You know those movies where a struggling writer comes in possession of a completed manuscript that belongs to someone else and decides to pass it off as their own? Usually, the author of the manuscript is either dead, dying, or believe they’ve lost the manuscript forever. The Infernal Machine with Guy Pearce is a resent edition of this sub-genre. Bradley Cooper did one a couple years back called The Words, and Cuba Gooding Jr starred in an earlier vintage called A Murder of Crows.
The formular is the same in each: the struggling writer discovers the pages, and, after some internal deliberation, decides to put his name on it. The book becomes a bestseller and propels the writer to over-night success. But then comes the guilt, the discomfort of their fraudulent life, and, ultimately, some type of Karmic comeuppance.
The lesson is pretty clear: take credit for something you didn’t write there’s never a happy ending.
So, my question is, since Gen AI collects trillions of words written by countless authors, does that mean when you use AI to write a book you’re doing pretty much the same thing?
There are plenty of writers who think so. In fact, there’s been serious social media backlash from authors who take issue with the whole concept of using Gen AI to write.
One them is Victoria Aveyard, the young adult fantasy author who writes the Red Queen series.
“Using GenAI to write a book doesn’t make you a writer, it makes you a thief,” she wrote on TikTok earlier this summer.
Harsh, right?
Maybe, but the stakes are high. We’re standing on a beach about to be swallowed by a tidal wave of slop.
As a ghostwriter, a big part of my job now is to weed out the Gen AI writing in my author’s material. Its easy for someone who isn’t a writer (and plenty of writers, too) to fall under its seemingly magical spell. But, in memoir, especially memoir, Gen AI is the enemy of good writing. What makes a memoir memorable is the genuine human connection the writing provides.
So, when hiring a ghostwriter or looking at freelance writing services, make sure you ask about the use of Gen AI.
You need someone who’ll help you create the genuine article.
