Ethics, Aesthetics, and the Algorithm: What A.I. Means for Creative Writers

and the present a crucial and timely panel conversation on Artificial Intelligence and its relation to creative writing.

The panel will be moderated by journalist Peter Andrey Smith, whose work is published in Outside, The New York Times Magazine, Wired, among others. Peter recently moderated a panel on A.I. and the law at UC Berkeley.

Panelists include:

Brandon Keim

Julie Kingsley

Mahsan Nourani

Tim Queeney

Bryan Wiggins

Independent bookseller, , will highlight recommended reading at the event.

Wednesday, October 22 at 7:00 PM (doors 6:30 PM), approximately 75 minutes, plus Q&A

ABOUT THE PANELISTS

, a freelance reporter in Portland, has covered science and technology for Undark Magazine, IEEE Spectrum, and WNYC Radiolab, among other national outlets.

is a freelance journalist specializing in science, nature, and animals. His latest book, Meet the Neighbors: Animal Minds and Life in a More-Than-Human World, is about animal personhood — knowing them as thinking, feeling beings — and our relationships to wild animals and to nature. His first book, The Eye of the Sandpiper, was published in 2017. He’s written three issue-length treatments for National Geographic: Inside Animal Minds, Secrets of Animal Communication, and The Genius of Dogs. His work has appeared in publications including The New York Times, The Atlantic, WIRED, and Nautilus, where he is presently a contributing editor.

is the co-founder of The Manuscript Academy and co-host of the Manuscript Academy podcast - top twenty best publishing podcasts, Book Hub 2024. Her novel The Space Between You and Me, Islandport Press 2024, was optioned for film by Neo Studios, and is the 2025 Gold Medal winner in the Best First Book, Juvenile-Young Adult category for this year’s IPPY Awards.

, Ph.D., Computer Science is a Research Assistant Professor at Khoury College of Computer Science at Northeastern University and a member of The Roux Institute and Khoury Visualization Lab. Her interdisciplinary research lies at the intersection of Human-Computer Interaction (HCI), Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Learning (ML), social sciences, and psychology. She studies people's interactions with and understanding of AI/ML systems, specifically those used for AI-assisted decision-making.

is the author of Rope – How A Bundle of Twisted Fibers Became the Backbone of Civilization (St. Martin’s Press, August 2025) and the former editor of Ocean Navigator magazine. Tim’s writing has appeared in Professional Mariner, American History, and Aviation History. He has had short stories published in the crime anthology Landfall, Best New England Crime Stories 2018 and in the speculative fiction anthology A Land Without Mirrors. Tim lives in Cape Elizabeth with his wife and a rescue dog named Frankie. A lifelong sailor, he has taught celestial navigation, radar navigation and coastal piloting both ashore and at sea aboard tall ships—where he tied plenty of knots and handled many a rope.

is the Maine-based author of the HarperCollins-published novel Autumn Imago and the award-winning self-published novel The Corpse Bloom. As a former brand strategist, he brings a marketer’s focus to shaping and sharing the heart of a story in his novel explorations of the nature of family.

PARKING & TRANSPORTATION

The Greater Portland Metro’s Congress & Casco Street Stop is directly in front of our building, served by routes 1, 7, 8, and 9B.

Parking is available at the Arts District Garage, which has entrances on Casco and Brown Street, with a rate of $5 per hour. Metered street parking is available on Congress, Casco, Cumberland, Free Street, and other nearby streets. Free hourly street parking is available between Parris and Alder Street.

ACCESSIBILITY

To enter our building, patrons will need to navigate a single step. There is a wheelchair-accessible elevator and a ramp available upon request.

If you need accessibility accommodations/questions please contact us at [email protected] or 207-773-8396.

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