The Troubling Ethics of Artificial Intelligence and How It Impacts Children's Book Creators (part 2: Writers)

Continuing this look at AI systems and their impact on those of us who create creative works for kids and teens, the Authors Guild released a statement earlier this month, How Will Authorship Be Defined in an AI Future?

In it, they look at the issue of both how AI systems are "trained" and how if those systems are learning from works that are protected by copyright, who can be held accountable for that violation of copyright?

A couple of highlights from the Authors Guild statement by Mary Rasenberger, their CEO:

“These AI-created ‘new’ works, as such, are not really new or truly creative. Rather, the AI system ingests existing works that have been broken down into data points, and then rehashes them—albeit in a very complex way.”

and

“We are confronting serious policy issues about the future of creativity: Do we want humans or AI creating our literature and other arts? As we have argued in multiple policy forums, if we want to ensure that our literature and arts continue to reflect our current experiences and our imagined ones, we need to ensure that human creators are compensated and their work is protected. AI cannot feel, think, or empathize. It lacks the essential human faculties that move the arts forward. While it is remarkable that engineers could create a “new” Rembrandt that so closely resembles an authentic one, we do not need new Rembrandts; we need new art and literature to reflect where we humans are now, and where we might be going.”

Definitely something to keep our eye on in 2023!

Illustrate, Translate, and Write On,
Lee

Jen Ferguson Offers Wisdom on the Different Hats We Wear As Writers and Authors - and Who Reviews Are Really For

Over at one of my favorite KidLit blogs, Cynsations, debut Métis and white author Jen Ferguson, whose YA novel, The Summer of Bitter and Sweet just published in May 2022, is featured in Native Voices: Jen Ferguson on What She Has Learned As A Writer.

In the interview, in response to AJ Eversole's question, Do you have any tips for debut authors about balancing the roles of author and writer?, Jen shares these wise words:

“Keeping those roles as separate as possible seems to be the best thing for both my writing and my career as an author. As an author there are lots of distractions—promoting your books, supporting your community of writer friends, engaging with the public, doing interviews, and the dreaded task of updating your website!

“All of those things can add unneeded stress and often unkind voices—you know, envy, imposter syndrome, or a really scathing review—that will get in the way of the writing.

“One example: I don’t read reviews on sites like Goodreads or Amazon anymore. Because reviews aren’t for me as writer or for me as author—they’re for readers. And when I did read reviews, they got in the way of the writing and in the way of being an author.

“I know it’s not possible to stop things in your author life from leaking into your writer life all of the time because we’re human. But finding ways to keep those two things from getting in each other’s way is really good practice. You’re allowed to take your author hat off and wear your writerly tiara, and your writerly tiara doesn’t go with all your professional outfits.”

That bit about “reviews aren’t for me as writer or for me as author—they’re for readers.” seems like amazing advice.

Read the full interview here.

Illustrate, Translate, and Write On,
Lee

Authors Guild Releases Model Book Contracts to the General Public to Help Writers and Translators When Negotiating with Trade Publishers

While previously these model contracts were reserved for members of the Authors Guild, this month the Authors Guild has made two model contracts with commentary available to the general public - one, to help guide writers when negotiating with trade publishers, and the other a model translation contract to help translators hired to translate a work in another language into English.

Here's a screen shot of one section of the Authors Guild's "Model Trade Book Contract." The section in green is commentary that helps contextualize and explain the contractual language.

These are great resources for authors and translators! 

Illustrate, Translate, and Write On,
Lee

P.S. My thanks to editor and coach Emma Dryden for posting about this on LinkedIn, which is where I learned about it.

The SCBWI 2021 Winter Conference Manuscript Gallery Offers Writers An Opportunity To Be Discovered!

 

Illustrators have the Portfolio Showcase, putting their illustrations in front of the top publishing professionals working today. And the winners of that portfolio showcase have gone on to have significant careers as illustrators!

Now, on a scale the SCBWI hasn't done before, there's a parallel opportunity for writers:

Registered Winter 2021 conference attendees who are SCBWI members can post up to 500 words of ONE children’s book manuscript, PB text, PB dummy or manuscript synopsis to our online manuscript gallery. Over a hundred editors and agents will be invited to peruse the gallery starting on February 19, 2021. These agents and editors will then reach out to authors whose work is a good fit for their lists. This is a fantastic opportunity to get your work in front of industry professionals!

The deadline to submit your manuscript is February 12, 2021. Find out all the details here.

The full conference information is here - it's going to amazing!

Illustrate and Write On,
Lee