Weekly Unfinished Tales and Short Stories from our Dataset
This daily collection presents a series of narrative experiments drawn from our ongoing “Unfinished Tales and Short Stories” project. This interdisciplinary initiative delves into creative arts and storytelling, undertaken not only for intellectual curiosity but also for the sheer enjoyment of exploring the myriad ways stories can be crafted and experienced.
Each story within this compilation offers valuable insights into the project’s dual objectives. They serve as rich datasets for investigating AI-assisted scriptwriting, providing diverse narrative structures and character dynamics that inform our exploration of AI’s capacity to generate ideas and alternative plot arcs. Concurrently, these narratives illuminate the evolving landscape of talent development, highlighting the critical skills creative professionals require to effectively manage AI tools, navigate immersive technologies, and foster digital literacy within an increasingly interdisciplinary creative environment.
Today’s Unfinished Tales and Short Stories
Pine Pitch and Duct Tape
Author: Tony Eetak | Category: Slice of Life | Genre: Coming-of-Age
A living room in late November, besieged by the elements of a premature Christmas. Outside, the autumn wind howls; inside, a man battles a tree.
Black Ice
Category: Coming-of-Age | Genre: Western Style Boys Love
A rural highway in the middle of a whiteout snowstorm, transitioning to the claustrophobic interior of a pickup truck, and finally a heated mechanic’s garage.
The Render Farm
Author: Jamie F. Bell | Category: Slice of Life | Genre: Slice of Life
A cluttered, repurposed room in a community centre near Borups Corners, filled with the hum of computer fans and the smell of stale coffee and fall dampness.
Plastic Needles in July
Author: Jamie F. Bell | Category: Slice of Life | Genre: Coming-of-Age
A suffocatingly hot attic in mid-July, filled with the debris of decades. The air smells of baked insulation and old cardboard.
Granite and Glitches
Author: Jamie F. Bell | Category: Slice of Life | Genre: Slice of Life
Three friends haul heavy camera equipment up a steep granite outcrop in the heat of a Northwestern Ontario summer, intending to film a message for their collaborators in China.
Design Notes and Applied Research
This collection, featuring Coming-of-Age, Western Style Boys Love, and Slice of Life narratives, offers a compelling exploration of our project’s focus on skills development and the digital transformation of the arts. These genres inherently delve into personal growth, skill acquisition, and the nuanced daily experiences that shape individuals, providing rich ground for examining narrative craft and character evolution. The inclusion of Western Style Boys Love further highlights the evolving landscape of genre creation and audience engagement, often amplified and shaped by digital platforms and global communities. Such diverse storytelling approaches underscore the adaptability of narrative forms in a digitally convergent environment.
The stories presented today serve as a testament to the dynamic interplay between traditional narrative elements and contemporary digital contexts. This particular collection proved to be an insightful experimental endeavor, allowing us to observe how specific genre conventions adapt and thrive within new artistic frameworks. The process was both engaging and revelatory, providing valuable data and perspectives on the practical application of storytelling skills in an increasingly digital arts landscape. We appreciate the opportunity to explore these intersections through such a vibrant and diverse set of narratives.
About the Project
The Unfinished Tales and Short Stories collection was an interdisciplinary arts and narrative storytelling experiment in 2025. It was part of a creative arts and participatory research project by The Arts Incubator Winnipeg and the Art Borups Corners collectives. It focuses on two key areas: AI-Assisted Storytelling and Scriptwriting, exploring AI tools for generating ideas, plot structures, and story arcs; and Talent Development and Training, studying digital skills, literacy and training needs for creative professionals by experimenting with AI and immersive technologies to inform future projects. Funding and support were generously provided by the Ontario Arts Council Multi and Inter-Arts Projects program and the Government of Ontario. We thank them for supporting the arts, digital transformation, and applied Artificial Intelligence (AI) research.
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