Story Therapy

  Australia bans under‑16s, and the lobbyists sharpen their knives. Story: S A Spencer Author of Popular Fictions :  The Pink Mutiny ,  The Black Waters ,  Dream In Shackles Australia has finally done the unthinkable: told kids under 16 to log off. A radical idea, apparently, that children should spend less time being algorithmic guinea pigs. Other countries are eyeing the move, but the big corporates in the United States are clutching their pearls. Why? Because fewer teenagers online means fewer eyeballs to monetise, fewer dopamine hits to sell, and fewer ad dollars to hoard. To show how this plays out behind closed doors, here’s a fictional noir‑comic scene — a corporate agent whispering sweet threats to a politician — with commentary that cuts through the spin. Panel 1 – Hotel Bar, Washington D.C. Agent: “Australia’s ban is contagious. If Europe copies them, our profits bleed.”                Politician: ...

  Story: S A Spencer Author of Popular Fictions :  The Pink Mutiny ,  The Black Waters ,  Dream In Shackles The Missing Truth “I saw a child’s photo on a green board. It wasn’t a missing person poster—it was a missing truth.” Gedhun Choekyi Nyima was six years old when he was abducted by Chinese authorities in 1995. He had just been recognized by the Dalai Lama as the 11th Panchen Lama, one of the most revered figures in Tibetan Buddhism. Since then, no one has seen him. No photos. No public appearances. No verified updates. The Chinese government claims he is safe and doesn’t want to be disturbed. But the Tibetan community—and much of the world—believes otherwise. The signboard I saw was placed by the Tibetan Women’s Association. It wasn’t loud. It wasn’t angry. It was a quiet plea. A reminder that some truths are still waiting to be acknowledged. The photo was faded, the edges curled from years of weather. Yet the child’s eyes seemed to hold a silent stor...

  How a Gen Z investor lost everything—and sparked a digital reckoning. Story: S A Spencer Author of Popular Fictions :  The Pink Mutiny ,  The Black Waters ,  Dream In Shackles 🎬 The Burn Begins Zoya’s fingers trembled as she hit “Post.” The video was raw, unedited, and furious. Her voice cracked halfway through, but she didn’t care. She wasn’t here to be polished. She was here to burn. “I followed @CryptoQueenie’s advice. I invested $3,000 in a coin she said was ‘about to explode.’ It exploded alright—into dust. I lost everything. And I’m not the only one.” The video was barely 90 seconds long. But within an hour, it had 12,000 views. By sunset, it was trending. Zoya hadn’t planned to become a whistleblower. She was a freelance graphic designer from Melbourne, 23 years old, with a knack for colour theory and a weakness for TikTok rabbit holes. She’d stumbled onto FinTok during lockdown—those bite-sized clips where influencers promised financial freedom wit...

  From LOL to 💀 : How texting became the new generational battlefield. Story: S A Spencer Author of Popular Fictions :  The Pink Mutiny ,  The Black Waters ,  Dream In Shackles When Three Letters Spark a Culture War I sent a quick “LOL” to my niece last week. Her reply? A groan and an eye-roll emoji. Apparently, my three letters were enough to make her blood boil. That’s when I realized: texting isn’t just communication anymore—it’s culture, identity, and sometimes, a battlefield. On TikTok, entire skits are dedicated to mocking older people’s texting habits. One viral video shows a Millennial typing “LOL” after a joke, only to be met with a Gen Z friend replying with the skull emoji 💀 . The caption reads: “Nobody actually laughs out loud anymore.” It’s funny, but it also reveals something deeper: the way we text has become a generational marker, as telling as fashion or music. This isn’t just about words. It’s about authenticity, belonging, and the eternal cycle ...