Let the crap be genuine

For all the young romantics

I once thought I should write a book. So I did. Just one problem: It was a crappy book. 

Turns out that’s no longer a dealbreaker. Born too soon!

 As of yesterday, an Amazon bestseller list was full of crappy books. And not – as you’d assume – just because the category was “young adult romance.” 

No, as this story in Vice reports, the books were all generated by AI. Until Amazon intervened (after complaints from real authors), dozens of books with nonsense titles and nonsense content were crowding the list. Because “young adult romance” is synonymous with “credulous fool,” these fake books were getting a lot of clicks. And clicks, as we know, are the same as cash for the unscrupulous. 

In fairness, it’s not just dewy-eyed post-adolescents who are feeling the AI burn. The Washington Post reports how tech journalist Kara Swisher recently found her own memoir being shouted down by a bunch of suspiciously similar books, each with a slightly different title, author, and fake image of her. Several other legitimate authors are also complaining about AI knockoffs coinciding with the release of their real titles. 

All these fake books have a lot in common: unknown authors, few reviews, lame AI covers, and self-published using Amazon’s own platform. 

Since that closely fits my own literary profile, I’m concerned. Look: If people are clicking on all the fake crap, that leaves fewer clicks for the real crap. And I’m telling you that it’s not fair.