Neural & Narrative

Category: creators

  • How I Turned an Idea into a Fully Functional WordPress Plugin (With a Little Help from Gemini) 🚀

    How I Turned an Idea into a Fully Functional WordPress Plugin (With a Little Help from Gemini) 🚀

    Ever wanted your StoryGraph reading lists to live right on your blog? I did and teaming up with Google’s Gemini as my AI vibe code partner turned it into a crash course in agile development and creative problem-solving.

    Lately, I’ve been on a mission to level up my Gen AI skills and not just in theory, but by actually building things. I’m not a developer by trade or even training, but I’ve been experimenting with what’s possible using tools like Claude, ChatGPT, and Gemini.

    Last night a project sort of took on a life of its own. I wanted to create a WordPress plugin that pulls in my StoryGraph reading lists and displays them on my blog. It started as a “let’s see if this is even possible” experiment and quickly evolved into a messy, fun, but very educational journey through AI-assisted coding and constant pivoting.

    During this project there were three big pivots:

    1️⃣ Scraping Strategy → 403s Everywhere

    Since The StoryGraph lacks an official API, the first idea was to have the plugin scrape my StoryGraph reading lists which was a solution that Gemini shared early on. Technically, it could’ve worked… but we immediately ran into 403 errors. StoryGraph’s anti-bot protection (shoutout to Cloudflare 👋) was not having it. And while the data was public, scraping without permission lives in a legal area that’s not something I wanted to mess with. It was time to pivot.

    2️⃣ RSS Feeds → Behind a Paywall → Deprecated Functionality

    Next up: RSS. We reworked the plugin to pull from StoryGraph’s XML feeds… only to hit another wall. Turns out they’re locked behind a “Plus” subscription. I ponied up and then found out the feeds were deprecated. Classic AI wild goose chase. Those “Check these statements. AI can be wrong.” warnings should indeed be heeded.

    3️⃣ Data Export → Bingo

    Finally, after digging through account settings, I spotted StoryGraph’s Export Data feature. One quick download later and boom: a clean, reliable source of truth. No scraping, no chasing ghosts. Just good old-fashioned data export.

    🔧 The Plugin Takes Shape

    The next pieces to build were the actual plug-in functionality which was much faster than figuring out how to retrieve the data.

    • Admin Upload: Built a simple upload screen in the WordPress admin where I can drop in the data file instead of relying on live fetches.
    • Smart Parsing: Gemini helped map out fields like Title, Author, and Read Status. We ironed out some bugs around file types and capitalization quirks.
    • Cover Art Magic: For a more visual display, we hooked into the Open Library API to grab book covers using ISBN numbers.

    📈 The Result

    What began as a plain text list can now be a polished, dynamic, and visual display of my reading life right on my WordPress site. This project wasn’t just about writing code. It was about thinking creatively, adapting on the fly, and using AI as a true vibe-coding partner to get to a smarter solution.

    🔗 You can check it out it here: jamesk.xyz/books

     

  • Turn ChatGPT Into Your Personal Game Master: The Fun World of AI-Powered Gaming

    Turn ChatGPT Into Your Personal Game Master: The Fun World of AI-Powered Gaming

    The Big Idea: You can transform ChatGPT into an amazing game master for RPGs, text adventures, and interactive stories using simple prompts. No coding required—just creativity and the right words.

    Remember those choose-your-own-adventure books from childhood? Artificial intelligence has brought them roaring back to life, and they’re better than ever. With the right prompts, you can turn ChatGPT or other AI chatbots into engaging game masters that create unique adventures every time you play.

    What Are AI Gaming Prompts?

    Think of prompts as instructions you give to AI to make it act like a specific character or run a particular type of game. Instead of getting generic responses, you get a tailored gaming experience that adapts to your choices.

    The AdmTal/chat-gpt-games collection on GitHub offers dozens of ready-to-use gaming prompts. Simply copy, paste, and start playing! From business simulations to mystery escape rooms, these prompts show just how creative AI gaming can get.

    Popular Game Types You Can Play Right Now

    Business Adventures: Pitch your startup idea on Shark Tank, negotiate deals at a pawn shop, or manage challenging retail customers. These games are surprisingly fun and teach real-world skills.

    Mystery & Escape Rooms: Get trapped in a basement and puzzle your way out, or solve crimes with limited clues. The AI’s ability to generate varied responses for the same prompt makes each playthrough unique and engaging.

    Historical Role-Play: Chat with Leonardo da Vinci about the Mona Lisa, or explore ancient civilizations. It’s like having a time machine powered by conversation.

    Fantasy Adventures: AI game masters can guide players through epic journeys filled with puzzles, choices, and dynamic challenges, tracking progress and adapting difficulty automatically.

    How to Get Started

    Getting into AI gaming is surprisingly simple:

    1. Pick a prompt from the chat-gpt-games repository that sounds interesting
    2. Copy and paste it into ChatGPT or your preferred AI chat
    3. Follow the AI’s lead and make choices as the story unfolds
    4. Experiment with different responses to see how the story changes

    Why AI Games Are So Engaging

    AI-driven text adventures are most interesting when the model generates multiple choices rather than letting you type anything. Part of the fun is discovering what creative options it’ll offer. This structure keeps stories coherent while giving you meaningful control over your adventure.

    Unlike traditional video games with predetermined storylines, AI games adapt in real-time. LLM-based generation adds an element of surprise and spontaneity, creating worlds that feel alive and unbound by static code. Your choices genuinely matter and lead to unique outcomes.

    Making Your Own Gaming Prompts

    Once you’ve tried existing games, creating your own is surprisingly rewarding. The key is being specific about:

    • The setting: Medieval tavern, space station, modern office
    • Your role: Detective, business owner, time traveler
    • The goal: Solve a mystery, make a deal, survive an adventure
    • The tone: Serious, comedic, mysterious

    The more context and detail you provide in your prompt, the more accurately the AI can create the experience you want.

    The Social Side of AI Gaming

    AI gaming isn’t just a solo activity. The r/ChatGPTGaming community is full of people sharing creative prompts, comparing adventures, and collaborating on new game ideas. It’s become a surprisingly social hobby where creativity and storytelling take center stage.

    What Makes This Different from Video Games?

    AI games offer something traditional video games can’t: infinite possibility within a framework. While video games have impressive graphics and complex mechanics, AI games excel at creative storytelling and adaptation. When you run games on natural language, it’s possible to invent new rules and approaches on the fly, making the experience feel genuinely dynamic.

    Plus, they work anywhere you can access a chatbot—your phone, computer, or tablet. No downloads, no installations, just pure interactive storytelling.

    The Future Looks Bright

    As AI gets better at understanding context and maintaining consistency, these games will only become more immersive. We’re already seeing prompts that remember your past choices and create ongoing storylines across multiple sessions.

    Whether you’re looking for entertainment, education, or just a creative outlet, AI-powered gaming offers an accessible way to experience interactive storytelling. The best part? The only limit is your imagination.

    Ready to start your adventure? Head over to https://github.com/AdmTal/chat-gpt-games, pick a prompt that catches your eye, and see where the story takes you. Your personal AI game master is waiting.

  • Easily Create and Sell Digital Goods: A Guide to Canva, Ghost, and WooCommerce

    Easily Create and Sell Digital Goods: A Guide to Canva, Ghost, and WooCommerce

    In the digital age, offering downloadable products like worksheets, templates, guides, or research reports can be a simple and effective way to provide value, build your brand, and generate passive income. Fortunately, tools like Canva, Ghost, and WooCommerce make creating and selling digital goods effortless, even if you’re not tech-savvy.

    Why Sell Digital Goods?

    Digital goods are incredibly appealing for several reasons:

    • Low overhead: No inventory or shipping costs.
    • Scalability: Create once, sell repeatedly.
    • Instant delivery: Immediate value for customers.
    • High profit margins: Minimal ongoing costs.

    Step 1: Creating Your Digital Product with Canva

    Canva is a user-friendly design platform ideal for making professional-quality digital products quickly:

    • Worksheets & Templates: Use Canva’s extensive library of templates to create visually appealing resources.
    • Guides & Reports: Combine Canva’s design tools to format insightful content clearly and attractively.
    • Ease of Use: Drag-and-drop functionality requires no prior design skills.

    Pro Tip: Export your creations as PDFs for easy sharing and professional presentation.

    Step 2: Hosting and Selling Your Product with Ghost

    Ghost is a sleek, user-friendly blogging platform perfect for creators and entrepreneurs:

    • Built-in Membership: Ghost effortlessly supports free or paid content, allowing you to offer exclusive downloads.
    • Easy File Hosting: Attach PDFs directly to your posts or pages for seamless digital delivery.
    • Simple Payments: Integrate Ghost with services like Stripe to manage payments with minimal setup.

    Pro Tip: Use Ghost’s built-in newsletters to instantly notify subscribers of new digital products, boosting engagement and sales.

    Step 3: Selling Your Product with WooCommerce for WordPress

    WooCommerce is a powerhouse e-commerce plugin designed specifically for WordPress, ideal for more robust digital stores:

    • Customizable Storefront: Easily create a branded online store.
    • Secure Transactions: Built-in support for multiple payment gateways.
    • Automatic Downloads: Digital products are securely delivered immediately after purchase.

    Pro Tip: WooCommerce provides analytics to help you track sales, customer behavior, and product performance, enabling informed marketing decisions.

    Choosing the Right Tool for You

    • Canva: Ideal for easy, professional-quality product creation.
    • Ghost: Perfect for bloggers and creators looking for simplicity and speed.
    • WooCommerce: Best suited for comprehensive, customizable e-commerce stores on WordPress.

    Whether you’re looking to supplement your income, provide added value to your audience, or build a full-fledged online store, Canva, Ghost, and WooCommerce provide intuitive, effective solutions to deliver digital goods effortlessly. Those aren’t the only options of course and I encourage you to continue researching what might be the best fit for you.