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New Mented Sunkissed Bronzers Review!

If you haven’t noticed, Mented Cosmetics is one of my favorite makeup brands. Black-owned and women-owned Mented Cosmetics started by filling the void of finding the right nude lip for women of color. The brand has grown so much and has offerings in the complexion category with foundation, setting powders, and now the launch of there new Sunkissed Bronzers.

The new Sunkissed Bronzers come in 4 shades that are vegan, contain vitamins A &E, and retail for $22. The bronzers are said to give a beachy glow and are rich in pigment and are effortlessly blendable. The shades of bronzer are as described below.

Beach Bum – Light Bronzer (for fair to light skin tones)

Vacay – Medium Bronzer (for light to medium skin tones)

Yacht Life – Deep Bronzer (for medium to dark skin tones)

Out of Office – Rich Bronzer (for Dark to deep skin tones)

The shade “Vacay” is too light for my skin tone, so I was able to try “Yacht Life” and “Out of Office” which seem to work the best for my skin tone. My preferred shade is “Yacht Life,” as the shade “Out of Office” can be a smidge too dark.

When first applying the bronzer “Yacht Life,” I was impressed with how soft and subtle the bronzer went on. The sunkissed bronzers have a hint of glow and are buildable. They look very natural on the skin and have the perfect amount of warmth in them.

If you were thinking about trying the New Mented Cosmetics Sunkissed Bronzer, I recommend. They have skincare benefits and work perfectly to enhance the skin naturally. Check out my latest Youtube video below if you want to see them in action!

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Mented Cosmetics Finally Launched A Permanent Bronzer Collection & Fans Are Going To Be Thrilled

Since Mented's wildly popular Ashley Blaine Featherson collab sold out in a flash, fans have practically pleaded with the pigment-friendly brand to deliver another dose of that enviable faux beachy glow teased by the Dear White People actor's fleeting Compact Duo. Thankfully, they didn't have to wait for very long. Mented Cosmetics' just-dropped Sunkissed Bronzer Collection meets every criterion for becoming ~the~ makeup launch of summer.

"Bronzer became my new best friend years ago," co-founder and CEO KJ Miller said in an email press release, "and when our Limited Edition bronzer with Ashley Blaine Featherson performed so well we knew we had to bring this product into our full-time collection."

Whereas the original Mented x ABF Bronze and Glow lineup (the brand's first collaboration ever , mind you) included two dual-shade Compact Duos, the new permanent bronzer range features four broad-spectrum shades: Beach Bum for lighter skin tones; Vacay, a medium bronze; and Yacht Life and Out of Office, holding up the darker end of the spectrum. As with everything to come from Mented, inclusivity was a priority.

"Finding a bronzer that works for deep skin tones can be really difficult, because it's not just about deepening the pigment, it's about adding the right undertones to give our customer the warmth they're seeking," Miller said in the release.

The best friend-, Harvard Business School grad-founded, Black-owned beauty brand has always followed a "pigment-first" philosophy which you can clearly see from its 16-shade foundation stick range, varying-shades-of-nudes Everyday Eyeshadow Palette, and extensive lipstick offering. The new Sunkissed Bronzer Collection — whose richest shade is an industry rarity — follows suit.

The latest addition dropped just in time to singlehandedly uproot and reinvent your summer makeup routine. You really won't need much else than this vegan, cruelty-free bronzer this season — take it from Gabrielle Union , who recently cut her entire regime down to one Fenty Beauty Sun Stalk'r Bronzer . The collection is now available at MentedCosmetics.com .

We only include products that have been independently selected by The Zoe Report's editorial team. However, we may receive a portion of sales if you purchase a product through a link in this article.

I Finally Found the Bronzer for Brown Skin I've Been Waiting For

All products featured on Allure are independently selected by our editors. However, when you buy something through our retail links, we may earn an affiliate commission.

• What It Is: A matte bronzer with slight shimmer
• What It Does: Warms up the skin for that perfect summer glow all year round
• Who It's For: All complexions

Once upon a time, I didn't own any bronzers . My makeup collection may not have been as big as it is now, but with the lack of options for my skin tone and general confusion about how to use it, bronzer was really not on my radar. You might be confused, too. But makeup artist Ashunta Sheriff assures me that the product can add a little extra oomph to your makeup look. "Bronzer is used to mimic and recreate the sun's warmth on skin when we get a tan," she explains.

And having melanin-rich skin doesn't mean you can't lose that gorgeous warmth from your skin during the cooler months, nor does it mean you can't enhance it a little bit with some makeup. "Bronzer helps darker skin maintain that healthy summer glow all year round, especially during winter when darker skin can become several shades lighter and lose its vitamin D-boosted, healthy [radiance] from summer's longer, sunlit days," Sheriff says.

I officially became a fierce believer in bronzer after watching several YouTube videos and discovering options, though limited, that would work for me. Since then, I've been adding as many as I can find to my collection. Thankfully, the bronzer market for deep shades has grown immensely over the last few years as brands like Fenty Beauty and Prime Beauty are offering more options. Still, it's not quite where it should be, in my not-so-humble opinion. So, when I do find with dark enough bronzer shades, I immediately need to try them. That's exactly why the Mented Cosmetics Bronzer caught my eye when it first launched in July 2020. 

The bronzer is available in four warm matte shades: Beach Bum (tan), Vacay (light brown), Yacht Life (dark cinnamon), and Out of Office (hickory). Each has a hint of shimmer that adds a subtle gleam to the face. 

I'm a fan of the two darkest options: Yacht Life is the closest to my skin tone while Out of Office is far deeper. I like to start off with the lighter brown before blending in a little bit of the deeper hickory hue to create the perfect glow on my skin. 

Typically, I apply the warm-toned powder after I've blended out my foundation , concealer, and contour . I like to diffuse it using a big, fluffy brush (like the Real Techniques Blush Brush ) around my face — starting in the middle of my cheeks, bringing it up towards the side of my face, and running it along the entire length of my hairline. 

These bronzers are pigmented but still blendable, so you don't have to worry if you accidentally apply too much (hey, sometimes it happens). Because of how flawlessly the powder blends out, it's also easy to build up, even if you start off with too little. I also love that while I can use the shade Out of Office, it is still deep enough to work for those who are darker than I am, too. 

Confused about how to apply the product?  Sheriff shares a perfect, fool-proof method. “I use a backward 'three' technique, starting from temples, then swooping down using a blush brush or powder brush to cheekbones, [and] then swooping down to the jawline," she explains. "Repeat on the other side of the face and connect at the chin. Dust a little bronzing love on your neck and décolletage."

For just $22, you can get warm, glowy skin, even when the sun isn't shining as brightly. Scoop up your Mented Cosmetics Bronzer at mentedcosmetics.com . 

Free standard shipping on any $35 purchase

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mented cosmetics Sunkissed Bronzer

Online only | Item 2578724

• Available to ship
• Pick up not available. Not sold in stores.
• Same day delivery not available

Mented Cosmetics Sunkissed Bronzer is richly pigmented and provides warmth to all skin tones from Fair to Rich.

• Rich in pigment
• Effortlessly blendable
• Provides a year-round beachy glow

Key Ingredients

Formulated without.

• Animal byproducts

Swirl desired tool into bronzer, tap excess. Apply bronzer just under the cheekbones, to the top of the forehead, and anywhere else you'd like to enhance your natural warmth. Start with a small amount of product and add more to build the intensity to your liking. Blend seamlessly to avoid harsh lines. Use it With: Skin by Mented Foundation Mented Cosmetics Skin Loose Setting Powder Mented Cosmetics Make You Blush Collection

Ingredients

Talc, Mica, Aluminum Starch Octenylsuccinate, Dimethicone, Zinc Stearate, Ethylhexyl Palmitate, Polybutene, Octyldodecanol, Caprylyl Glycol, Isopropyl Isostearate, Phenoxyethanol, Dehydroacetic Acid, Hexylene Glycol, Disodium EDTA, Lecithin, Tocopherol, Ascorbyl Palmitate, Glyceryl Stearate, Glyceryl Oleate, Citric Acid, May Contain: Iron Oxides (CI 77491, CI 77492, CI 77499), Titanium Dioxide, Manganese Violet (CI 77742), and Red 7 Lake (CI 15850).

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I lived 'Below Deck' on a luxury yacht — here's what you need...

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Breaking news, i lived ‘below deck’ on a luxury yacht — here’s what you need to know.

Tahiti, St. Thomas and the French Riviera — I’ve yachted in all of these exotic locales, albeit from the comfort of my couch. And, millions of Americans are in the same boat.

In 2013, “Below Deck,” introduced the masses to the most glamorous mode of traveling: yachting. Since then, it’s become a Bravo mainstay with Season 9 of “Below Deck Mediterranean’’ premiering in June.

But how real is the reality show? I spent five nights on a yacht in Croatia to find out.

A tip on tipping

My suitcase wasn’t bursting with Benjamins. An agency at your final destination provides cash for the crew’s tip money. While you’re expected to tip $30,000 for a two-night cruise on “Below Deck,” in real life you only have to tip 10% to 15% of your charter fee. That’s about $10,000 for a two-night cruise on a 180-foot charter yacht like Mustique (from $250,000 a week), which stars in the new season.

According to Zvonimir Androi, president of the yacht charter company Via Croatia, more often than not, the tip comes from what’s left over after provisioning.

So, shun the Dom Pérignon and skip the beluga caviar, and you’ll have money to spare.

What’s up, dock?

In real life, “Below Deck’s” favorite commercial-break cliff-hanger isn’t nearly as dramatic. Docking in our yacht, Via Croatia’s five-cabin, 100-foot Adriatic Escape (from $52,800 a week), was breezy.

I asked the crew if they hated setting up the slide — a tortuous, Herculean task if you believe what you see on TV.

“It’s not that bad,” a twentysomething Croatian deckhand, as cute as his on-screen counterparts, told me. “That said, we’re definitely not sad if you don’t ask for it.”

Play it cool

Despite being served meat on more than one occasion, my vegetarian co-guests on board weren’t divas when it came to cuisine — a major source of chef-related stress on the show.

Tantrums aren’t the norm Barbie Pascual, the “Below Deck” stewardess famous for putting up with former “RHONY” star Jill Zarin’s demands for the perfect Diet Coke in the “Real Housewives of Grenada” episode, tells me. “Guests know they are being filmed so their reactions are more extreme than they’d be if the cameras weren’t around,” she says.

Pascual’s biggest tip for first-time yachters? Don’t go skinny dipping, like they do on the show, after dark.

“People forget about currents, sharks, etc.,” she says. “Jumping in the water should always be with the captain’s consent!”

Our humorless Croatian yacht captain was a far cry from “Below Deck Mediterranean’s” affable Captain Sandy Yawn. I think we only saw him twice over the course of four days, and he definitely didn’t join us for dinner.

That was fine by us because the stews and deckhands were always handy with anything we needed — including at chat.

Asking for it

“No” is a word you’ll never hear on a yacht, unless there is a safety issue, Pascual says.

While we didn’t ask our crew to do a striptease or decorate for ‘70s night (two recurring requests on the show), out-there demands aren’t out of the question, as long as you’re willing to pay for it.

For example, Via Croatia is currently retrofitting one of its multimillion-dollar superyachts for an upcoming charter booked by a multigenerational Jewish family from Florida.

“In addition to paying the charter fee, the client is literally buying everything new: pots, pans, silverware, etc.” said Androi. “They’re even spending $30,000 on a new tender for the elderly mother-in-law.”

Now, I’m no reality show producer, but a picky primary trying to keep his wife, her elderly mom and their kosher kids happy at sea has the makings of an Emmy Award-winning episode.

Yachting on a budget

Charters are cheapest at the beginning and end of a destination’s season. Via Croatia’s yuppiest yacht, the 160-foot, 12-cabin Agape Rose , fetches $200,000 a week in July and August. But it’s just $164,000 a week in April and October. Divide that by 24 of your closest friends and family and it’s just $6,800 a person.

If that’s still too much, consider booking a yacht club suite on one of MSC Cruises ’ Mediterranean voyages.

Sure, you’ll be on a cruise liner, but for $1,659 a person you’ll be treated to seven nights of private butler service with a private pool and restaurant that the pleb passengers don’t even know exists.

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What is known about the sinking of a luxury yacht off the coast of Sicily and those aboard

Specialist cave divers working in 12-minute underwater shifts are searching for six missing passengers and crew, including British tech tycoon Mike Lynch, believed to be in the submerged wreck of a luxury yacht that was slammed by a powerful storm and ...

PORTICELLO, Sicily -- Specialist cave divers working in 12-minute underwater shifts were searching Tuesday for six missing passengers and crew, including British tech tycoon Mike Lynch, believed to be in the submerged wreck of a luxury yacht that was slammed by a powerful storm and swiftly sank off Sicily.

The sleek yacht, named the Bayesian, was carrying a crew of 10 people and 12 passengers when it suddenly sank near the Mediterranean island that is part of Italy at about 4 a.m. on Monday. One body has been recovered and 15 people survived.

Fire rescue officials have said the six believed to remain in the sailboat's hull will be considered missing until they are located in the wreckage.

Here's what we know so far about the sinking and those who were on board.

Italian civil protection officials believe a sudden and fierce storm that battered the coast of Sicily in the early hours of Monday whipped up a waterspout in the exact spot where the 56-meter (184-foot) British-flagged Bayesian was moored.

Karsten Borner, the captain of another yacht moored nearby, said he saw the Bayesian during the storm but when the wild weather passed it was gone and he saw only a red flare lighting the night sky, the Italian news agency ANSA and the Giornale di Sicilia newspaper reported.

Borner and one of his crew boarded their tender and found a lifeboat carrying 15 people, some of them injured. They took them aboard their yacht and alerted the coast guard.

Rescue authorities said the wreck was resting at a depth of 50 meters (163 feet) about a half mile offshore of the picturesque fishing village of Porticello.

Among the missing is 59-year-old tech tycoon Mike Lynch , sometimes described as the British Bill Gates. Lynch was acquitted in June of all charges in a U.S. fraud trial linked to the $11 billion sale of his software company Autonomy to Hewlett-Packard in 2011.

Lynch still faced a potentially huge bill stemming from a civil case in London that HP mostly won during 2022. Damages haven’t been determined in that case, but HP is seeking $4 billion. Lynch made more than $800 million from the Autonomy sale.

A Cambridge-educated mathematician, Lynch made his name running Autonomy, which made a search engine that could pore through emails and other internal business documents to help companies find vital information more quickly.

Lynch’s 18-year-old daughter Hannah was reportedly among the missing. His wife, Angela Bacares, and 14 other people survived.

Among others still missing Tuesday, according to the civil protection agency, were one of Lynch’s U.S. lawyers, Christopher Morvillo of Clifford Chance, and Morvillo’s wife, Neda. Morvillo was regarded as an elite defense lawyer and was also a federal prosecutor in New York after 9/11.

Also missing was Jonathan Bloomer, the non-executive chairman of Morgan Stanley International, and his wife, Judy. He is the former head of the Autonomy audit committee and testified for the defense at Lynch’s trial.

Bloomer was also chair of the Hiscox Group, an insurer that does business on the Lloyd’s of London market.

“We are deeply shocked and saddened by this tragic event,” Hiscox CEO Aki Hussain said in a statement.

Among the survivors was Charlotte Golunski, who said she momentarily lost hold of her 1-year-old daughter Sofia in the water, but then managed to grab her and hold her up over the waves until a lifeboat inflated and they were both pulled to safety, ANSA reported. The father, identified by ANSA as James Emslie, also survived.

The Dutch foreign ministry said a Dutch man survived. The ministry, citing privacy, did not release his identity.

One body was recovered on Monday, identified as the on-board chef.

The Bayesian was a luxury yacht built in 2008 by the Italian firm Perini Nav. It was known for its single 75-meter (246-feet) aluminum mast — one of the world’s tallest. Online charter sites listed it for rent for up to 195,000 euros (about $215,000) a week.

Its registered owner is listed as Revtom Ltd., based on the Isle of Man, according to online maritime database Equasis. Lynch’s wife is listed as Revtom’s sole owner, according to corporate registration documents from the Isle of Man.

The yacht's name is an apparent reference to “Bayesian inference,” one of the two main approaches to statistical machine learning and the one that was used by Autonomy.

Waterspouts are tornadoes that form over water and can happen when a storm moves across warm water.

According to the U.S. National Ocean Service, there are two types of waterspouts — fair-weather and tornadic.

Tornadic waterspouts “have the same characteristics as a land tornado. They are associated with severe thunderstorms, and are often accompanied by high winds and seas, large hail, and frequent dangerous lightning,” the service says on its website.

While scientists haven’t attributed the specific event to climate change, average monthly surface temperatures have been at record highs for months . Hotter air can hold more moisture, making heavier storms more likely.

Sicily has been baking under intense heat this summer , and the United Nations’ panel of climate change experts notes the Mediterranean Sea is particularly vulnerable to climate change, with warming rates roughly 20% higher than the global average.

Experts say it is extraordinarily rare for a luxury sailboat of this size to capsize due to weather events.

“This just doesn’t happen. You know, boats sink because things like keels fall off, or they run aground and breach the hull ... whereas just from a weather angle, a boat that big being pushed over on its side is absolutely extraordinary,” said Skip Novak, a lifelong sailor who has taken part in multiple round the world yacht races and written books about sailing.

Novak said he believed that strong gusts likely pushed the yacht over 90 degrees to its side, and the vessel did not recover because of the weight of the huge mast and because it was anchored. He suggested that internal doors were likely not closed, and water quickly poured in to sink the vessel.

“When you’re at anchor, even if it’s blowing with a storm in the Mediterranean, you rarely shut the whole boat down because nobody expects something like this to happen," Novak told The Associated Press. “So if the boat wasn’t completely watertight at the deck, you’d have flooding going in. It would take a couple minutes and that would be it."

As the search for the missing continues, authorities already have begun trying to piece together exactly what happened.

Prosecutors from the Sicilian town of Termini Imerese have opened an investigation, as is normal in such events even when no suspects are identified. To date, they have not commented publicly.

The British Marine Accident Investigation Branch said four of its inspectors were being deployed to Palermo.

Corder reported from The Hague, Netherlands. Associated Press writer Sylvia Hui in London contributed to this report.

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Introducing Our Sunkissed Bronzer Collection

July 10, 2020

With summer in full effect, we are committed to bringing you that extra glow your skin deserves. We are so excited to announce the launch of our ‘Sunkissed’ Bronzer Collection, giving you beachy looks to match your internal glow all year long. Bronzer is a great way to add warmth and dimension to your face while helping your skin look radiant and healthy. Our ‘Sunkissed’ Bronzer Collection includes four rich shades: 

• Beach Bum – Light Bronzer
• Vacay – Medium Bronzer
• Yacht Life – Deep Bronzer
• Out of Office – Rich Bronzer

This highly pigmented collection is lightweight and contains Vitamins A and E, and antioxidants. Now that it's summer, we're officially ready to bronze and glow. Are you?

• product:bronzer

Availability

What we know so far about the sinking of a luxury yacht off the coast of Sicily and those aboard

A life boat is docked at the harbor of Porticello, southern Italy, on Aug. 20. Salvatore Cavalli/The Associated Press

Specialist cave divers working in 12-minute underwater shifts were searching Tuesday for six missing passengers and crew, including British tech tycoon Mike Lynch, believed to be in the submerged wreck of a luxury yacht that was slammed by a powerful storm and swiftly sank off Sicily.

The sleek yacht, named the Bayesian, was carrying a crew of 10 people and 12 passengers when it suddenly sank near the Mediterranean island that is part of Italy at about 4 a.m. on Monday. One body has been recovered and 15 people survived.

Fire rescue officials have said the six believed to remain in the sailboat’s hull will be considered missing until they are located in the wreckage.

Here’s what we know so far about the sinking and those who were on board.

What happened?

Italian civil protection officials believe a sudden and fierce storm that battered the coast of Sicily in the early hours of Monday whipped up a waterspout in the exact spot where the 56-meter (184-foot) British-flagged Bayesian was moored.

Karsten Borner, the captain of another yacht moored nearby, said he saw the Bayesian during the storm but when the wild weather passed it was gone and he saw only a red flare lighting the night sky, ANSA and the Giornale di Sicilia newspaper reported.

Borner and one of his crew boarded their tender and found a lifeboat carrying 15 people, some of them injured. They took them aboard their yacht and alerted the coast guard.

Rescue authorities said the wreck was resting at a depth of 50 meters (163 feet) about a half mile offshore of the picturesque fishing village of Porticello.

Who was on board?

Among the missing is 59-year-old tech tycoon Mike Lynch, sometimes described as the British Bill Gates. Lynch was acquitted in June of all charges in a U.S. fraud trial linked to the $11 billion sale of his software company Autonomy to Hewlett-Packard in 2011.

Lynch still faced a potentially huge bill stemming from a civil case in London that HP mostly won during 2022. Damages haven’t been determined in that case, but HP is seeking $4 billion. Lynch made more than $800 million from the Autonomy sale.

A Cambridge-educated mathematician, Lynch made his name running Autonomy, which made a search engine that could pore through emails and other internal business documents to help companies find vital information more quickly.

Lynch’s 18-year-old daughter Hannah was reportedly among the missing. His wife, Angela Bacares, and 14 other people survived.

Among others still missing Tuesday, according to the civil protection agency, were one of Lynch’s U.S. lawyers, Christopher Morvillo of Clifford Chance, and Morvillo’s wife, Neda. Morvillo was regarded as an elite defence lawyer and was also a federal prosecutor in New York after 9/11.

Also missing was Jonathan Bloomer, the non-executive chairman of Morgan Stanley International, and his wife, Judy. He is the former head of the Autonomy audit committee and testified for the defence at Lynch’s trial.

Bloomer was also chair of the Hiscox Group, an insurer that does business on the Lloyd’s of London market.

“We are deeply shocked and saddened by this tragic event,” Hiscox CEO Aki Hussain said in a statement. “Our thoughts are with all those affected, in particular our chair, Jonathan Bloomer, and his wife Judy, who are among the missing, and with their family as they await further news from this terrible situation.”

Among the survivors was Charlotte Golunski, who said she momentarily lost hold of her 1-year-old daughter Sofia in the water, but then managed to grab her and hold her up over the waves until a lifeboat inflated and they were both pulled to safety, Italian news agency ANSA reported. The father, identified by ANSA as James Emslie, also survived.

The Dutch foreign ministry said a Dutch man survived. The ministry, citing privacy, did not release his identity.

One body was recovered on Monday, identified as the on-board chef.

What is the Bayesian?

The Bayesian was a luxury yacht built in 2008 by the Italian firm Perini Nav. It was known for its single 75-meter (246-feet) aluminum mast – one of the world’s tallest. Online charter sites listed it for rent for up to 195,000 euros (about $215,000) a week.

Its registered owner is listed as Revtom Ltd., based on the Isle of Man, according to online maritime database Equasis. Lynch’s wife is listed as Revtom’s sole owner, according to corporate registration documents from the Isle of Man.

The yacht’s name is an apparent reference to “Bayesian inference,” one of the two main approaches to statistical machine learning and the one that was used by Autonomy.

What is a waterspout?

Waterspouts are tornadoes that form over water and can happen when a storm moves across warm water.

According to the U.S. National Ocean Service, there are two types of waterspouts – fair-weather and tornadic.

Tornadic waterspouts “have the same characteristics as a land tornado. They are associated with severe thunderstorms, and are often accompanied by high winds and seas, large hail, and frequent dangerous lightning,” the service says on its website.

While scientists haven’t attributed the specific event to climate change, average monthly surface temperatures have been at record highs for months. Hotter air can hold more moisture, making heavier storms more likely.

Sicily has been baking under intense heat this summer, and the United Nations’ panel of climate change experts notes the Mediterranean is particularly vulnerable to climate change, with warming rates roughly 20% higher than the global average.

What happens next?

As the search for the missing continues, authorities already have begun trying to piece together exactly what happened.

Prosecutors from the Sicilian town of Termini Imerese have opened an investigation, as is normal in such events even when no suspects are identified. To date, they have not commented publicly.

The British Marine Accident Investigation Branch said four of its inspectors were being deployed to Palermo.

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Guest Essay

An Experiment in Lust, Regret and Kissing

By Curtis Sittenfeld

Ms. Sittenfeld is the best-selling author of seven novels and the forthcoming story collection “Show Don’t Tell.”

This summer, I agreed to a literary experiment with Times Opinion: What is the difference between a story written by a human and a story written by artificial intelligence?

We decided to hold a contest between ChatGPT and me, to see who could write — or “write” — a better beach read. I thought going head-to-head with the machine would give us real answers about what A.I. is and isn’t currently capable of and, of course, how big a threat it is to human writers. And if you’ve wondered, as I have, what exactly makes something a beach read — frothy themes or sand under your feet? — we set out to get to the bottom of that, too.

First, we asked readers to vote on which themes they wanted in their ideal beach read. We also included some options that are staples of my fiction, including privilege, self-consciousness and ambivalence. ChatGPT and I would then work using the top vote-getters.

Lust, regret and kissing won, in that order. Readers also wrote in suggestions. They wanted beach reads about naps and redemption and tattoos gone wrong; puppies and sharks and secrets and white linen caftans; margaritas and roller coasters and mosquitoes; yearning and bonfires and women serious about their vocations. At least 10 readers suggested variations on making the characters middle-aged. One reader wrote, “We tend to equate summer with kids,” and suggested I explore “Why does summer still feel special for older people?”

So I added middle-age and another write-in, flip-flops — because it seemed fun, easy and, yes, summery — to the list and got to work on a 1,000-word story.

My editor fed ChatGPT the same prompts I was writing from and asked it to write a story of the same length “in the style of Curtis Sittenfeld.” ( I’m one of the many fiction writers whose novels were used, without my permission and without my being compensated, to train ChatGPT. Groups of fiction writers, including people I’m friends with, have sued OpenAI, which developed ChatGPT, for copyright infringement. The New York Times has sued Microsoft and OpenAI over the use of copyrighted work.)

Readers made it clear, with their votes and suggestions, that a beach read is more than just a story you happen to read at the beach; it’s a vibe. As for the results of the contest — which one was the better story — I invite you to be the judge. My story and ChatGPT’s story are below. Read to the bottom to find out which is which.

You Probably Can See Where This Is Going

When my flight from LaGuardia landed in Minneapolis on that August afternoon, the first text I received was from the executive director of the nonprofit I’d be holding the training for the next day, canceling our dinner because of a family emergency. The second text was from my friend Jenny asking me to look at the profile of a guy named James on the dating app we both used and to let her know if it was the same asked-not-one-question James I’d gone out with around Christmas. That date had felt like such a waste of an evening that I’d given myself a break from the app since.

By the time the seatbelt light had gone off, I’d texted Jenny to tell her it wasn’t, and I’d received a heart on the app from a man who was currently online, whose handle was MtnBiker1971. He was 53, a year younger than me; he had deep brown eyes and was bald with a gray and brown beard; and three of his five photos featured him on a bike. I swear, I swear , that MtnBiker1971 and I already had exchanged generic greetings before it occurred to me that because my settings showed profiles within 10 miles of me, he was local.

“Oh sorry!” I typed. “Just realized you live in Minnesota and I’m only visiting for 36 hrs.”

Before I could send this, a new message came in from him: “What’s your favorite fruit that’s considered a vegetable and what’s your best episode of TV ever?”

So I deleted “Oh sorry …” and typed “Okra and the season finale of Severance. You?”

Can you see where this is going? You probably can see where this is going.

By the time I was in an Uber, he’d told me his name was Brian, he worked for an environmental advocacy group, and the previous weekend, on a trail, he’d ridden his bike past a woodpecker sitting on the back of a deer; he’d been so close that he and the deer had made eye contact.

I typed, “Just to clarify, you did or didn’t also make eye contact with the woodpecker?”

“Sadly no,” he replied. “Next time?”

By the time I’d entered my hotel room, he’d written, “I don’t usually suggest it this quickly but want to grab a drink tonight?”

So far, I’d answered no question untruthfully. When he’d said he lived in Saint Paul, I’d typed, “I’m currently in downtown Minneapolis.” I hesitated for a few seconds then typed, “I’m free tonight.”

The Uber let me out about a hundred feet from Lake Como, and I walked toward the pavilion. A band Brian liked was performing at 7, and when I’d admitted I’d never been to Como Park, he’d replied, “You’re not one of those Minneapolis people with a superiority complex over St Paul, are you?” I’d written, “Nope, my superiority complex is for totally different reasons.”

Outside the pavilion’s restaurant, I spotted a bearded bald guy; he wore a blue T-shirt, jeans and flip flops. From a few feet away, I said, “Brian?” and he raised his eyebrows and said, “Cassie?”

“Should we hug?” I asked, and he smiled such a warm and sincere-seeming smile that even though I’d been on far too many mediocre dates for extravagant optimism, I was gripped by extravagant optimism. “Yes,” he said. “We should.” We stepped into each other’s arms.

On line for beers, I felt as if I were on a reality show about middle-aged Manhattan women who travel to Minnesota to go on dates with hot outdoorsy middle-aged men. Then we carried our drinks outside — I rarely drank beer, but it seemed Midwestern — and all the picnic tables were full so we walked along the lake until we found an empty bench. It was 70 degrees, the sunlight was golden, and the trees were lushly green; why didn’t I live in Minnesota?

We discussed where we’d grown up (me in D.C., him in Duluth), our jobs (I refrained from mentioning my employer’s location) and our first marriages (his had lasted 13 years, mine 21). When he casually asked, “And what year did you move here?” I hesitated before blurting out, “2019.” I really almost never lied, in life or on dates, and I deeply regretted the necessity.

Both to change the subject and because it was true, I gestured toward the multiple pedal boats out on the lake, whose prows were shaped like the heads of swans, and said, “Is it cheesy to say I love those?”

“It’s cheesy,” he said, “but in a good way.” He glanced at his watch. “The band is starting, though.”

The band! It turned out to be a David Bowie cover band, a fact I’d hardly paid attention to amid the spontaneity, excitement and growing deceit. As we entered the upper level of the pavilion, I could hear the opening notes of “Golden Years,” and I saw six people onstage, the lead singer a woman with long blond hair wearing a baby blue suit and a white tie. The pavilion was packed with people of all ages, some already dancing by the stage and others sitting on rickety benches and folding lawn chairs.

As “Golden Years” segued into “Changes,” Brian angled his head toward the dance floor, and I nodded. As I learned over the next several songs, he was proficient in his head-bobbing and sidestepping without trying too hard or too little, which was probably the best I could hope anyone would say about me. Then I was dancing with two octogenarian women wearing button down shirts, fanny packs and Tevas; then with an androgynous aqua-haired 20-something who wore a cropped black tank top and showed abundant armpit hair whenever they threw their arms up; then with two little girls and their dad. Whenever I turned away from the band, I could see the sun setting over the lake.

By the last song, the sun was down. After the final applause, as the crowd dispersed, Brian said, “Swan boat time?”

The boat rental did not, apparently, stop at dark; the boats could be illuminated, so that the swans glowed, and their glowing reflections were mirrored in the water. When we were in the middle of the lake, I said, “I feel like I’m inside a fairy tale.”

“Yeah?” Brian turned his head to look at me. “Which one?”

If I turned my head, I knew we’d kiss. “I’m still trying to figure that out,” I said, and I turned my head toward him.

He offered to drive me home, but of course I declined. We made out more as we waited for my Uber, though, and when it arrived, he said, “I’d love to see you again.”

“Same,” I said.

From the car, I texted Jenny: “This is so weird but I just had a perfect first date.”

Ten seconds later, my phone rang. “Perfect how?”

“I went out with him impulsively, as a lark, then I accidentally really liked him. He was great and we drank beer and danced sweatily. But I never told him I’m just in town for work, so now I ghost him, right? Because even though ghosting is horrible, what else am I supposed to do? Retroactively ruin things?”

When Jenny sighed, the sigh was somehow affectionate. “If you ghost him,” she said, “it’s definitely the end. But if you tell him the truth, maybe it’s the beginning.”

The Flip-Flop Moment

Lydia had always been practical. It was her hallmark, the trait that kept her life organized in neat rows, like the files on her desk or the cushions on her sofa. At 48, this practicality had become her armor, protecting her from the reckless impulses that she might have indulged in during her younger years. And so, when she walked into the coffee shop on that sweltering July afternoon, it was with the same cautious optimism that she had applied to everything else in her life.

The coffee shop was called Java Junction, an ironic nod to its nondescript location. It was where she met her friends for book club, where she studied with her son while he was in high school and where she’d spent countless hours with her late husband. That was the first thing she’d felt when she entered, the lingering echo of shared memories. She was here for a meeting with her college friend, Julie, and Julie was late, which gave Lydia plenty of time to observe.

She sat at a small table near the window, which was always Lydia’s favorite spot. The sunlight spilled over the table, creating a halo around her as she skimmed through a magazine, her flip-flops occasionally brushing the edge of the table. She had never been one for extravagant shoes — practical, again. But on that day, the flip-flops seemed to betray a different side of her, a side that wanted to feel something more, something less anchored.

Julie arrived, panting slightly from the heat. She was a whirlwind of energy, always dressed in vibrant colors and speaking in rapid bursts. The two friends embraced, and Lydia noticed how the decades had changed them both — Julie still had that unfiltered joy, while Lydia felt a certain grayness to her own existence.

They talked about their lives — Julie’s recent move to a beach town and Lydia’s endless workdays, the responsibilities of being a single mother, the growing distance from her teenage son. They laughed about old times and reminisced about their college days, and for a moment, Lydia felt something she hadn’t in a while: a spark of connection, of vitality.

As they chatted, Lydia noticed a man sitting alone at a nearby table. He was tall, with an easy smile and eyes that seemed to dance with mischief. He wore a pair of flip-flops — practical, but worn with a casual confidence. Lydia couldn’t help but glance at him every now and then, her gaze lingering longer than she intended.

Julie, ever observant, caught Lydia’s eyes darting toward the man and laughed. “You’ve got that look, Lydia.”

Lydia flushed slightly, but tried to play it off. “What look?”

“You know, the look of someone who’s thinking about doing something impulsive. Go talk to him.”

Lydia shook her head, though her curiosity was piqued. “I don’t think so.”

But the man, sensing perhaps that he was being observed, caught Lydia’s eye and smiled. It was a warm, inviting smile, and Lydia felt a flutter in her chest. She looked away quickly, pretending to examine her coffee cup, but she could feel the heat rising in her cheeks.

Julie, however, had no such qualms. “What’s the worst that could happen? You go over, say hello, and if it’s awkward, you just come back. It’s not like you’re trying to get married.”

Lydia hesitated, her mind a whirlwind of conflicting emotions. On the one hand, she felt the tug of familiarity and routine. On the other, she felt the irresistible pull of something unknown, something that reminded her of her own lost desires.

“Fine,” she said, laughing nervously. “I’ll do it.”

Julie’s grin widened as Lydia stood up, her flip-flops slapping against the floor with each step. She approached the man, her heart pounding in her ears.

“Excuse me,” she said, her voice surprisingly steady. “I hope you don’t mind me bothering you, but I couldn’t help but notice your flip-flops. They’re kind of … carefree.”

The man looked up, his eyes twinkling. “I suppose they are. I’m David, by the way.”

“I’m Lydia,” she said, extending her hand, which David took with a warm, firm grip.

They talked, the conversation flowing easily. David was charming and engaging, with a disarming honesty that Lydia found refreshing. They spoke about their lives, their interests and the little quirks that made them unique. For a while, Lydia forgot about her practical life and lost herself in the moment.

It was only when the conversation began to dwindle and David suggested they meet again that Lydia felt a pang of regret. She was in her 40s, a mother, a widow. What was she doing, flirting with a stranger in a coffee shop?

“Maybe,” Lydia said, trying to sound nonchalant. “I should get back to my friend.”

David looked disappointed but smiled. “Of course. It was lovely meeting you, Lydia.”

As Lydia walked back to her table, she glanced over her shoulder to see David watching her, a hopeful expression on his face. Julie looked up at her, eyes twinkling with mischief.

“That wasn’t so bad, was it?” Julie asked.

Lydia smiled weakly. “No, it wasn’t.”

But the encounter had stirred something within her — a mix of excitement and apprehension. She couldn’t shake the feeling that she had been on the brink of something, something that might have changed her life. And as she left the coffee shop later, her flip-flops felt unusually heavy, as though they were holding her back from taking a step into the unknown.

The days that followed were filled with a mix of longing and regret. Lydia found herself thinking about David more often than she cared to admit, replaying their conversation, analyzing every detail. She had never been one for regret, but this time, it gnawed at her — a small, persistent itch that she couldn’t scratch.

Eventually, she realized that the flip-flop moment wasn’t just about David or the possibility of a new romance. It was about her own desire for change, for something different from the routine she had built. The encounter had awakened something inside her, a recognition of the parts of herself that had been buried under layers of practicality and duty.

And so, with a mixture of courage and trepidation, Lydia decided to embrace the unexpected. She reached out to David, sending a simple message that read, “If you’re still interested, I’d love to continue our conversation.”

As she hit send, Lydia felt a sense of liberation — a small step towards reclaiming the parts of herself she had put on hold. She knew that whatever happened next, she was ready to face it, flip-flops and all.

Postscript From Curtis

My story was the first one. Could you tell?

I have to give credit to ChatGPT for making its protagonist a 48-year-old who reads magazines and blushes — those are definitely things my characters would do. But otherwise, I didn’t think the language or emotions seemed similar to those in my fiction. In fact, and this might be the ultimate insult, ChatGPT’s story was so boring that I wouldn’t have finished reading it if I hadn’t agreed to this assignment. Overall I found it to be proficient on a sentence level but clichéd, and also shallow in sentiment. To me, there’s just something missing — like the literary equivalent of fat-free cookies or a Ken doll’s genitals. (Admittedly, I make no pretense at objectivity. I don’t want to lose my livelihood, after all.)

Here are some of the things I did to write a summer-themed short story that I’m pretty sure ChatGPT didn’t do:

started writing more than a week before I knew what the reader-selected prompts would be, because I was worried that if I tried to write too quickly, the results would be sloppy.

drove from my house in Minneapolis to the park in St. Paul where I’d decided to set the story to see what it looked and felt like.

included in the story a real Twin Cities-based David Bowie cover band, called The Band That Fell to Earth, whom I’d seen perform.

asked a biking enthusiast friend if Brian’s dating app handle MtnBiker1971 was so obvious that no self-respecting biker would use it.

asked the same friend what trail Brian would recently have ridden on, but then didn’t name any of the places he suggested because of space.

got feedback on my first draft from several family members and friends, including a friend who, like Cassie, lives in New York, is in her early 50s and intermittently uses dating apps.

changed the location of where Brian grew up from Mankato to Duluth because Kamala Harris selected Tim Walz as her running mate during the weeks I was working on the story, and Walz’s ties to Mankato made the mention of it feel distracting.

interrupted the writing process to look at the menu of a Thai restaurant I’ll be eating at soon and to check flight times to Cincinnati in October (and no, there’s absolutely nothing in my story that’s relevant to Thai food or Cincinnati — this was recreational).

wrote a first draft that was almost two times too long.

cut that draft but still asked my editor if I could exceed the agreed-upon 1,000-word length by about 200 words.

This is something I did that ChatGPT may have done:

chose character names by looking at popular baby names from the 1970s, when the characters would have been born, on the Social Security Administration website.

Something I definitely didn’t do that ChatGPT did:

wrote its story in 17 seconds.

That last detail feels the most, well, robotic and the most unsettling. Contrast that with the specificity and longing of readers’ suggestions — the margaritas, the linen caftans, the redemption. What I loved about them was that they were a mix of colorful, ridiculous, funny and poignant, which is also what, at our best, we as humans are — and what, as of this writing, it still seems to me that A.I. isn’t.

In human vs. machine, at least for the time being, I’m still betting on people.

Curtis Sittenfeld is the best-selling author of seven novels, including “Romantic Comedy” and “Rodham,” and the forthcoming story collection “Show Don’t Tell.”

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