in The Writing Life 1,600 Words

My soul is worth more than $205

It was bound to happen sooner or later.

Photo of a robot using a laptop computer
Photo by Andrea De Santis on Unsplash

Artificial Intelligence (AI) is all the rage now. It is the latest shiny object. All kinds of businesses want to jump on the bandwagon and use it to either make more money or replace employees with it. Either way, it promises to increase their profits.

Proponents tell us that AI will streamline our lives. We will accomplish more by doing less work.

Opponents tell us that AI will eventually be so much smarter than humans that it will have the ability to kill us.

My hunch is that there is some truth at both ends of the AI spectrum.

AI has the potential to organize certain aspects of our lives. It has the potential of making medical breakthroughs happen faster than would otherwise be possible.

AI in the hands of the wrong people has the potential of turning into a technology Frankenstein.

What about AI and literature?

I have noticed over the last month my inbox has been bombarded with emails about webinars promising to make my life as a writer oh so simple. The ads promise that the webinars and courses will teach me how to save time. Some of them promise that AI can write my blogs for me. AI can plot a novel for me. AI can write the novel for me. AI will free up all my time and load up my bank account with money.

The best part? I won’t have to write any more. No, actually, that’s the worst part. I won’t get to write any more.

I read the first couple of those emails, just to see what they were claiming. Now, I just hit the “delete” button. If it is from a formerly-reputable source, I then hit the “unsubscribe” button.

These people and companies that used to offer webinars and courses — some of them for free – have helped me become a better writer. Some of them have made me aware of practices or software that I have benefitted from. But now they have crossed over to “the dark side” and lost my respect.

There is a problem with the promise made by many of these emails I have received. The sources of those emails have lost sight of the heart of creativity. I am a writer. I want to write. I don’t want AI to write my blog posts. I don’t want AI to write my historical novel or short stories.

Going a step further, I don’t want AI taking the words I have painstakingly written after I did tedious research. As I said in my opening sentence today, “It was bound to happen sooner or later.”

The stress of last week leading up to my AI experience on Friday

Last week was busy and stressful. I finished the final proofread of the 188-page devotional book I have written, I Need The Light! 26 Weekly Devotionals to Help You Through Winter.

It has taken more than a year to write it, format it for publication by IngramSpark and Amazon, create the cover on Bookbrush.io, and complete countless proofreads and edits. But last week, I downloaded the manuscript and the cover and hit the “submit” button on the IngramSpark website. Hitting the “submit” button was a freeing exercise. A weight was lifted off my shoulders!

By the way, I had to state to IngramSpark that I had not used AI or any AI content in the writing of my devotional book.

A bleed problem was identified on the first cover I submitted, which created 48 hours of panic in me. The second time I submitted it, it passed muster. Whew! I approved the e-proof I received two days later, and I ordered a paperback copy to inspect before I move forward seeking Advanced Review Copy readers.

That’s just a little of what I dealt with last Monday through Thursday.

Then, I opened my email inbox on Friday…. But first here’s a little background.

My publishing experience with Arcadia Publishing

In 2014, Arcadia Publishing published my vintage postcard book, The Blue Ridge Mountains of North Carolina as part of the company’s Postcard History Series. Writing that book was a labor of love and a crash course in dealing with a publishing company.

Arcadia Publishing has strict guidelines governing word count and character count for every postcard the author chooses to include in the book. I did a great amount of research so I could write the best caption possible for each postcard. You wouldn’t believe how tedious it is to rewrite a paragraph umpteen times to try to decrease the character count by one or two or twenty-five.

The history buff in me tried to pack as much history into the book as possible. When I asked for a little leeway, I was sternly informed that it was a postcard book and not a history book. Lesson learned. My vision for the book did not quite line up with Arcadia’s vision.

My postcard book is still available from Arcadia Publishing and on Amazon in paperback and e-book. Occasionally, it can be found at an independent bookstore. Every year or two I receive a small royalty check. I am proud of the book.

Then, I opened my email inbox on Friday….

The email I received from Arcadia Publishing last Friday

With my devotional book manuscript submitted to IngramSpark and my galley proof ordered, I looked forward to having a day on Friday to catch up on some things and turning my energy to marketing I Need The Light!

But then I opened my inbox and found an email from Arcadia Publishing. The subject line, “Royalty Opportunity” immediately grabbed my attention, but the first sentence took the smile off my face.

“Arcadia has been presented with an opportunity to provide content to a major technology company involved in AI development. The request is to use the content of your title(s) for AI training purposes.”

I did not like the sound of that. The next sentence was in bold font and tried to entice me with a $205 royalty at the end of 2025. I live on a tight budget, so $205 was tempting. It will take me upwards of ten years to receive $205 in royalties from Arcadia from the sales of my book.

I read on as the letter indicated that such “opportunities could be very limited in the future. Recently, two courts ruled that AI training is ‘fair use’ of copyrighted content, for which tech firms need not compensate authors. If future cases result in similar rulings, it will be increasingly difficult to secure payment for content.”

The letter went on to say that Arcadia has the right to let this undisclosed technology company have access to my copyrighted words under the contract I signed in 2014, but out of the goodness of their hearts they are giving me the chance to opt out of this one arrangement.

I opted out and then I wrote Arcadia Publishing an email

I was tempted to take the $205 at the end of the year. I could really use that money, so I had to take some time to decide what to do.

I thought about some of the well-known authors who have stood up against their publishers and nefarious AI schemes. They had more to lose than I do. What difference would it make, especially if the next time a tech company makes a deal with Arcadia Publishing the company doesn’t bother to let me opt out?

That little voice in the back of my head kept saying, “Don’t take the money,” and that little voice prevailed. I opted out.

I did not leave it at that. This is the letter I sent to Arcadia Publishing:

“I am disappointed in Arcadia Publishing for cooperating with an undisclosed company to assist in their AI training. Your decision was, no doubt, made solely on money and how Arcadia Publishing can benefit financially from such a scheme. 

“The fact that you did not disclose the name of the AI company you have made a deal with indicates a lack of transparency.

“Your decision shows a lack of respect for the creative work of the writers who have entrusted you with their intellectual property. I appreciate the fact that you did the ethical thing by asking for my permission. 

“I would have much preferred to have received a letter from you informing me that you had been approached about such a business arrangement but you had declined to participate. Such a communication from you would have made me proud to be an Arcadia Publishing author.”

That was my first brush with AI wanting to use my intellectual property for “training purposes” and it is just the beginning.

I thought my work was safe. After all, I own the copyright to each of the books and short stories I have published. That copyright is in effect for 70 years after my death.

The email I received on Friday served as a stark reminder that just because I own the copyright, my work is still vulnerable to unscrupulous tech companies that want to use my hard work to their advantage and profit.

As if we did not have enough to worry about in 2025, along comes AI.

Until my next blog post

I hope you have a good book to read. If it is a good book, it was written by a human being and not by a computer.

Remember the people of Ukraine and western North Carolina.

Janet

12 thoughts on “My soul is worth more than $205”

  1. Natuurlijk! Hier is de Engelse vertaling van je tekst:

    —

    What you said — that writing is, above all, a source of joy and meaning — deeply resonates with me. I’ve been working for a while now on a book about my mother’s life. These days, whenever people hear that I’m writing, they almost always say: *“Oh, with AI, a book like that is easy now, right?”* As if an algorithm could possibly know her childhood memories, the scent of her 4711 perfume, or the sound of her laughter at our kitchen table. That makes me furious, because it suggests that my voice no longer matters.

    Like you, I have nothing against AI as a tool. Let it help me correct spelling or organize ideas more quickly — that’s fine. But when a publisher or tech company wants to throw my carefully chosen words into a data mill, that’s where I draw the line. Writing is more than just placing words in the right order; it’s an intimate dialogue with yourself and your subject. No one has the right to take that away from us — not with fancy promises and certainly not for a mere \$205.

    I admire your decision not to agree. Every ‘no’ sends a stronger message: creativity is not a raw material to be exploited. Let’s continue to see AI as a smart assistant, not a replacement for our imagination. The story of my mother — of any human being, really — deserves the warm hand of a writer, not the cold, grasping hand of an anonymous server.

    Keep writing with passion, Jeanet.

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  2. I feel you; I want to be creative when I write, letting someone (or something) else do it takes the fun out of it. I also would like to note that I have read a short story recently which stated on the copyright page “NO AI TRAINING: Without in any way limiting the author’s exclusive rights under copyright, any use of this publication to “train” generative artificial intelligence (AI) technologies to generate text is expressly prohibited. The author reserves all rights to license uses of this work for generative AI and development of machine learning language models.” I guess there are ways to stop AI from using your work. I read you post and thought of this short story right away.

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  4. Thank you, Matroos. I am so excited to learn that you are writing a book about your mother! What a wonderful way to honor her memory! I look forward to reading it, if it is translated into English. The way you just mentioned several mannerisms and presence pulled me right in — so I know your book will be wonderful.

    I am appalled that people are saying those things to you about AI and assuming that a computer is actually writing the book about your mother! That is horrible! At least I haven’t had anyone say such a thing to me… yet. I do have friends who say they can read a book in a week, so why is it taking me years to write my historical novel. It is difficult to even answer such a question when the person has such a lack of understanding of the writing process.

    I’m afraid the day is coming when publishers will not ask for an author’s permission. They will just happily turn over our work to AI. IF it is only used for AI training purposes, how will we ever know? If it is copied and used as someone else’s book, it would take years to work through the court system to get justice. The way things are currently going, maybe there will only be a sham of a court system for it to go through in a few years.

    Thank you for your encouragement, and I send encouragement to you, too, for the book you are so lovingly writing.

    Liked by 1 person

  6. Thank you so much, Midna. I meant to mention AI use on the copyright page of the devotional book I submitted to IngramSpark last week, but I forgot to. Thank you for sharing that wording with me. I will definitely include a reference to AI in my future copyright pages. I probably should edit the copyright pages in the books and short stories I’ve already self-published to try to cover that. Thank you so much! Best wishes for you and your writing!

    Liked by 1 person

  10. Thank you. They might end my contract, since my book isn’t a big money maker for them. It’s not a big money maker for me either, so the chips will fall where they may.

    Liked by 1 person

  11. I must admit I’m a convert to AI. However, I agree with your points entirely – the creative work of writing shouldn’t need or use AI help, and AI developers should not have free access to copyright material. But I now routinely use it to give a final check for typos on my blog posts, which it can do in under a second, and it has given me tons of advice and assistance in making my blog google-search friendly. But what I value it for most of all is as a sort of highly informed and eloquent reading companion. Reading a book heavy with Scottish dialect? No problem – Copilot knows every word, expression, context. Reading about Russia in the 1980s? Copilot knows everything you need to know about politics, society, culture. I feel it’s like having an entire university of specialist lecturers in my home, all patiently waiting for the opportunity to teach me stuff! Of course all the same info has been available for years on google, but Copilot understands my questions in a way google never has (it even understands my Scottish accent if I decide to talk rather than type), reads everything, digests it, and answers exactly what I want to know, in seconds. Yes, I’m a convert!

    Oh, and one other thing it does for me! There’s been a rise recently in AI-generated spam comments on blogs that are too subtle for WP spam filters to catch – but Copilot can tell at a glance if I’m dubious about one! So it’s excellent as an AI detector!

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