Is AI Text Destroying Our Characters Humanity?

 

In Publishing News This Week

 

The end of March saw the closing date for authors to claim compensation from Anthropic in the Bartz vs Anthropic class action. However, this doesn’t mean that Anthropic is off the hook. This week the Association of American Publishers, along with the International Association of Scientific, Technical and Medical publishers joined a class action taken by the Concord Music Group publishers. Yes, song lyrics were ripped off as well as scientific, technical, and medical information. So Anthropic might have to delve into their $300 billion wallet and find some loose change.

Over on Lit Hub, Mary Childs has an article on feeling left out of the Bartz claim…her book was in the original theft, how come It wasn’t chosen to be in the compensation?

 

The Guardian reports that Penguin Random House is taking Open AI to court because their Chat GPT bot plagiarized their German children’s book. This court case is being taken in Europe. This is a specific case involving a chat bot. The case is compelling and Open Ai don’t really have a leg to stand on here.

 

Are animated micro dramas the next big thing? Harlequin thinks so. They have partnered with Dashverse, an AI entertainment company, to produce animated micro dramas inspired by their romance titles. They have a huge back list to mine if the first forty animations do well. 

 

Publishers Weekly interviewed agents and publishers about the Shy Girl controversy which I reported on last week. There was skepticism about Hachette’s claims that they didn’t know anything about the problem before it was brought to their attention. 

There are some telling comments about the disparity of power between what publishers demand of authors and what use of AI they make themselves. 

Mark Williams has been looking at the audiobook industry and finding the gaps that publishers are missing. Mark is a teacher in The Gambia, one of the poorest nations on Earth and he shares insights into a world where everyone has a smart phone but not a book or a credit card. There is a distribution model ripe for disruption. A fascinating article.

 

Jane Friedman has a great article about how the Bookstore Market has changed and what publishers should be doing to support them. The article is based on the recent Book Industry Study Group candid discussions at their recent event. If you know a bookseller pass it on. (I will be) Jane also has some author takeaways to think about.

 

Joanna Penn recently interviewed Anne Lamott and her husband Neal Allen on their new book Good Writing. Many writers will know Anne Lamotts book Bird by Bird which is one of those books on writing that every writer should read. Anne and Neal’s new book for writers is on crafting sentences. Read the transcript or listen to the interview it is fascinating.

This month Richard Charkin is reflecting on those strategy retreats that he attended when he was a publishing CEO and how quickly the high ideas and plans fell by the wayside to corporate bottom lines. This year will the strategy retreats focus on AI and will they change anything in publishing land?

 

Sara Hildeth writes this week about the rise of AI text generated newsletters. Her response is to question why writers would even bother to use an AI to generate text. The act of writing demands so much more from the writer. This is a thought provoking article on what it means to be a writer.

 

Written Word Media has an interesting deep dive article into what moves the needle as you go from Author to Authorpreneur. The transition to a business takes a different mindset and a willingness to look at marketing strategies.

 

Donald Maass has an interesting article on the writers toolbox of questions to make your characters and plot stronger. The important takeaway here is you can read loads of craft books but do you put the ideas into practice?

 

Mark Leslie Lefebvre is also looking at characters this week, specifically how your characters look at the world differently. Are you thinking about your characters world view and how they move through your story? 

In The Craft Section,

15 actionable tips for writing deep characters- Joanna Penn- BOOKMARK

Ego driven vs Soul driven character arcs- K M Weiland – Bookmark

Using contradiction to create micro tension- C S Lakin

How does fear play into Character arcs- Becca Puglisi- Bookmark

Types of backstory – Gabriela Pereira

 

In The Marketing Section,

How to beat your newsletter competition- Jane Friedman- Bookmark

How to build a powerful email list- Sandra Beckwith- Bookmark

AI systems can rescue you from difficult marketing tasks- R J Redden

Marketing myths – Rachel Thompson- Bookmark!

Amazon A content can upgrade your sales page- Penny Sansevieri

 

To Finish

Recently Tessa Barbosa wrote an interesting article on Writer Unboxed about the value of craft in the art of writing. “Creativity is a practice, just like meditation. It is about noticing things, making connections and asking questions." 

An AI can’t replicate your voice or point of view. Go out there and be human!

 

Maureen

@craicer

 

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Pic  

Photo by Emilipothèse on Unsplash

Smart Ideas

In Publishing News this week,

One of the flow on effects in the Straits of Hormuz crisis is the slow down in the global supply chain. We have been here before, when a globally important canal was blocked. Suddenly everything is in short supply including books. They are stuck on a freight ship under fire in the Straits of Hormuz. Publishers Weekly looks at the rising costs due to this war.

 

Over the last week there has been comment over the Shy Girl book being pulled by Hachette just as it was being prepared for publication in the US. That’s a lot of pulped books as it was already on sale in the UK. The reason for the pulling- the book didn’t pass the sniff test for AI use. If so, why was it acquired in the first place? The author claims an editor must have used AI. Hachette didn’t notice anything until a New York Times article from another writer pointed it out and then they cancelled the book immediately. Mark Williams looks at the contract clause invoked and the problems this might create for authors in the future. 

 

Publishing Perspectives writes in their news roundup about Germany launching a credit card sized book token with a link to an audio book similar to the Tonies character player for children. Publishing Perspectives went on to say that Tonies has almost a 50% take up in target families in Europe.

Over the many years writing this blog the idea of physically owning your digital books has never gone away. Reading books on devices and subscription is not owning the book. You buy a license to read it on your device, kindle, smartphone, tablet or computer. This is true for audio books as well. Various companies have started with great intentions and then have gone quiet after trying to get traction from publishing companies to make bookcover trading cards with a download link combining the idea of convenience and physical ownership. If adults can buy Tonie character stories for their kids, is there a market for their favourite characters with audiobook or eBook links? 

 

Sweden recently had its Book Industry day and Publishing Perspectives covered the discussions. Amongst the applause at rising print book sales and the huge growth in audio, a new bookseller commented on Bookshops as social spaces. 

This idea has been on my mind for a while. The Bookshop as a curated experience. 

Savvy independent booksellers are embracing the idea of Bookshops as Destinations, offering experiences that enhance the readers enjoyment, Book club nights, author talks, panel discussions, book launches, themed membership nights. The Bookshop is the new literary salon. Who wouldn’t want to be a part of that atmosphere?

 

Publishers Weekly writes about the Substack-ified books that used to make the literary community ill. Authors were doing deals with Substack to serialise books back when Substack was new. A decade on and publishers are now realizing that the literary creator economy is over on Substack and they had better factor it in now that there are no longer glossy magazines to publish stories in.

 

The nightmare of having your social media or publishing accounts suspended can be paralysing to an author. Becca Syme writes about how to deal with the calamity and offers helpful advice based on how other authors came through the experience.

 

Jane Friedman has written the comprehensive post on AI and Publishing. This is an FAQ article that will be updated constantly. In the meantime, Jane has hit every major AI question with comprehensive answers.

 

Writing retreats and why they are a good idea, Harper Ross writes about how you can organize one for yourself. If you are lucky enough to get away and go write somewhere with like minded people you will already know this is golden time. 

 

Mark Leslie Lefebvre writes in praise of PLR. If you are lucky enough to live in a country that has the Library Public Lending Right – don’t take it for granted. There are plenty of authors who would like the chance to enjoy what you have. In the meantime, support your local library. I know a thriller writer who has all her book launches in the local library and they are highly anticipated affairs.

 

Katie Weiland has a thought provoking post on embodied writing or emotionally resonant writing. She writes “Embodied writing is an intentional return to that lived reality as the wellspring for fiction.’ This is an article that will keep you thinking for the rest of the week.

 

In The Craft Section,

Amplifying tension- Becca Puglisi- Bookmark

Journey of a romantic novel- Lucy Hay-Bookmark

Finding the heart of a story- Heather Webb- Bookmark

How to create a consistent Story Tone -K M Weiland- Bookmark

Focus on finishing- Joseph Lallo- Great Advice

 

In The Marketing Section,

Weak promotion dooms good books- Josh Bernoff

Are you overlooking potential readers- Kathy Steinemann- Bookmark

Author visibility- Rachel Thompson- Bookmark

You don’t need 10000 followers- Dan Blank

How to succeed at live events- Russel Nohelty- Bookmark

 

To Finish

You might have noticed the little rocket that I use as part of the Craicer branding. I write science fiction for kids so I let myself geek out a little on space things. This means that I read Andy Weirs books when they came out and watch the movies countless times. Project Hail Mary is a great story and all the scientists agree that it translated over to film pretty well. It deserves every success. Andy’s story is well known to the hard sci fi nerds amongst us. Tasmina Perry has an article on what we can all learn from Andy’s stories. Make your readers feel like smart problem solvers, they will love you for it.

 

Maureen

@craicer

 

It’s nearly time for my monthly newsletter If you want the best of my bookmarked links as well as other eclectic things you can subscribe here to join our happy band.

If you want the weekly blog in your inbox subscribe to the free Substack version.

If you like the blog and want to buy me a coffee, I appreciate the virtual coffee love. Thanks.

 

Photo by Alessandro Bianchi on Unsplash