This is a post that’s been sitting here for over a month, and a post I’ve been thinking about for many months. Of course, waiting just makes things look old — I have a feeling that some of what I’m about to rant about has already run its course and the next terrible AI-related thing has already taken its place. But the emotion is the same. There’s just a whole new layer of tired on top of it. I’m angry, but I also know the algorithm feeds on my angry, which makes me tired enough to think I should dial it back, which makes me angry again because throwing up your hands and declaring defeat pains me in this area.

I’m empathetic as to why so many others aren’t angry like I am over this, but I’m also angry about that, too. Anyway, here’s what I’ve been wanting to say for a while in the hopes it might, maybe, possibly, make someone feel a twinge of guilt or even back off their weird, brainwashed, interest/love in AI.

See, I’m ready to die on the Hill du AI Slop. I just hope I don’t have to. Why? Because….

I didn’t mean to become an online AI harridan. There was a time — and on some level there still is a time — when I would approach people who had used AI and simply say, “Do you realize this is AI?” or “I think this might be AI.” Because if someone said that to me, I’d be horrified and immediately investigate and take the thing down if it was, in fact, AI. I mean, once you know all the truth behind how awful AI slop is — and on how many levels — how could you not? Have you no conscience?

What I forgot, though, is that many people are lazy. Or they don’t care. And it’s the lazy-don’t care Venn diagram that has fired my ass up. I do not like telling people that they’ve fallen into an AI slop soup, but I cringe at thinking just how brainwashed everyone has become about it.

Stealing from writers and artists should have been the end of it.

The fact that it lies and makes up stories should have been the end of it.

Ruining the environment should have been the end of it.

The fact that it looks like crap and screams I Am A Lazy Hack Without My Own Imagination should have also been the end of it.

But it hasn’t been.

Now, occasionally there are exchanges like this (I was not involved here):

And so, with hope in my heart, I changed my approach. I tried asking people whose artist clearly was AI just who their artist was. Who had created this vaguely suspicious thing for themselves? Because if they’d been fooled, wouldn’t they want to know? And if they were trying to fool us by pretending they’d created something with this soul-sucking “technology,” when I would want to know so I could dodge, block, and ignore immediately.

Funnily, it was astonishing how long it could take someone to admit that yeah, they’d used AI. Like they were maybe embarrassed to admit it. Or maybe I was projecting.

Yet, she persisted.

Ten Years Down The Tubes

For any good interaction I saw out there, I encountered almost none myself. I even got blocked along the way. An author/publisher I’ve admired for a long time started showing “clips” of his characters doing things from his books and I was impressed. Video clips based on your books? Whew! That shit is expensive. Then I realized — crap, it’s probably AI.

But I did ask who his artist was, and he said it was himself, and I said really, you’re hiring folks and getting these clips made? And finally he wrote:

Instead of responding further on Facebook, he took to his newsletter and wrote what felt like a thoughtful response that misstated our brief conversation, while simultaneously giving the whole thing a deeper think than I’ve seen elsewhere.

He wrote, in part:

“That said, the incident [on Facebook] did make me think about the different ways in which creative people make use (or don’t make use) of AI for their creative works. This is actually quite a complex issue in that it forces you to meld personal values, political beliefs, practical commercial options, the available technology, and many other issues together in a bizarre kind of Rubix Cube of decision-making framework.

“I’ve been trying to analyse and work my way through this nightmare (foisted on us without warning by unregulated American Tech Giants) over the last year or so, and I’ve managed to come to a firm conclusion on some aspects of the issue. There are however, other aspects I’m still undecided on, either because I don’t have the information I need as yet or because I have limited options available.

“This situation tends to be particularly difficult for authors in that before you even look at AI, you first have to apply your personal values, political beliefs, practical commercial options, the available technology, yadda yadda, across the wider dynamics of the commercial English language book market first. If you don’t do that, then there’s no way to develop any kind of consistent approach to AI. Even then, your options are increasingly limited as all the tools you used to use, are increasingly getting replaced by AI products.

“…At present, for example, there’s a huge international drive to replace the American Tech Giant software /tools with alternatives that aren’t so socially destructive, and huge developments are already happening in that space. Once again, however, all this new flux is going to drive new considerations and ethical/value choices, not only for author/publishers like myself, but for the people who ultimately choose to buy/read the published products.”

As I say, a thoughtful response. It also doesn’t repudiate the use of AI. But the fact is, if you choose to use AI to promote your work, you are essentially saying this is OK and I approve of it for this use at least which then suggests that you might also have malleable ethics about using it elsewhere, no matter how hard you protest. I think it’s quite natural to assume if you use AI on your cover and marketing materials, there’s no barrier to leaning into it for your writing.

AI is a scourge. It does not deserve an inch — particularly in the creative areas. It is sketchy if you use it, then dodge around using it, and delete people who ask you about it. You can always take the conversation off of Facebook if you like. This person and I have emailed on and off for ten years — and like that, zip. Over.

Oh No Not You Too

Meanwhile, as I was writing this post (back in May) a new front opened up. I love The Waterboys; their Irish-Celtic storytelling in their music has been amazing for decades. I even got permission to use a quote from one of their songs in The Only Song Worth Singing. So I’m on their Patreon. And then they (I say “they” but I am fairly sure it’s Mike Scott, the main frontman) posted this:

(This is a sample image; there was a whole series of panels also included but I am using just one for illustrative purposes.)

And my heart sank. On the one hand, I knew what kind of box I was opening by evn asking. But I did start out with hope … and things went south fast:

Now, that felt like an impassioned, reasoned explanation to me. I wasn’t shifting blame, I was pointing out facts that you can confirm anywhere. Instead, this is the reply that came moments later:

On the one hand, fair: I did use the question to set up the answer, suspecting the answer. But at least asking the question opens the door for a person to say — as he now has — that yeah, it was Chat GPT and I’m proud of it! Proud, I tell you! Despite anything you happen to say. That’s his right to say, and it’s my right to — as I will now do — show myself out the door.

But not in triumph. I didn’t “win” anything. I’m just sad. It’s so sad how fast people get offended. Really, really sad how it doesn’t seem to register how this affects all creatives. This, from a great musician and artist. I went back to say something along these lines before disengaging myself from the Patreon and got this:

This hill, it is so very slippery. And people are very touchy.

I wonder why.

The Most Boring Posters Ever

Originally, I was here to write a blog post about the Most Boring Posters ever. For that reason, I collected a ton of these wretched ridiculous pieces of AI fakery — and for that reason, I’m going to pivot to talking about them.

While it may seem axiomatic that those who use AI to generate “art” are often talent impaired, it tickles me in the darkest possible way to discover just how imagination-free they are. As I’ve traveled the world and surfed online (does anyone “surf” online any more?) I keep coming across evidence of this lack of creativity … because all of this crap looks alike.

Here’s just a small sampling from around the world and the web:

Do you see it now? How it all looks alike in a weird stylistic way? It’s overly-polished, all contains bending banners, it’s all too busy and texty and yet super boring — just like it all came out of the same meat grinder. Because it did.

Now, honestly, I’m not happy when restaurants or food trucks use it but that’s a different hill. What kills me is when the imagination-impaired, conscience-and-creativity-free among us use it … for book-related events and topics. How dare you. AI stole from artists of all kinds, and here you are being just fine being lazy and probably scammy by using the very tool that stole from those you allegedly are supporting.

Instant block. Well, instant block after a question or two. I had yet another touchy exchange with someone about their poster (see below) — and you do have to give them credit for just not giving a shit about the contradiction in terms when it comes to holding a book event that is fine with AI being part of it. Here is the latest. It is sad, it is infuriating, and it is symbolic.

But mostly it’s sad.

I saw this on Facebook:

Which led to this exchange:

A Bible verse?

Really?

I mean, last I checked, the Bible had quite a lot to say on the subject of thievery. And falsehoods.

And as I noted, I have zero problems with judging you if you’re using AI.

Whoever you are.

— R

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