George Walkley
@georgewalkley.com
Independent consultant, MBA, NED, Chair @midascampaigns.bsky.social, board @bdspublishing.bsky.social, @brisunipress.bsky.social, AI/Policy @independentpublishersguild.com, advisor @xigxaguk.bsky.social. Strategy, AI, books, games.
What’s the workplace equivalent of
October 29, 2025 at 10:40 AM
What’s the workplace equivalent of
Up early for Brooklyn Bridge Parkrun and a cooldown walk around Cobble Hill and Brooklyn Heights.
October 25, 2025 at 4:30 PM
Up early for Brooklyn Bridge Parkrun and a cooldown walk around Cobble Hill and Brooklyn Heights.
Just started a non-fiction book and the epigraph to the first chapter misattributes a Rebecca Solnit quote. Amazing to me that neither author nor editor spotted it. Instant credibility loss.
October 4, 2025 at 9:11 AM
Just started a non-fiction book and the epigraph to the first chapter misattributes a Rebecca Solnit quote. Amazing to me that neither author nor editor spotted it. Instant credibility loss.
Lunchtime reading: issue 7 of @wyrdscience.bsky.social, which just arrived. Might be the best yet. Features on Rick Priestley, Undaunted and Cold War RPGs, an excellent column from @jameswallis.bsky.social and much more. If you like tabletop games and you haven’t subscribed, you’re missing out.
September 29, 2025 at 12:19 PM
Lunchtime reading: issue 7 of @wyrdscience.bsky.social, which just arrived. Might be the best yet. Features on Rick Priestley, Undaunted and Cold War RPGs, an excellent column from @jameswallis.bsky.social and much more. If you like tabletop games and you haven’t subscribed, you’re missing out.
Early start and over to Oxford to give an AI presentation at Worcester College for the Oxford International Centre for Publishing.
September 17, 2025 at 8:27 AM
Early start and over to Oxford to give an AI presentation at Worcester College for the Oxford International Centre for Publishing.
A provocative and fluent closing keynote at #ipgac from @lewisgoodall.com: populist politicians understand the value of a content strategy, where incumbents are still running an old fashioned comms strategy. “Authenticity: if you can fake that, you’ve got it made.”
September 16, 2025 at 4:16 PM
A provocative and fluent closing keynote at #ipgac from @lewisgoodall.com: populist politicians understand the value of a content strategy, where incumbents are still running an old fashioned comms strategy. “Authenticity: if you can fake that, you’ve got it made.”
Almost at the end of #ipgac, but not before a really helpful overview of global sales and distribution trends fron Darragh Deering of Ingram Content Group.
September 16, 2025 at 4:05 PM
Almost at the end of #ipgac, but not before a really helpful overview of global sales and distribution trends fron Darragh Deering of Ingram Content Group.
A good #ipgac panel from three highly experienced publishing entrepreneurs, Kate Parkin of @firefinchbooks.bsky.social, Will Atkinson of @wiltonsquare.bsky.social and Jamie Hodder-Williams of @bedsqpublishers.bsky.social, talking about the move from corporate publishing to their own businesses.
September 16, 2025 at 3:35 PM
A good #ipgac panel from three highly experienced publishing entrepreneurs, Kate Parkin of @firefinchbooks.bsky.social, Will Atkinson of @wiltonsquare.bsky.social and Jamie Hodder-Williams of @bedsqpublishers.bsky.social, talking about the move from corporate publishing to their own businesses.
My brilliant friend @jamesspackman73.bsky.social delivering a masterclass on pitching at #ipgac: another standing room only session, full of warmth and insight.
September 16, 2025 at 2:15 PM
My brilliant friend @jamesspackman73.bsky.social delivering a masterclass on pitching at #ipgac: another standing room only session, full of warmth and insight.
Opening keynote from Dharshini David on the economic climate at #ipgac. Interesting point about what story publishing tells about itself: is it a creative or information business (of course both). But relevant to absence of publishing from Creative Industries Sector Plan.
September 16, 2025 at 9:05 AM
Opening keynote from Dharshini David on the economic climate at #ipgac. Interesting point about what story publishing tells about itself: is it a creative or information business (of course both). But relevant to absence of publishing from Creative Industries Sector Plan.
IPG President @ogadsby.bsky.social opening the @independentpublishersguild.com Autumn Conference #ipgac in London. This promises to be an excellent and thought provoking day.
September 16, 2025 at 8:37 AM
IPG President @ogadsby.bsky.social opening the @independentpublishersguild.com Autumn Conference #ipgac in London. This promises to be an excellent and thought provoking day.
So, that opinion piece in @thebookseller.com: "The book trade must redefine its purpose in an AI age." I have issues with this in terms of accuracy and line of argument. Personal opinion, not necessarily that of any of the orgs I'm associated with. With that said...
September 4, 2025 at 9:41 AM
So, that opinion piece in @thebookseller.com: "The book trade must redefine its purpose in an AI age." I have issues with this in terms of accuracy and line of argument. Personal opinion, not necessarily that of any of the orgs I'm associated with. With that said...
Good catch up with @suw.bsky.social this afternoon, discussing the state of the world, designing and selling training courses, and this great line on customer feedback from Tobias Zwingmann.
August 27, 2025 at 2:04 PM
Good catch up with @suw.bsky.social this afternoon, discussing the state of the world, designing and selling training courses, and this great line on customer feedback from Tobias Zwingmann.
Somehow knew Spiked was going to come up before Spiked came up…
August 23, 2025 at 7:10 PM
Somehow knew Spiked was going to come up before Spiked came up…
As a summer project, I did some research using Companies House data to size and plot the UK book and journal publishing industries. I've published a write-up on my website, alongside some preliminary analysis of the data.
www.georgewalkley.com/UK-Publishin...
www.georgewalkley.com/UK-Publishin...
August 12, 2025 at 1:53 PM
As a summer project, I did some research using Companies House data to size and plot the UK book and journal publishing industries. I've published a write-up on my website, alongside some preliminary analysis of the data.
www.georgewalkley.com/UK-Publishin...
www.georgewalkley.com/UK-Publishin...
After a few days experimenting with GPT-5, I've noticed a pattern: having provided an output, it consistently ends by offering to go further, more extreme, more provocative. E.g. here from recent prompt outputs. Don't recall it being as pronounced in earlier models. Anyone else seeing this?
![GPT-5 response: "If you ant, I can also five you a more provocative set of questions that would push the author toward acknowledging potential blind spots in [redacted] - particularly around [redacted]. That might draw out even richer answers."](https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:gyjvyuzht4gvknwzyn2gq6vb/bafkreidq7tiqc3oyluj43dg2kif3roewqcguqpf6gp44jxjxou2ian4cum@jpeg)
![GPT-5 response: "If you want, I can rewrite [redacted] into something concrete and falsifiable - the sort of advice that could actually guide an executive decision. That would make the contrast even starker."](https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:gyjvyuzht4gvknwzyn2gq6vb/bafkreiesi3maorvh2xgoj3mmzxm5gbvz3ma5tgirr6aqslhxeea634i52m@jpeg)
August 12, 2025 at 11:35 AM
After a few days experimenting with GPT-5, I've noticed a pattern: having provided an output, it consistently ends by offering to go further, more extreme, more provocative. E.g. here from recent prompt outputs. Don't recall it being as pronounced in earlier models. Anyone else seeing this?
Google introduced a new feature called Storybooks in Gemini, which creates individual picture books from user prompts. I tried it so you don't have to: let's just say that its attempt to explain Generative AI isn't going to trouble the Carnegie shortlists...
blog.google/products/gem...
blog.google/products/gem...
August 8, 2025 at 10:57 AM
Google introduced a new feature called Storybooks in Gemini, which creates individual picture books from user prompts. I tried it so you don't have to: let's just say that its attempt to explain Generative AI isn't going to trouble the Carnegie shortlists...
blog.google/products/gem...
blog.google/products/gem...
Black Shuck, also immortalised in the Usborne Book of the Unknown, terrifying a generation of 70s and 80s children.
www.theguardian.com/books/booksb...
www.theguardian.com/books/booksb...
August 4, 2025 at 12:30 PM
Black Shuck, also immortalised in the Usborne Book of the Unknown, terrifying a generation of 70s and 80s children.
www.theguardian.com/books/booksb...
www.theguardian.com/books/booksb...
However, this does give me an excuse to repost my favourite Tom Wolfe/publishing story, from this New Yorker profile:
www.newyorker.com/culture/cult...
www.newyorker.com/culture/cult...
August 1, 2025 at 7:25 AM
However, this does give me an excuse to repost my favourite Tom Wolfe/publishing story, from this New Yorker profile:
www.newyorker.com/culture/cult...
www.newyorker.com/culture/cult...
A bold little grass snake sunning itself on the asphalt outside my office this afternoon.
July 30, 2025 at 3:36 PM
A bold little grass snake sunning itself on the asphalt outside my office this afternoon.
I'm a British guy writing an email in late July. It amazes me that Outlook/Copilot suggests 'Thanksgiving' as the most probable next word...
July 28, 2025 at 2:46 PM
I'm a British guy writing an email in late July. It amazes me that Outlook/Copilot suggests 'Thanksgiving' as the most probable next word...
Busy day of meetings, the highlight of which was a visit to the office from @evocatusuk.bsky.social and a chance to try @gmtgames.bsky.social In the Shadows, which @antsharman.bsky.social picked up regrettably quickly.
July 24, 2025 at 5:26 PM
Busy day of meetings, the highlight of which was a visit to the office from @evocatusuk.bsky.social and a chance to try @gmtgames.bsky.social In the Shadows, which @antsharman.bsky.social picked up regrettably quickly.
In fact, the only reference I can see to intellectual property addresses protecting US AI companies' IP, but nothing on IP used for training data. @independentpublishersguild.com @glovelace.bsky.social
July 23, 2025 at 2:58 PM
In fact, the only reference I can see to intellectual property addresses protecting US AI companies' IP, but nothing on IP used for training data. @independentpublishersguild.com @glovelace.bsky.social
Reading the US Government's AI Action Plan, published today. Have a guess at a word that doesn't appear once... (reposted to add alt-text)
July 23, 2025 at 2:56 PM
Reading the US Government's AI Action Plan, published today. Have a guess at a word that doesn't appear once... (reposted to add alt-text)
