An hour later walking back along the coast road, they talked about the experience.
Helena and Mandy agreed with Becky that it had been a cool place.
‘It was a bit too pretentious for me,’ Liz said. ‘The cocktail I had was nice, though.’
‘I felt old,’ Isobel confessed, ‘and out of touch. Everyone in there was so confident and sure of themselves. I never felt like that in my twenties or thirties!’
‘My mocktail was good,’ Lorraine said. ‘I wouldn’t rush to go there again, though.’
Becky gave them all a scornful look. ‘It’s not just about the cocktails, it’s about being seen in the right places. And that bar is currently the trendiest place in Antibes.’
‘To be honest, Becky, I personally have zero interest in that,’ Isobel said. ‘It’s hard enough keeping up with social media for putting book marketing promo in the right places, let alone socialising in the trendy places in real life.’
Becky shrugged. ‘It’s a way of life for me, I can’t imagine not being involved.’
As they approached Villa Celestia, Lorraine glanced across at the Mediterranean glistening in the evening sunshine. ‘We should all go for early-morning swims whilst we’re here. Swimming in the sea is a real mood booster and good for you. I go wild swimming at home at least once a week.’
‘I’m up for that,’ Helena said. ‘Mandy?’
‘I’ll think about it,’ Mandy said.
Isobel muttered, ‘Perhaps later in the week, but again, perhaps not.’
‘I’ll need to buy a swimming costume as I didn’t pack one,’ Liz said.
‘Becky, how about you?’ Lorraine said, turning to her. ‘Meet Helena and me in the hallway at sixa.m. tomorrow morning?’
Becky visibly shuddered at the thought. ‘No, thanks. I’m not that keen on swimming, besides does such a time even exist on a Monday morning?’
* * *
‘Anybody done any writing today?’ Sandy asked that evening at dinner. ‘Or have you all been busy settling in and planning to start in earnest tomorrow?’
‘I had a germ of an idea wandering around the garden,’ Liz said. ‘Whether it’s strong enough for a full novel, I’m not sure. Characters are starting to show themselves in my head, so fingers crossed they have a story or two to tell. I’m such a pantster! I sometimes wish I was more of a planner. I’m sure it makes life easier.’
‘AI can help you with the characters and the plan – with everything actually,’ Becky said, not noticing at first the sudden silence that fell as she forked up the last mouthful of pan-roasted pork from her plate. She looked around. ‘Did I say something wrong?’
‘Novelists as a whole are wary of AI,’ Sandy said. ‘Worried about the effects it’s going to have on both the publishing industry and their careers. Writers also object to their work being taken and used to train the technology without permission.’
‘I don’t know about any of that, but I’m certainly planning on using it to write my novel. I used it last year to writeHow to live in a Tax-Free Havenand it was brilliant.’
‘Non-fiction is different to a novel,’ Isobel said. ‘Fiction is full of emotion and empathy, which is impossible for AI to feel in the same way as a human writer.’
‘I use it all the time for my social content,’ Becky said. ‘And my followers seem to like the things I show them.’
‘I know smartphones and computers are full of AI, pre-selective text has been around for years, but that doesn’t mean we have to embrace it fully and cut out the human element totally,’ Liz said.
‘I’ve been writing for a long time now, so I’ve lived through many changes in the publishing world, of which AI is the latest,’ Isobel said quietly. ‘My biggest worry is that it is open to abuse from unscrupulous people. I can’t deny its usefulness for easily creating promotional posts for books because I use it for that, but,’ she paused and shook her head, ‘at the end of the day it is what it says – artificial not human.’
Becky shrugged. ‘I’m sure it will work for my novel. It’s already generated some brilliant ideas for me. Some people just cannot accept progress or change. They want everything to stay the same. Well sorry, guys, it’s the twenty-first century and things are changing fast.’
Zoe appeared at that moment to clear the first course and to bring in dessert – a mouthwatering meringue piled with local strawberries and cream. Conversation ceased for several moments as they all enjoyed the sweet treat. It was Mandy who broke the silence as she placed her spoon down with a sigh.
‘Well, I think dinner tonight topped off a wonderful first weekend,’ she said. ‘I for one am looking forward to the next fortnight. I think we are all in for a brilliant experience.’
14
It was five fifty-five the next morning when Lorraine crept downstairs, knocking on Helena’s door as she passed. Because there were only roughly forty metres separating Villa Celestia on one side of the bord de mer from the beach and the sea, she’d chosen to put on her swimming costume and cover up with the monogrammed bathrobe from her room. Waiting in the hallway as they’d arranged, she was pleased to see Helena wearing her bathrobe too when she ran down the stairs. ‘Great minds,’ she said. ‘Let’s go.’
