Writing Tips (Sometimes): Let's Talk About Midjourney

This is a continuation of my series about AI. You can read the rest of the series here: 

• Let's Talk About AI

• Let's Talk About Google AI Audio Narration

• Let's Talk About ChapGPT (and other text-generative AI)

Today we are going to talk about Midjourney!

Much of the widespread, non-techie buzz surrounding AI started with MidJourney, at least the way I remember it. Last September, when I started using it, the images it was producing were quite good, not to mention, it was fun to play with. But the advances the technology has made since then are no less than astounding.

You probably know that MidJourney is not the only image generator out there. There are also tools such as Stable Diffusion and Dall-E, and companies like Adobe have begun to build in AI art tools as part of their platforms. I expect to see these built-in tools become more and more prevalent over the next few years, unless a court case brings the whole AI system down (which is unlikely).

Regardless of all that, AI art is here, and it's here to stay. So how do you use these tools? Naturally, each one is a little different, and accessing them is going to vary. But today I’m going to talk about Midjourney.

Step 1: Get Discord.

To use Midjourney, you first need an account on Discord, which is a chat platform somewhat like Slack, if you’re familiar with that. Discord is free to use, and it has a desktop version, a browser version, and a phone app.

Click here to set up an account.

It is a group-based platform, which means you need to be invited to join what are called “servers.” Luckily for you, I run two! That just means you don't have to go digging for a place to get started.

Click here to join Write All The Words, where we discuss all things writing and indie publishing.

Click here to join AI Curious, an AI-positive space where we discuss all things AI.

I’m not going to spend a ton of time going over how it works, but here is a quick-and-dirty tutorial:

This is the AI Curious server.

To the left, you’ll find servers. These are the groups you are in. Beside that, you’ll see channels. These are message threads, typically organized by topic. You can see here I have admin categories, AI categories, and there are more if you scroll down.

In the center is the message history. You type your message in the box at the bottom, hit enter, and your comment will appear right above. Conversations show up with the speaker’s name and profile picture.

All the way to the right, you’ll see the people who are in the server with you, in addition to any automated services that the admin has installed. You can see I have added AI Bot, Midjourney, and Pronoun Picker, all bots with various uses.

Different groups have different preferences and requirements, but typically you will see a channel labeled “admin” or “rules” or something to that effect, where you can check out the basic guidelines for how the server functions.

Remember, it’s just normal, carbon-based human people on discord. I promise. Completely human. Cross my heart. Anyway, we’re all winging it.

Hot tip: you can mute specific channels or entire servers! If you are getting too many notifications, discord offers lots of notification customization options, so I recommend taking advantage of them.

Step 2: Get a Midjourney subscription.

The next step is to purchase Midjourney. Click here to set up your account.

A few months ago, they eliminated the free trial because so many people were abusing it. It now costs $10+ per month, depending on how many images you want to generate. It is not a locked-in contract, so you can simply pay $10 and then cancel your subscription, if you just want to play around with it.

Once you have your subscription, there are three ways to use Midjourney. The first is to join the main Midjourney discord server. You can do that from their website. I don’t recommend it, however; it’s sheer chaos and very overwhelming, especially to a new discord user. The second way is to join another server that has Midjourney installed. AI Curious (my AI server) has Midjourney, so you’re welcome to join and test it out there (you can also make your own private server and invite Midjourney to it). The third way is through direct messaging on the discord app. Once you’re subscribed, the Midjourney bot will send you a message. Once you accept, then you can simply send your commands directly to it.

Step 3: Learn the commands.

If this sounds scary, don’t worry, it isn’t.

All you do is go to the channel in the server where you want to use Midjourney, and type: /imagine

That’s it. A little box will pop up, and you can select it or hit enter.

(You can see I am doing this in the channel labeled "midjourney-2" as in this server, I have specific spaces set aside exclusively for using Midjourney.)

Once you've typed /imagine and selected the prompt, a little box that says “prompt” will appear next to where you typed /imagine.

Here is where you type whatever you want to ask Midjourney to create for you and hit enter. A message will pop up—a reply from Midjourney telling you that it's working on it.

After a moment, you’ll see some vague, blobby images show up; then they will form into less blobby shapes…

...until you get four images that are crisp, clear, and complete:

Underneath the images, you will see 9 buttons. U means “Upgrade” and V means “Version” and the number corresponds to each image, left to right, top to bottom. The recycle button simply tells it redo the prompt.

If you click one, you’ll get another message from Midjourney with the new version. This means it’s clearer and has higher DPI.

I picked U2 and got this happy guy:

(note the little kid in the background with three arms lol)

Below this image, you can see a whole bunch of new options, including zooming features and variation features. I’ll let you play with these on your own.

You can also use additional commands. So for example, you can ask Midjourney to create an image with specific dimensions, or with an older version of Midjourney.

Here is a dictionary of commands: https://docs.midjourney.com/docs/command-list

The five images below are five iterations of the same prompt, "woman standing below a tree," but with an added modifier for each previous version of Midjourney. V3 was what the images looked like last October, v4 was what they upgraded to in January, and now, the images are even better than version 5 (which we upgraded to in May). The tech is improving incomprehensibly fast.

Here is what I get if I redo my robot on the beach prompt with version 5.2 and a 3:2 aspect ratio:

Step 4: Learn the nuances.

It’s important to remember that AI art tools are just software. They don’t “understand” things like humans do. They don’t get nuances or understand context. So if you can’t get the image you want, try playing around with verbs, adjectives, or style indicators.

For example, if you want a woman with a sword, you may have to ask it for “a woman holding a sword” or “a woman wielding a sword” or “a woman fighting with a sword” or "swordswoman" before you narrow in on what you want. Be specific. Don’t be afraid to include as many details as you want. Don’t be afraid to specify race, hair color, posture, or any defining features you want. You can zoom out “an aerial view” or zoom in “a close up.”

You can ask for people, animals, scenes, objects, imaginary things, or vague concepts. I like to ask for random math concepts when I'm bored:

"/imagine [the golden ratio in space]" or "/imagine [Pythagoras theory in watercolor]"

You can also ask for things like “watercolor” or “painting” or “photograph” or “linotype,” in order to get a certain stylized look. Or you can add in eras, ie “1950s-style.” There are tons of AI prompt dictionaries online to help you get started.

Be aware that you may encounter biases in the images as you work. Racial and gender biases are quite common, and it’s quite rare to get a disabled person in an image unless you specifically ask for it. Midjourney has done a lot of work to mitigate these issues, but they still do crop up.

Midjourney is a fun tool to play around with, and has more possibilities than you can fathom. The options are limited only by your imagination and its training data.

Here is my robot on the beach in watercolor:

Using the Art Midjourney Generates

Art AI generation is less relevant to writers than something like ChatGPT, but there are still many ways to use art as part of the creative process.

I’m particularly a fan of asking for images that describe specific scenes I’m working on. The images give me ideas for details I can include in my descriptions, and help me better visualize the scene. I sometimes ask for characters as well, which is both fun and very useful for world building. I’ve asked it to create monsters, landscapes, maps, and even symbols and blueprints.

Here is a recent one I created to help me better describe an old winery that was recently unearthed by some curious fantasy characters:

There are mixed opinions on whether these types of images should be used for cover design or on social media, but I’ll leave those decisions up to you.

Regardless, Midjourney is a really incredible tool that has great potential to help you with your writing and brainstorming process, and it’s getting better every day.

Note: If you have concerns about copyright and what uses for AI-generated images are okay, I recommend you consult a copyright lawyer.

P.S. Below find just a few more Midjourney images of different subjects and in different styles!

Writing Tips (Sometimes): Let's Talk About ChatGPT (and other text generative AI)

(This is part of my series on AI. Click here to read about AI in general and Google AI Audiobook Narration. Or, sign up here to get these delivered directly to your inbox!)

ChatGPT is the talk of the century! Well, maybe not the century, but it’s definitely the talk of the year. ChatGPT has been available to regular people in some form since June 2020, and was built by a company called OpenAI. Their language model is one of the most sophisticated in existence, and they have continued to improve it since their launch. Currently, ChatGPT4 can pass the bar exam.

Mostly, ChatGPT can answer questions, draft emails and blog posts, or summarize large concepts. And depending upon the parameters, it can do so in a wide variety of voices and styles.

Take this meme, for example, in which ChatGPT has been instructed to respond to the user’s requests… as a pirate.

ChatGPT is not the only text-based AI. For example, NovelAI and Sudowrite are designed to aid in drafting longer form fiction. You may have also heard of Claude, which is in beta, but is more like a combination of ChatGPT and these longer form tools. GoogleBard is an alternative to ChatGPT but built on a different model, and so has a very different vibe. Microsoft also has Bing Chat (which provides citations!), and there are other lesser known tools like Jasper.ai, ChatSonic, and YouChat.

These tools are simple to use. All you do is type in your prompt and they respond. If you don’t like the response, you change your prompt.

The key to successful text generative AI is in the prompt. You have to be able to communicate with the tool exactly what you’re looking for in a way that will produce the desired outcome. This requires some practice, but it is a skill you can develop.

The biggest objection among authors is that these text-based tools are “doing the work for them.” Many writers use this reasoning to suggest that the tools should never be used in any way.

But let me offer a comparison: ghostwriters.

Many writers (James Patterson, for example) use ghostwriters to help them produce work faster. In his MasterClass, James Patterson goes over his process in depth, which basically involves writing an outline, passing it off to a ghostwriter who writes it in sections, and then revising the written manuscript one section at a time.

There are some writers who are using AI tools in the same way: they come up with the idea and the structure for the story, then use the tools to spit out the rough copy, which they then revise and edit to craft it into something that matches their vision for the story.

But, there are other writers who are using it for research, idea generation, or to help them move through tough sections, but still do all the drafting themselves—just like how most of us don’t use ghostwriters, but we do use Google Search, libraries, and friends. These writers treat the AI tools more like a personal assistant or a writing buddy.

Are some writers simply copy-paste-publishing? Sure. But some writers are also writing 50k words during NaNoWriMo and publishing that without editing and revising. There will always be people who try to game the system, but that doesn’t mean it’s the end of the world as we know it.

Back when indie publishing first became a thing, there was a surge of writers publishing without sufficient editing. I can honestly say, I was one of those writers. The process of publishing a book in this method was new, I lacked funds to hire professionals to improve my book, and so I just went for it. I have since gone back, cleaned up the copy, done professional covers, and improved my process for future books.

Since that era in publishing, the indie author community has changed direction. There are courses on how to publish books that are professional and high quality. Due to the Big 6—Big 5—Big 4? buying each other up, there is a glut of quality designers, editors, and experts in publishing available for hire by indie authors. We have developed processes and procedures, and the surge of low-quality books that were originally being published has decreased significantly.

The same will happen with AI-generated books. The good ones, the ones that feel like art, will rise to the top, and the rest will sputter and die. Processes and procedures will be developed. Authors will figure out the best ways to use these tools to enhance their own process and create quality stories that readers love.

We just have to be patient.

My personal use of these tools tends to focus around reducing distractions and cutting down on research. Instead of spending two hours digging through baby name sites, I instead ask ChatGPT for a list of names in a specific category or with a specific meaning, and just pick one. Instead of reading a dozen articles on knot tying, I ask ChatGPT “What kind of knot would you use for this purpose in this context?” Instead of getting lost following rabbit trails on Wikipedia, I ask ChatGPT, “What are the top philosophical thought experiments to help understand existentialism?” so I can focus my efforts on the most relevant concepts.

So far today, I have asked ChatGPT how old it is, how it would define “text generative AI” and what I should do to celebrate my birthday when it rolls around.

I have yet to copy and paste even a single phrase into a book, but my writing time has gotten about 30% more productive.

It’s important to remember that these language models aren’t thinking.

The idea that they can “think” is entirely science fiction—combined with a human tendency to anthropomorphize anything that feels human-like. Rather, they are doing math. After all, that’s what computers are good at. Calculating.

Because it’s text-based, meaning we read it inside our own heads; and because the AI is so sophisticated in its calculations and algorithms; and because of the immense quantity of data it was trained on, the tool’s output can often make it feel to us like it’s thinking.

But it isn’t.

It is simply running a predictive calculation based on the prompt you inputted, guessing at what response you are most likely to want from it.

Ultimately, one thing remains true: the human controlling the process has to make a choice. Just like in every other form of art.

And that choice is yours.

You choose what tools to use. You choose what prompts to input. You choose what outputs most reflect what you’re looking for. And you choose how you want to use those outputs in the final product—if at all.

Whether we are talking about text-generative AI, image-generative AI, audio-generative AI, or anything else—the fact remains that you must still make the choice.

Despite the incredible advancements of these technologies, they still require a human element. And that human element is what gives art soul.

Writing Tips (Sometimes): Let's Talk About Google AI Auto Narration

This is part 2 of my mini-series on Artificial Intelligence. You can read part 1 here.

I’ve gotten a couple of questions on Google AI Auto Narration recently, so I wanted to do a deep dive into it. 

I have used Google AI Auto Narration for most of the audiobooks I have available. In fact, I only have three audiobooks narrated by a real-life human.

My primary reasons for this? Cost and Accessibility.

The three books I have available with a human narrator cost me nearly $5,000 to produce (combined, not each). I have made approximately $1000 back so far, despite the fact the books have been available for between 1 – 4 years. 

Investing in human-narrated audiobooks is no small decision for most authors. However, not having books available in audio format means that readers who need audio versions for a variety of reasons—dyslexia, literacy, time, or simply because they prefer to consume books auditorily—cannot access most books.

In my opinion, using a tool like Google AI splits that difference. It eases accessibility significantly and creates a much better experience than most audio accessibility tools that were available before; however the end quality of the product is not as good as a professional human narrator (though there are plenty of narrators who aren’t great, too). It is also affordable for all authors, whereas human-narration is only affordable to authors who have sizeable investment funds or are making significant profits on their work.

Currently, Google AI Narration is free for authors who publish on GooglePlay. 

If you are a Kindle Unlimited author and exclusive to Amazon, this option is not currently available to you. If you are a wide author but have not yet published to GooglePlay, the process is very simple: all you need is your epub file and your cover file. You can click here to go to their partner site.

A nice perk is that once the audiobook has been created on GooglePlay, you can download the files for distribution elsewhere.

Beyond GooglePlay, as far as I’m aware, Kobo is the only distributor who allows AI-Narrated audiobooks published to their platform. You can also distribute them direct, using BookFunnel. Apple is currently developing their own AI audiobook platform, though there are some concerns about it, mainly that they purchased material to train their engine from Findaway Voices that Findaway did not have the right to license. While there are no current audio-specific controversies with Google narration (that I'm aware of), it is possible something unethical is going on behind closed doors at any big tech company. 

I’m not going to go into the weeds on the ethical nightmare of big corporations; I’m only mentioning it so you can do research to determine your own comfort level with using these tools.

Creating A Google AI Auto Narrated Book

To create the audiobook, begin by going to the GooglePlay partner dashboard (link here if you don't already have an account), and select either “Add Book” or click on the title of the book you want to convert into an audiobook. If you just published the book, you may have to wait a couple of hours for the book to go live before you can start this process.

(Note: the ebook already has to be published on GooglePlay before you can make it into an audiobook.)

I’m going to walk through the process here with How To Pants A Novel, which I just released, but keep forgetting to tell you about (so expect another email about that soon lol). Here is the link if you want to check it out. 

In this example, I’m using the “Add Book” button.

First, it will ask you what kind of product you want to create:

Once you select “Create an auto-narrated audiobook” it will ask which one of your books you want to produce as an audiobook.

Once you have done that, the next page that pops up looks like this:

This is your auto-narration creation page. Here, you will find all the tools you need to format the book to your liking, including voice selection, section organizing, and a text editor where you can add/delete text, adjust for pronunciation, etc.

Make sure you hit "Save" periodically.

Publishing Steps

On the far, far left are the sections indicating the steps of the publishing process. You can see that the page I have open is titled "Audiobook text" and this is where Google automatically sent me—as opposed to sending me to "Book Info" which is how it would happen with an ebook.

The reason for this is because you have to generate the audiobook files before you can do the Book Info & Content sections. The options under Book Info will be auto-filled using the same information as the ebook; Content is where you will add the cover file after you’ve generated the audiobook. 

If you’re the type of person who likes to do things in order, this may drive you nuts, so I wanted to warn you in advance.

Narration

There are dozens of narrators to choose from in all different accents. This is a rabbit hole to go down, but it’s definitely fun to listen to them all. However, once you click the down arrow next to "Mike - American male voice", you can filter for accents and gender. I focused on US accents, because that’s where I’m from. There are no races identified for the narrators, but there are voices who sound like they are from different places in the US and have different cultural backgrounds.

You can also have multiple narrators by selecting “Additional characters,” and adding new voices for the new characters. I have done this for some of my fiction novels, when there are dual perspectives.

Sections

These are pulled from your headers in the ebook. You can exclude some sections if you want to, based on what would or would not be included in a typical audiobook. It automatically excludes the title page, copyright page, and table of contents, but you can add them back if you want. I always add an intro section and an outro section, which you can do simply by right clicking in the white space under "Sections" and selecting "add section," and adding text in the giant text box.

Make sure to scroll through all of your sections and review the entire book. There are often chapters left out, or whose headers get mixed in confusingly. In addition, there are often sections at the end which have been automatically excluded. 

It’s only a machine, so it messes stuff up sometimes.

Once you’ve reviewed the entire book, selected your narrator, and made sure your sections are organized the way you want them, click save (if you haven’t already), and then click “Create Audiobook” on the bottom right.

If you select "Automatically update this audiobook..." inside the popup, it will improve the quality of the narration every time the foundational software improves. I'm sure there are some risks to this, especially if you had to make a lot of phonetic changes to your text, but I do it, because as far as I can tell, the software is only going to get better and better, and I don't want my projects to sound like they're stuck in 2023.

When you click “Create audiobook” it will take you to the “Pricing” page. From here, you can go back to the “Content” and “Book Info” page to double check everything is the way you want it and also upload your cover file.

Under “Book Info”--> “Settings, you will find the spot where you can offer a sample for potential listeners:

One thing to note here is that you don’t have to publish right away. If you wait, you will get an email at some point letting you know that the audiobook files are complete. At this stage, you can download them and listen to them on another device if you want to. You can also listen in-platform, to check pronunciations and pacing, all of which are easily edited with the text editor.

Quick tip on pronunciations: phonetics. If the AI is saying something in a weird way or incorrectly, the easiest way to make it say it correctly is to spell the word phonetically. 

For example, I used to have to spell my name “aerial ceiling” to get AI to say it correctly (as opposed to Ariele Sieling, which is how my name is actually spelled). “Air-ee-el Seeling” also worked. But now it pronounces my name correctly without me having to adjust it. As I type this, the machine is learning, so my guess is you’ll have less difficulty than you imagine.

Publishing

When you are satisfied with the product, click "Publish," and it will be live on Google Play within 24 hours or so. You can also download the final files at any point for distribution elsewhere (like Kobo or Bookfunnel). Just make sure to follow the guidelines of other distributors, and don’t try to publish AI-narrated files where they aren’t allowed, or they may ban you from future distribution.

Once the book is published, you will see it listed on your dashboard:

If you see it says “Needs Action,” give it 24 - 48 hours and check again. That just means it’s processing. If it still says that a couple of days later, click in and there should be a message letting you know the problem. If not, use the Google Help Chat and ask them—they’re very responsive and will get back to you pretty quickly.

Once the book is live, you will be able to access it through the GooglePlay store and share that link with readers. It should also have a link to the ebook, so a customer can select which format they prefer.

As a side note, I like to include that the book is narrated by Google AI on the book cover so that listeners are not surprised when they download it:

If you’d like to listen to an AI-Narrated book, two of my audiobooks are free: How To Build A Book Marketing Strategy and Midnight Wings.

Overall, I find the process of creating a Google AI Auto Narrated book straightforward and easy to manage. I typically create each ebook simply as an extension of my publishing process. 

I am grateful I have the ability to make my books accessible to more people without going into debt as part of the process.

When I am further along in my career, I would like to produce human-narrated editions for all of my books, but for the moment, this allows me to make my work accessible to the widest range of people (which includes pricing it lower for people who can’t afford the cost of human-narrated audiobooks) as I can.

If you have additional questions, don’t hesitate to contact me! I don’t promise to know all the answers, but I’ll do the best I can!

You’re also welcome to join my discord group called AI Curious, where we talk about all things AI.

Writing Tips (Sometimes): Let's Talk About AI

You may have noticed that a lot of people seem to be talking about AI. You may have also noticed, at least in the author community, that everyone’s feelings on it are not only divided, but viciously so. In only the last couple of weeks, I saw a post by one author claiming that anyone who thinks AI is okay has failed an ethical meter and would be judged by her accordingly. And I saw another Facebook post by a different author suggesting that anyone who is anti-AI is a luddite, an idiot, and not worth listening to.

You’ve probably also noticed that the majority of the news articles about the topic use extremely emotionally heightened language. I’m looking at a list of articles now and here are a few of the phrases:

• “Gaslighting, love bombing, and narcissism”

• “Ring Alarm Bells on Rogue AI”

• “Unnerving Interactions with ChatGPT”

• “ChatGPT AI robots writing church sermons causing hell for pastors”

• “The monster is already on the loose”

• “Get ready for a sound revolution”

• “AI comes for the creative class”

The problem with emotionally heightened rhetoric is not that it is posing a particular angle on a new development in the world—it’s that it is telling us how to feel. And when we don’t recognize the rhetoric being used on us, it takes away our ability to decide for ourselves how we want to feel.

Now, since I don’t intend for this post to be a rhetorical analysis of news articles, lol, I’m going to simply say this: pay attention to the language. Because so often, the language is used to grab your attention and emotions, but the narrative it’s weaving is false. And you’ll notice that anytime anything new happens, this is the language used to talk about it. Not just AI. Everything.

Now that I’ve got that gripe out of my system, let’s actually talk about AI.

First, let me be clear that I’m what I call "AI Curious."

The picture at the top of this email was made using MidJourney. I used ChatGPT to answer a few questions I had about AI (ever wonder how support vector machines work?), and I used Google’s search engine to fact check a few things I thought were true but wasn’t certain about. I also used ProWritingAid to edit this post.

And I now run a brand-new discord server about AI, which you can click here to join.

I think AI is fascinating and exciting, and I don’t think anyone who is curious about it or interested in it is evil. That said, nor do I think anyone who is uncomfortable with it or prefers to avoid it is dumb.

AI is an extremely complex and nuanced topic, and so much of what you see are people applying binary conclusions to something that is the opposite of binary. You’ll see people saying “good/bad” and “yes/no,” but AI is not as simple as all that.

So what is AI?

"Artificial Intelligence" is an enormous term that encompasses a wide variety of different technologies. It is not only things like MidJourney or ChatGPT, it is also things like search engines, GPS, and email spam filters. It is editing software, robots, and algorithms. It is autonomous vehicles, space travel, social media, Spotify, Amazon, Netflix, Alexa, and Siri.

It is many things—and plays a role in many of the tools you likely use in your day-to-day life, whether or not you realize it.

Have you heard of a neural network? Do you understand the difference between heuristics, decision trees, and support vector machines? How about reinforcement learning? Do you know the difference between supervised and unsupervised learning? Do these words mean anything to you: classification, regression, clustering, association, dimensionality reduction?

These concepts are all part of understanding how AI works, where it gets the data it’s trained on, the advantages and disadvantages of AI, and potential pitfalls of the tech. And while you don’t truly need to know every detail and every nuance, the more you do know, the more educated of an opinion you can form on the topic.

Because AI, like any other technology, has pros and cons. It can be used for good things, and it can be used for bad. It can help people with disabilities navigate the world. For example, someone I know with dyslexia is using ChatGPT to help them write professional emails; I know several writers with aphantasia using writing tools to help them write descriptions with more depth and emotion; the ability to connect on platforms like social media can allow people confined to their homes to experience less isolation and loneliness.

But AI can also be used by corporations to exploit people. And when a tool is programmed on biased or racist data, it will produce biased and racist outputs.

My point is that it is unwise to go all in on or completely dismiss AI without understanding the full scope of the technology. If you don’t understand how it works, that’s okay. You can learn. I gave you some great keywords to get started with (above).

The second point I want to make is about ethics, because the number one objection to AI I see tossed around in the author community is that it’s “unethical.”

Now, you may not know this about me, but I’m a hobbyist philosopher. Sit me down sometime and ask me about absurdism or my essentialist definition of “dogness,” or tell me your feelings about Wittgenstein or Simone de Beauvoir, and I will be entertained for hours.

What I’ve noticed in these conversations about AI, is that people are conflating ethics with “something that makes me uncomfortable,” or “something that goes against my own moral code.” Sometimes these things align, but sometimes they don't.

Ethics is the study of “good and bad,” born from Socrates’s attempt to answer the question, “How should we live?” It’s an entire discipline that has been discussed, debated, and argued by some of the most intelligent people in history, reaching all the way back to Plato and Socrates—and the thing is, people still don’t agree on it.

To flatly say “AI is ethical/unethical” once again places a binary conclusion onto a concept that is immensely complex. Certain things about AI are definitely unethical. For example, I would argue that corporations selling each other data that is owned by someone else (looking at you, Findaway Voices/Spotify and Apple) is definitely unethical. But do I think the machines trained on the data are inherently unethical? No.

I also want to mention here, before someone yells “theft!” or “What about the artists?” that I am both an visual artist and a writer. I have posted many drawings online and written millions of words that are freely available to read. And I know for a fact my work has been used to train one machine or another. And I’m not upset about it. Why? Because I understand how the technology works.

Am I upset Findaway sold my audiobooks to Apple? Yes.

But these are two separate conversations: one is about the exploitation of creators by corporations; the other is about machine learning. There is overlap, but they are not one and the same.

Again, as I don’t intend this to be an essay on ethics, let me leave you with this: if you are concerned about the ethics of AI, brush up on your understanding of ethics first. Start by reading the Wikipedia article on ethics or watch Hank Green’s Crash Course on philosophy.

The last thing I want to say about AI (today, haha, because I’m sure I’ll keep getting questions about it), is that right now, everyone is hyper fixated on AI art tools like MidJourney and Stable Diffusion, or text bots like ChatGPT.

But AI has been around for decades. It’s not actually new. Have you ever considered what other tools you might use that rely on AI, and you didn’t even know it?

Let me give you a few examples of technologies that use AI: search engines like Google, Bing, DuckDuckGo, etc.; social media (all of it); GPS tools like Waze, Google Maps, and Apple Maps; Alexa and Google Home; website-building platforms; ProWritingAid and Grammarly; entertainment platforms like Spotify and Netflix; Amazon and other online ecommerce retailers; anything that gives you recommendations; the operating system on your computer; the production of cars, and autonomous features like auto-parking or braking; even your Roomba uses AI.

AI has also made its way into some surprising sectors you might not expect. For example, AI is used in agriculture to analyze crop data and predict weather patterns. In sports, AI is used to analyze player performance and develop game strategies. Financial service companies use AI to detect fraud, manage portfolios, and perform risk assessments. AI is used for traffic management, route optimization, and autonomous vehicle control. It's also used in the energy sector to optimize energy consumption and reduce waste. And don’t get me started on the Mars Curiosity rover (insert squeal of delight).

And because software is often proprietary, a company doesn’t have to tell you if they use AI. You could be using tons of tools that make use of AI technology without even knowing it.

Where do you think all these tools got the data to train their machines? Google Search, for example, scrapes the entire internet every day. It reads every website, looks at every image, listens to every audio file. And it has to do this in order to give you the best results when you type in a search query. We know this about search engines. But few other companies have revealed where their data came from, and we know big companies buy data and sell datasets all the time. So often, we just can’t know.

AI is everywhere. Not only that, it has made people’s lives immeasurably better in ways they don’t even realize.

If I had to offer a specific conclusion on this topic, it would be this: AI is not bad. AI has the potential to do immense good, and already does. But what we need is regulation—top-down regulation of corporations, transparency into the technologies and where they are being used and how they are being developed, and compensation for data bought and sold.

But that gets into politics, so I’m going to stop here.

I’ve received a couple of questions about the use of specific AI tools such as Google auto-narration, MidJourney, and writing tools, so I’ll talk about those soon.

But I’ll leave you with this: don’t be afraid. But put in the work to draw your own conclusions on the topic. The robots seem like they’re smart, but they don’t even come close to the power of the human mind.

We’re all gonna be okay.

Hello, World!

Guerilla Marketing Tactics for Indie Authors (with a little help from Chat GPT)

MidJourney: “surreal painting of an ai bot looking through a portal into a science fiction future”

If you’ve been following me for a while, you probably know that I’m AI curious, and think the new technologies that are developing are interesting (and the future of everything). I use ProWritingAid to help edit my work, I’m a big fan of email spam filters and search engines, and I’m fascinated by MidJourney. But most recently, I started playing around with Chat GPT.

First of all, it’s addicting. I remember when the first ChatBots came out, and they were fun for a few minutes, if only for the novelty of it. But they got boring, because they couldn’t maintain any kind of stream of thought, and often trailed off into nonsensical or non sequiturs that made the user confused and eventually lose interest.

But Chat GPT is not like that. Chat GPT can form what feels like coherent thoughts (though to be clear, AI techs are not actual intelligence. It’s just really complicated math.) that are easy to follow and understand. And it’s exciting to find out exactly what it’s going to say when you posit a question.

Because I’m a nerd, I started by asking it about things like indie author business models and marketing tips. And while I found most of the advice generic (but not wrong!), I started to customize my prompts. And when I asked it “What is the least common marketing method used by indie authors?” It responded with guerilla marketing. Like, what!?

I laughed pretty hard, but the thing is, it’s not wrong! That is a very uncommon marketing tactic lol.

It followed up with some guerilla marketing tips for indie authors:

One less common method that some indie authors have used successfully is guerrilla marketing.

Guerrilla marketing is a marketing strategy that uses unconventional and often unexpected tactics to promote a product or service. For indie authors, guerrilla marketing might involve:

1. Leaving copies of your book in unexpected places, like coffee shops, public transportation, or parks. You could include a note inviting the finder to read and pass on the book

2. Creating street art or graffiti that promotes your book in a creative and visually striking way. This could be done with stencils, posters, or even temporary chalk art.

3. Hosting flash mobs or public performances that are related to your book. This could involve a group of actors performing a scene from your book in a public space, or a group of dancers performing a routine that ties into your book's theme.

4.Creating a viral video that promotes your book in a unique and memorable way. This could involve a humorous skit, a song, or even a short film.

It's worth noting that guerrilla marketing can be risky, and some tactics may be illegal or could damage your reputation if done poorly. However, if done well and with care, guerrilla marketing can be a highly effective way to generate buzz and attract attention to your book.

Not only is “guerilla marketing” not commonly discussed in indie marketing circles, but I have never seen someone recommend “host a flash mob” or “graffiti” as a marketing tactic. Could it work? Maybe, if done well.

I followed up by asking if guerilla marketing is ethical, and it replied:

Some guerrilla marketing tactics, such as leaving copies of your book in public places, can be considered littering or illegal. Other tactics, such as defacing public property or disrupting public spaces, can be seen as disrespectful and unethical. It's important to always consider the impact of your actions on others and the environment, and to obtain any necessary permissions or permits.

In general, it's important to ensure that your guerrilla marketing tactics align with your personal values and the values of your target audience.

One thing I noticed when talking to chat gpt was a repetition of ideas, when asked differently phrased questions. If I asked it, “which guerilla marketing tactics would be the most effective for indie authors” (and similar but alternatively phrased questions), it would repeat the same answers as when posed the question, “what is the least common marketing technique for indie authors?”

But when I asked “what are some other guerilla marketing tactics, it came up with new stuff.

1. Reverse shoplifting: Instead of leaving your book in public places, you can "reverse shoplift" by placing your book in a bookstore or library where your target readership is likely to browse. This can help introduce your book to new readers and encourage them to purchase or borrow it.

2. Human billboards: You can hire people to wear t-shirts or other clothing featuring your book cover or a promotional message related to your book. These "human billboards" can walk around in public spaces, attend events, or go to places where your target audience is likely to congregate to create visibility for your book.

To be clear, these are not book marketing strategies I would typically recommend, as an actual human with actual non-machine learning capabilities. I think any author who wants to try them will mostly find they require a concerted amount of time and effort with little gain (unless you manage to go viral, which is as much luck as it is quality of performance).

But, I love the idea that Chat GPT might be able to help me reduce the mental load of coming up with marketing ideas constantly. That I could ask it to help me come up with fun ideas for a book launch party, or list book promotion sites to try, or generate topics to write about in my newsletters. That I could get ideas for how to think about my business model, or ask for advice on time management.

Of course, no AI is a magic bullet, but they are fun and interesting, and I’m excited to see both how the technology evolves, and what our societal response to it ultimately looks like.

And in case you were wondering, I wrote this blog post all by myself! Except for the quoted sections from Chat GPT.

I’ve always been excited about the future, though more specifically, about the future of space travel and the future of medicine. But now I’m excited about the future of this too.