and challenge the ideas.
Step 2: I prompted for the Still images. I used Dall E, Leonardo, Night Cafe and ChatGPT. This took a while, as I iterated prompts and rejected a lot of images that didn’t fit my vision. Here’s some of the prompts and the final results. I rejected a lot before I produced these masterpieces. Many of them needed touching up in Affinity Photo 2 to make them perfecto!
A turtle shredding it right on the corner of Crown and Oxford Streets in Sydney, just pure downtown energy, bright light, and that classic Sydney city vibe
Shoes with serious attitude, hiding out in the fridge disguised as a lettuce, eyebrows furrowed, eyes glaring, and full-on hissing like rebellious little beasts. These shoes are not going to school today.
Step 3: I created the book. I use Affinity 2 Publisher. A great program. I like to fiddle around with the layout. I loved the mayor.
Step 4: Then I created the video using the the still images. Pika.art was great for the scenes, there were lots of hallucinations and re-prompting was needed A LOT.
I loved this ‘Captain Me” option in Pika Effects.
KlingAI was great for the animating the characters. I used voices from Eleven Labs and uploaded them as audio files to KlingAI for lip synching.
Step 5: I changed my mind more times than a child picking a lolly at a candy store. Tried a dozen different directions, some brilliant, some baffling, some involving vegetables for no good reason. I invented entirely new ideas on the spot (because why not?), then scrapped them the next day. That’s the creative process: equal parts inspiration and mild chaos.
Human-AI Children’s Picture Books.
I’ve been submitting my work far and wide. Statistically, the chances of finding the right agent or publisher seem, well… kinda UnLIKELY. Which I find hilarious.
But UnLIKELY things happen all the time. Turtles riding skateboards, socks being turned into cupcakes, cities inside washing machines and this book getting picked up and becoming a bestseller.
I mean… anything’s possible, RIGHT?
Wish me luck.
VT YOUTUBE
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THANKS FOR READING
I love to hear from you. Leave a comment or just say hi by sending an email to cathy@virtualteacher.com.au If you’re having fun, your students will too.
This Newsletter is not free, despite the misleading advertising above.
The Fee is now due. Each week you must help one colleague on the Internet who has less knowledge than you. HELP THAT PERSON even if you have to visit their classroom or do a little research and get back to them. Trust me, this will help a lot of people get their computer classrooms running better. OK I'm trusting you!!!
The opinions expressed here are purely those of the editor, Cathy Brown. All other small print clauses apply. Such as: Use at your own risk. Nothing in life is guaranteed.
If it doesn't work for you, me send an email and I'll try to figure it out.
Editor: Cathy Brown cathy@virtualteacher.com.au
Before you go I have a question for you:
Would you be interested in learning more about AI and how to integrate into your teaching? Would you like more information about inservice and training?
No need to decide just yet, just email me if you'd like to start the ball rolling. cathy@virtualteacher.com.au or check out the VT AI Consultancy Page.