I’ve been running the below image as an advert over the summer and happily, it’s been doing pretty well. However, it’s now been accused of being “AI slop.” Which is more than a little infuriating given that the whole point of packing my first book and taking the snap, complete with my hairy knees, was to be as transparent as possible that it wasn’t AI.

I’ve never enjoyed the advertising part of writing. I find a lot self promotion really awkward, especially when you’re putting a direct spotlight on yourself. But I’ve forced myself to do it and to do more and more things that take me out of my comfort zone. Taking a snap of my own novel in my hand on a sun lounger is to use a word I’m not a fan of, ‘cringe’ to me. But I did it, because, hey, at least I’m not mocking up a graphic so no one can accuse me of using AI, right? Wrong!

The plan was to have this ad to run year on year at this time, but that’s probably out the window now, because if one person thinks it enough to vocalise it, many more probably do and avoid it. And to see that simply banging a filter on it, sticking a border around it and writing ‘Wish You Were Here’ qualifies it to be AI in the minds of some is problematic. And not just for me. Because if authors can be accused of using AI on something that is so obviously not AI, what chance do we have? How do we create anything without fear of that scrutiny?

AI isn’t just stealing content anymore, or stealing jobs and revenue from artists of all genres. It’s stealing the trust between creator and consumers of these arts, and those who aren’t using it are getting caught in the crossfire. I’m definitely not the first and won’t be the last. But until AI is eviscerated completely from the creative space, this is what we’re going to have to deal with. Which is why it angers me so much when I see other authors or publishers using it in their promotions. There’s quite rightly a backlash against it, but we’re now so far through the looking glass that people can no longer tell the difference between the two. And the only way to stop that happening now, is for everyone in publishing to bin it off completely.