Monday 1st January 2024
What's been the biggest topic of conversation this year for you? The state of the economy? The price of a tub of Lurpak? Why they didn't leave Nigel Farage in the jungle? In writery circles – even fluffy pink romance writery circles – it's likely to be the ever increasing influence of AI.
It's all about the rise of artificial intelligence nowadays. Do you use it in your stories? Should you? Could anyone tell? Is it ethical? Will it spell the death of human writing? |
You can't get away from it, and it's the kind of subject that you thought would never exist outside a few science fiction movies. And you would never have expected a bunch of romance writers to be so involved with the discussion, but it's infecting us all.
I've seen a handful of people stick their head above the parapet and admit to using AI in their writing, and the worrying thing is that they weren't met with an immediate onslaught of abuse from indignant traditional writers. Some people seem to be coming round to the idea that they might use AI in a limited capacity in their books. Maybe this is a reflection on society as a whole? We now live in a world where people want instant gratification, and aren't prepared to invest the time and effort into something as protracted as writing a book. Why spend three months bleeding on the page and dragging a novel out of your very soul, when you can log into a program like Chat GTP and it'll spew out a story in under a minute?
Am I tempted to go this route?
Not on your bloody life! I love coming up with stories. I love watching a novel unfold as I write it. I love getting to know the characters and playing with them. Sometimes I will even torture them (in an emotional sense – I don't think you're going to be seeing Jessica wearing thumbscrews any time soon) and I love seeing them grow and develop. Never underestimate the importance of the 'hero's journey'.
Would a story written by an AI make the reader experience these things? Would it make you weep for a character? Can it make you chuckle? Can it make you feel invested in the story and the people populating it?
I've tentatively tried this out, and had an AI write me a short story. It was… okay. Essentially, there wasn't a lot wrong with it. At least on the surface. But I could tell that it had presented me with a progression of clichéd scenes where the prose was competently written, but bland and just lifeless. It was also a little clunky, without the natural flow that a decent human writer can create.
So, will I be using AI to write my novels? What do you think? No, of course not. I'm sure AI has its place, generating short articles, instruction manuals, advertising etc. But I think someone who wants to read a novel – particularly a character-driven story like a romance – wants to know that a human being has carefully crafted the best story they can possibly produce. A human has genuine life experiences to draw upon, can come up with witty lines, becomes intimately acquainted with the characters. It may not be perfect, but real human beings never are. That's what makes it interesting, but it was real in someone's imagination.
A machine doesn't have any experiences of its own, so has to pilfer them from wherever it can as it tries to ape a human writer. That's not creating; that's just regurgitating! And it's not something I'm even slightly tempted to use.
However, AI isn't going to go away. The genie's out of the bottle, so we need to make sure it's controlled and regulated. This formed a crucial aspect of the recent Writers' Guild of America and the Screen Actor's Guild strikes in the US. Writers were seeking assurances in law that films, TV etc would not use AI to write scripts, and actors wanted to ensure that their image could not be used by a CGI program repeatedly without them being paid. Which seems fair enough, don't you think?
Think of it this way. I believe it was Ben Affleck (and possibly Matt Damon as well?) who, before he hit the big time, was one of the faces in the crowd scenes in Field of Dreams. Now, under the proposals from the studios, if that was done today, they could hire an extra for the day, scan their face into a computer, and then be free to use that likeness forever. And the poor budding actor would only ever receive the flat rate for one day's work, and the studio would own their likeness, preventing them from ever acting again.
What was once science fiction is now a sudden and uncomfortable reality.
So, the practical upshot is that I will never knowingly use AI in my writing. "Knowingly", you ask? How could you not know?
Have you ever used a spelling and grammar checker on anything you've written? To my knowledge, these things don't use AI yet, but they might, and you or I might not know anything about it. But that is quite minor. I still reject 99% of the suggestions in MS Word's spelling and grammar checker, because MS Word's spelling and grammar checker is monumentally stupid. Seriously, if that's an example of AI, then I don't think we've got too much to worry about.
I'll just carry on writing the same way I always have, and hopefully you'll like the flawed, but human results!
I've seen a handful of people stick their head above the parapet and admit to using AI in their writing, and the worrying thing is that they weren't met with an immediate onslaught of abuse from indignant traditional writers. Some people seem to be coming round to the idea that they might use AI in a limited capacity in their books. Maybe this is a reflection on society as a whole? We now live in a world where people want instant gratification, and aren't prepared to invest the time and effort into something as protracted as writing a book. Why spend three months bleeding on the page and dragging a novel out of your very soul, when you can log into a program like Chat GTP and it'll spew out a story in under a minute?
Am I tempted to go this route?
Not on your bloody life! I love coming up with stories. I love watching a novel unfold as I write it. I love getting to know the characters and playing with them. Sometimes I will even torture them (in an emotional sense – I don't think you're going to be seeing Jessica wearing thumbscrews any time soon) and I love seeing them grow and develop. Never underestimate the importance of the 'hero's journey'.
Would a story written by an AI make the reader experience these things? Would it make you weep for a character? Can it make you chuckle? Can it make you feel invested in the story and the people populating it?
I've tentatively tried this out, and had an AI write me a short story. It was… okay. Essentially, there wasn't a lot wrong with it. At least on the surface. But I could tell that it had presented me with a progression of clichéd scenes where the prose was competently written, but bland and just lifeless. It was also a little clunky, without the natural flow that a decent human writer can create.
So, will I be using AI to write my novels? What do you think? No, of course not. I'm sure AI has its place, generating short articles, instruction manuals, advertising etc. But I think someone who wants to read a novel – particularly a character-driven story like a romance – wants to know that a human being has carefully crafted the best story they can possibly produce. A human has genuine life experiences to draw upon, can come up with witty lines, becomes intimately acquainted with the characters. It may not be perfect, but real human beings never are. That's what makes it interesting, but it was real in someone's imagination.
A machine doesn't have any experiences of its own, so has to pilfer them from wherever it can as it tries to ape a human writer. That's not creating; that's just regurgitating! And it's not something I'm even slightly tempted to use.
However, AI isn't going to go away. The genie's out of the bottle, so we need to make sure it's controlled and regulated. This formed a crucial aspect of the recent Writers' Guild of America and the Screen Actor's Guild strikes in the US. Writers were seeking assurances in law that films, TV etc would not use AI to write scripts, and actors wanted to ensure that their image could not be used by a CGI program repeatedly without them being paid. Which seems fair enough, don't you think?
Think of it this way. I believe it was Ben Affleck (and possibly Matt Damon as well?) who, before he hit the big time, was one of the faces in the crowd scenes in Field of Dreams. Now, under the proposals from the studios, if that was done today, they could hire an extra for the day, scan their face into a computer, and then be free to use that likeness forever. And the poor budding actor would only ever receive the flat rate for one day's work, and the studio would own their likeness, preventing them from ever acting again.
What was once science fiction is now a sudden and uncomfortable reality.
So, the practical upshot is that I will never knowingly use AI in my writing. "Knowingly", you ask? How could you not know?
Have you ever used a spelling and grammar checker on anything you've written? To my knowledge, these things don't use AI yet, but they might, and you or I might not know anything about it. But that is quite minor. I still reject 99% of the suggestions in MS Word's spelling and grammar checker, because MS Word's spelling and grammar checker is monumentally stupid. Seriously, if that's an example of AI, then I don't think we've got too much to worry about.
I'll just carry on writing the same way I always have, and hopefully you'll like the flawed, but human results!
Sunday 3rd December 2023
Do you know that feeling when a 'celebrity' speaks to you on social media? That kind of giddy excitement when you realise that someone you like and admire actually takes the time to reply to you? Well, I had that happen to me the other day. One of my absolute favourite authors in the world posted something on Twitter. or X. I'm still not going to call it X. Not for all the tea in Tesco. Bloody stupid name. Unlike the perfectly sensible 'Twitter'... Honestly, what is that prize prune Elon Musk up to? Can't he just bugger off to Mars and be done with it? Anyway, I may be getting a little sidetracked. Her name is Portia MacIntosh, an absolutely brilliant rom-com author.
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She'd posted something, probably just a link to one of her new novels. All of her books are standalones – individual unconnected stories – but they're all in a kind of shared universe. A bit like Marvel and DC, but without the spandex. She always includes little references to previous stories in her books. It may be a mention of Valentine Island - a completely made-up luxury romantic resort, or possibly Freddy Bianchi - the equally made-up famous American actor and former love interest, but most commonly, it's Matcher. Matcher is Portia's completely fictitious dating app, and gets a mention in most of her books.
Now, this is going off at a bit of a tangent, but bear with me. Do you know that Internet meme with Leonardo DiCaprio? The one where he's sitting on the sofa, pointing excitedly at the telly?
Now, this is going off at a bit of a tangent, but bear with me. Do you know that Internet meme with Leonardo DiCaprio? The one where he's sitting on the sofa, pointing excitedly at the telly?
This is actually from Once Upon a Time in Hollywood, when he was playing the character Rick Dalton. I know what you're thinking.
Gosh, Jazz is so knowledgeable. She must be so clever, not to mention charming, charismatic and hilariously funny. Well, what can I say? One hates to blow one's own trumpet. |
What? No I didn't just go and Google it! (Full disclosure: I absolutely totally did just go and Google it).
Anyway, I replied to Ms MacIntosh's post with this gif of Leonardo DiCaprio, with the caption: "Me when I see a Matcher reference". And I added a smiley face with a big cheesy grin for good measure. You don't really expect much of these things. Maybe another one of her adoring fans might pop up and agree, but that was about it.
What I wasn't expecting was, a few minutes later, Portia MacIntosh to 'like' my reply. Goose pimples moment! And then she replied. Mega goose pimples moment!
"Haha! Someone gets me!" she said, and added a couple of friendly smiley faces as well.
I had such a fan-girly moment. I was so excited! Absolutely made my day, that did.
If one of the Kardashians had gotten in touch, I'd have been all, yeah, right, whatever. But this was someone I like, who I respect and who has kept me entertained for hours on end. Far too many hours, in fact, when I should've been doing something a bit more constructive than agonising over whether Cara and Millsy will ever get it together.
I've met more than my fair share of celebrities in my time. I used to work for a media publicity company smack in the middle of Soho in London, and handled publicity for loads of stars. You get used to it after a while. If you're wondering, my favourite celebrity was Johnny Ball. He was an absolute sweetie. And my least favourite? I'd best not say. You know what I mean? But he was a total tosser.
So, that was my happy news for the week. What was yours?
Love,
Jazz x x
Anyway, I replied to Ms MacIntosh's post with this gif of Leonardo DiCaprio, with the caption: "Me when I see a Matcher reference". And I added a smiley face with a big cheesy grin for good measure. You don't really expect much of these things. Maybe another one of her adoring fans might pop up and agree, but that was about it.
What I wasn't expecting was, a few minutes later, Portia MacIntosh to 'like' my reply. Goose pimples moment! And then she replied. Mega goose pimples moment!
"Haha! Someone gets me!" she said, and added a couple of friendly smiley faces as well.
I had such a fan-girly moment. I was so excited! Absolutely made my day, that did.
If one of the Kardashians had gotten in touch, I'd have been all, yeah, right, whatever. But this was someone I like, who I respect and who has kept me entertained for hours on end. Far too many hours, in fact, when I should've been doing something a bit more constructive than agonising over whether Cara and Millsy will ever get it together.
I've met more than my fair share of celebrities in my time. I used to work for a media publicity company smack in the middle of Soho in London, and handled publicity for loads of stars. You get used to it after a while. If you're wondering, my favourite celebrity was Johnny Ball. He was an absolute sweetie. And my least favourite? I'd best not say. You know what I mean? But he was a total tosser.
So, that was my happy news for the week. What was yours?
Love,
Jazz x x