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I want to start off by saying I have never, and will never, use AI in any of my books. I will also avoid using any cover designer or artist that uses AI.
There's been a lot of talk about AI in the author community recently. I know a lot of people are excited about the new programs/software that's now available at the click of a button, but a lot of people are concerned. I fall into the latter category.
I understand why so many are excited over the new programs/software. Who wouldn't be lured in by the sweet treats of being able to create your own cover, especially for those of us that aren't so good in that department, or being able to write a book in a matter of hours/days when it normally takes 6 to 12 months? (or longer!) I know I've been tempted to sample a slice of that delicious cake. But... and this is a big BUT... there's a chance this slice of cake could cause all sorts of problems later on down the road. I'm talking food poisoning galore. You see, there are a lot of unknowns with AI. From copyright to plagiarism and so much more.
Now, lets get into a few more details about the two mentioned above.
First, there's copyright. We, as creatives, can't copyright anything we've created using AI. Not only that, but the stuff we're creating using AI, could already be copyrighted. I know, that sounds insane, right? But its true. The way AI learns is by pulling information off the internet and plugging it into the software. That information, whether images or text, could already be copyrighted (and most times, it is). The program then uses that information to create its own images and text. The problem is it's not creating it's own art or story. It's pulling bits and pieces from the already copyrighted info to create those things. We know this for sure because we can see the watermarks placed on the images by the original photographer/designer. Not to mention, some of those images are identical to the original, just with a slight change to colour/lighting/etc. So if we can see it happening with the images, we sure as hell can believe its happening with text as well.
Which is where plagiarism comes into play. If AI is creating stories in the same way it creates images, then its possible AI is stealing large chunks of text from already published works and spitting them out as its own. I may not have read any of the books AI is taking those words from, but that doesn't change the fact the story it created could be plagiarised from someone else work. Which brings me to the reason why I will not be using AI for the covers, character art (or any art), or for any part of any book I produce. I can not trust that the work created using AI is plagiarism free, and I can not copyright any of the work either (meaning, anyone can use it).
On top of all that, is the legal side of things. At the moment, nobody knows what the legality is going to be surrounding AI and the use of it in the publishing world. So even if I was inclined to use AI, I would be wary at the moment because of any future legal action that could be taken against me. If I was going to use it, I would certainly hold off until more was known about, not just the legal side of things, but also the copyright and plagiarism. But I have absolutely no intention of using it now, or in the future.
I write because I enjoy writing. I didn't choose this career path to make a load of money quickly by doing as little as possible. I chose it because I love writing. I'm not going to lie, it would be great to earn enough each month to support my family, but I refuse to do that by creating AI written books. The same as I wouldn't use a ghost writer, but that's for a whole other blog post, just not one any time soon.
I must say, I'm not against AI, but I don't think it has a place in the publishing world. At least, not at the moment with all of the unknowns. But even if all of the unknowns become known, I still won't be using AI to create any part of my books, and I will avoid hiring any designer/artist who uses it.
Thanks for coming to my AI talk. Tune in next time to find out what's happening with the next book in the Guarded by Night series, Hidden Demons.
Until then, much love and happy reading.
Georgina x
