Christina Bauer's Blog, page 5
July 16, 2023
Hollywood, AI Lawsuits & Writers Like Me
For those of you who are new to this topic, this is NOT ABOUT STOPPING CHAT GPT or using it in your work. IMO, go on and enjoy Chat GPT! This is about billion-dollar AI companies compensating the authors who created the conversational language aspects of the system… and have not yet been compensated for their work (spoiler alert: if there are pirated copies of your books on the web, it’s probably you.)
This is also about folks in Hollywood who are now on strike because they fear that what’s happened to the writing community may happen to them as well.
I’ve attached an updated blog post I’m working on for reference and information. I hope it helps.
UPDATED POST: We need to talk about ChatGPT and similar AI.
Long story short, the ‘talking side’ of these systems are driven by a language set of books that were stolen from dark web pirate sites[1]. The fact that this is theft was essentially confirmed by a recent Supreme Court (SCOTUS) decision[2]. The related class action lawsuits have begun.
Let me explain.
I’m the author of 45+ books of epic fantasy and science fiction. But in a previous life, I co-wrote an AI patent with Dr Constantine Papageorgiou from MIT’s AI lab. I’m also studying for my Masters’ Degree in History from Harvard, which helps me further understand complex systems.
Chat GPT is a predictive model for language. Imagine a predictive model for weather without any weather history to predict from: It would be worthless. And $0 is how much value Chat GPT would have without a large corpus of long-form stolen content—again, much of which is pirated books–as its engine for conversational language. SCOTUS agrees that you can’t take someone’s IP in order to directly compete with them, even if the results are only served up in ‘fair use’ chunks of less than forty words.
AI companies like Chat GPT are perpetrating the greatest theft of intellectual property in history, period. Chat GPT (one of many AI companies) just got $10B from Microsoft for one partial investment (one of many to come). If you assume Chat GPT didn’t pay for the 300K books it stole from the dark web, that’s 30K/book/author that was denied to the people who trained the system… and again, ChatGPT is just one of many AI systems using the same stolen dataset.
Personally, I played around with Chat GPT. At first, I thought it was funny how the system tried (and failed!) to copy my voice and characters. It was only later on that I wondered how it got enough info to even try in the first place. In other words, I used to work in AI and it took me a while to realize what these folks were doing.
And the class action lawsuits have just begun. Here’s a description of first two lawsuits from Rolling Stone: https://www.rollingstone.com/culture/culture-features/chatgtp-openai-lawsuits-copyright-artificial-intelligence-1234780855/
I filled out the form in hopes of joining the Saveri class action suit: https://www.saverilawfirm.com/chatgpt-language-model-litigation
I also filled out the form in hopes of joining the Clarkson suit: https://clarksonlawfirm.com/togetheronai/
The author’s guild is putting forward a letter to ask for compensation. IMO, this will probably turn into another lawsuit, so I joined this as well: https://authorsguild.org/news/sign-our-open-letter-to-generative-ai-leaders/
Common Questions:
Won’t lawsuits put ChatGPT out of business?
By the time the AI wave ends, billions will be put into AI companies. They are not going away just because they have to pay a fair wage to the people who made them rich the first place.
But I like ChatGPT.
Thank you. It’s my words–and those of thousands of other authors—that you enjoy.
How can ChatGPT really know who wrote what bits of a response?
The system serves up the next most likely statement, which is like a chef serving up a meal. A kitchen can’t consistently serve good onion soup if one grocery store always delivers terrible onions. By definition, you need to know where good content is coming from and act accordingly. It’s all in the system and lawsuit discovery will turn up the truth.
What does this have to do with the Hollywood strike?
Hollywood writers are concerned that studios will use a loophole in current contracts to have ChatGPT ‘write’ a first draft… so they only get paid for revisions, which is less $$ and also no residuals. On-screen talent is worried that studios will create deep fake versions of them to use before and after their death (without compensation.) The studios have been extreme in saying they will not add any contract language that prevents them from using AI in any way they wish. And since he makes $31M/year, Bob Iger earns more in a day than the average writer does in a year. Long story short, studios can afford to pay people for their likenesses and work, period.
What can I do to help?
Feel free to keep using Chat GPT if you like it. But please help raise awareness that AI companies need to pay those they stole from.
Who’s really joining these class action lawsuits?
Most recently, Sarah Silverman jumped into the mix, which is helping to raise awareness. Thank you, Sarah! https://www.nytimes.com/2023/07/10/arts/sarah-silverman-lawsuit-openai-meta.html
Also, the FTC recently opened an inquiry. https://www.nytimes.com/2023/07/13/technology/chatgpt-investigation-ftc-openai.html
Should I file for a copyright on my books?
I’m no lawyer, but I’m certainly filing. Instructions are here: https://blog.reedsy.com/guide/copyright-a-book/
This is BS. Where’s your proof?
The sources for my statements above are in the footnotes below.
https://authorsguild.org/news/us-supreme-court-agrees-with-authors-guild-in-fair-use-case/
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July 13, 2023
New Raffle!
To celebrate the launch of my new book, REAPER GAMES, I have a new raffle to share!
Check out the cool stuff you can win and enter today!
Wondering who won my last raffle? Check here.
To enter: a Rafflecopter giveaway
If the link doesn’t work for some reason, cut and paste this URL into your browser: https://tinyurl.com/reap-yeah
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July 7, 2023
Sample Chapter – REAPER GAMES
The latest Myla-Lincoln adventure is live! Check out Chapter One below…
Chapter One
Myla – Age Twenty-Nine
I’m about to spend another six months in Purgatory.
Color me happy.
Sure, I like living part-time in Antrum (aka the underground home of the demon-fighting thrax.) Still, I miss Purgatory’s rain… All the ghosts… How the landscape combines the charm of a strip mall with the rusted gloom of an abandoned mine… And, of course, it’s home to my best friend, Cissy, as well as my parents.
What’s not to love?
Happily, I’ll be back there in short order. Which is why my husband, Lincoln, and I step along a fancypants passageway of Arx Hall, our castle in Antrum. Did I mention we’re king and queen down here? We are.
Lincoln’s a tall guy with broad shoulders and loose brown hair that always looks expertly tousled for some reason. We just left a ceremony marking our relocation to Purgatory, so Lincoln sports his formal best as king. In Antrum, that means leather pants, tall boots, chain mail and a velvet tunic.
In case you’re wondering, there are certain advantages to ruling a people who remain stuck in the middle ages. Leather pants on my husband—that’s one of the biggies.
For my part, I wear fitted white robes with a black, medieval-style over-gown. The colors highlight my amber skin, long auburn hair and black dragonscale tail.
All of a sudden, my husband adds a new accessory to his ensemble: a frown. Not that most people can tell this, mind you. My guy is a vault when it comes to emotions. But after a decade together, I know what it means when his lips thin ever-so-slightly.
I whisper from the right side of my mouth. “What’s wrong?”
Quick aside. At this point, you may wonder if it’s totally appropriate for a queen to go around whispering in odd ways to her husband. Here’s my take. Queen or not, I never give a flying fart what other people think. Plus, my husband enjoys my sass. Which is why he answers right away.
“Your tail is at it again.”
Eep.
Lincoln’s a thrax, meaning a part-angel demon hunter. I’m a quasi-demon from Purgatory, so I’m mostly human with a little demonic DNA. Being a quasi gets me powers across the seven deadly sins (mine are lust and wrath, the two bestest.) Most of all, my quasi-ness results in a tail that’s long, black and covered in dragon scales.
And that tail has a mind of its own.
I glance over my shoulder. Sure enough, my tail’s causing trouble. In this case, it’s alternating between frantically waving at the guards and using its arrowhead-shaped end to point to at the back of my head. Taken as a whole, the movements say, help her, please!
I crook my finger in its direction. “Up here, buddy.”
My tail slinks around so the arrowhead-shaped end points at my face. Yeah?
“Stop scaring the guards,” I state.
My tail dramatically scans from left to right. A pair of warriors in armor stand at every closed door, which means they’re spaced about twenty feet apart. Although most guards have the visor of their helms pulled down, there’s no missing the low rattling noises—they’re literally shaking in their metal coverings.
“Am I right or am I right?” I ask.
In reply, my tail points toward Lincoln. Its question is obvious. Do you think I should stop?
“I agree with Myla. You’re worrying our people.”
My tail gestures to my face before fake-jabbing at my heart.
“Let me guess… you think I’m still at risk?”
My tail bobs up and down its version of, Hells, yes.
This isn’t the first time my tail has gone around my back—literally—to try and convince the guards that I’m in trouble. The last few days, this activity has become my tail’s favorite pastime.
I roll my eyes. “You know, I got the whole ‘arrgh you’re gonna die’ concept the first four hundred times you warned me. But honestly, there’s nothing to worry about.”
My tail loops around my ear in a gesture that says, you, Myla Lewis, are bat crap crazy and about to face mortality. And it won’t stop until I confirm that indeed, I face imminent death.
But I won’t.
Because I’m not.
What I am is the warrior queen of the demon-fighting thrax. Kicking ass and taking names? That’s my bag. Besides, in Purgatory I’m also the Great Scala, meaning the only being who can move souls to Heaven or Hell. I sum it all up to my tail.
“Trouble should worry about me, not the other way around.”
“Huzzah,” agrees Lincoln.
Still, the arrowhead end keeps circling my ear. It’s not giving up.
I roll my eyes. “You’re such a drama tail.”
Lincoln and I round a corner which leads to yet another gilded hallway. All the while, my tail keeps circling my ear, only now it moves at triple speed. It’ll get a kink at this rate.
“Fine,” I state. “I’ll stay open to the idea that I’m in some minor level of effed-up-edness.”
At last, my tail slinks down to hang by my ankle. Success!
Lincoln and I make the last turn in our journey. Before us, there’s a—surprise, surprise!—long gilded hallway, along with more guards. The big difference? This passage ends with a round portico. On the floor of this alcove, there sits a circular metal disc. Once Lincoln and I stand on that spot, we’ll get transported to Purgatory.
All of this is to be expected.
It’s who stands before the metal platform that’s a surprise: our son, Maxon, and Lincoln’s mother, Octavia.
The four of us just left the same ceremony… and at the same time. So how did Maxon and Octavia get here so quickly? There are hidden passages throughout Arx Hall, but some routes trade off stealth—meaning no one knows where you’re going—with the amount of time it takes to reach your destination. Long story longer, these two should not have gotten here first.
I whisper from the side of my mouth once more. “Is there a quick secret passage from BARF to this pulpitum?”
True fact: BARF is the name of the last ceremony we just left, not anything that splattered on the floor.
“Ah, no,” replies Lincoln.
“Then how did Maxon and Octavia arrive first?”
Lincoln replies with two words. “Thumb ring.”
Here’s what that means. The after-realms have five parts: Heaven, Hell, Purgatory, Antrum and the Dark Lands, which are the home to ghoul kind. Of all these realms and peoples, only ghouls can set up portals. A black thumb ring means my honorary older ghoul brother, Walker, set up a permanent transport between two spots inside this palace, enabling Octavia to speed around like a sneakypants.
How very Octavia of Octavia.
And truly Walker of Walker.
Maxon steps closer to his grandmother. He’s ten years old with brown hair and a cherub-like face. His formal tunic hangs loose on his lanky frame. For her part, Octavia looks pristine and lethal in a black gown. She rests her hand on Maxon’s shoulder. As Lincoln and I step closer, we share a long look. There’s no need to speak. We’re already thinking the same thing.
Clearly, there’s a secret scheme between Octavia and Maxon.
Is this plan why my tail’s so worried?
I’ll find out soon enough.
-end of sample-
Check out REAPER GAMES!
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June 30, 2023
Angelbound REAPER GAMES is here!
I’m so excited to announce the latest adventure for Myla and Lincoln: Angelbound REAPER GAMES! Order your copy today at: https://books2read.com/reapthis
About REAPER GAMES
The Great Scala Battles Regina Reaper
Myla Lewis is now a mother, wife, queen, Great Scala… and someone who adores a good battle. Cue Regina Reaper, a scythe-wielding ghoul who wants to steal the soul of Myla’s bestie, Cissy, in order to control every last ghost in the after-realms. Even worse, Lady Reaper is high-jacking Cissy’s wedding to finish her nefarious plans. To save Cis, Myla must cause new levels of trouble while Cissy and Zeke march down the aisle!
King Lincoln Fights the Grim Reaper
Regina Reaper isn’t working alone—her husband, Grim, is helping to enslave souls across the after-realms. It’s a good thing that Lincoln’s best friend, Walker, may know the secret to saving the day. But is Walker helping Lincoln… or secretly scheming with the Grim Reaper?
It’s a race against time, ghouls, and wedding bells in this action-packed adventure!
Order here: https://books2read.com/reapthis
And don’t miss the launch raffle: http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/f7ec85e753/?
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June 26, 2023
Reaper Games Errors on Amazon Kindle?
If you’ve got errors, I’ve got answers…
The good news is: The official launch is tomorrow, but my new book, Reaper Games, is starting to reach readers on Amazon today (they’re special like that)! There are scythes… Cissy’s wedding… and Walker’s secret past! I am PUMPED.
The bad news is: I stayed up 62 hours straight to finish it. In the process, I uploaded the wrong file to Amazon. Maybe. I’m pretty sure I fixed it, but you never know. So I uploaded the correct file AGAIN with an extra bonus appendix of pictures just in case I need to make nice. Then I uploaded that same appendix to all the other reatilers because that’s how I roll.
Want to download an updated copy of the book from Amazon? Go to Manage Your Content and Devices. Search for your Kindle book. If available, select Update Available, then select Update.
If that doesn’t work, there’s a full tech note here.
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June 13, 2023
Join the Angelbound Anniversary Cover Reveals
My Angelbound series is celebrating its ten-year anniversary! To celebrate, I have a new cover and content launching every month. The first cover was revealed in May 2023… and now, you can sign up to join the reveals for the rest of the celebration! Click below to sign up and share the new covers when they are live!
Scala: https://xpressobooktours.com/2023/06/11/cover-reveal-sign-up-scala-by-christina-bauer/
Acca: https://xpressobooktours.com/2023/06/11/cover-reveal-sign-up-acca-by-christina-bauer-2/
Thrax: https://xpressobooktours.com/2023/06/11/cover-reveal-sign-up-thrax-by-christina-bauer-2/
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Deal Alert – Lady Reaper is FREE!
Young Myla and Lincoln Kick Ass and Take Names in This Prequel Novella for REAPER GAMES!
Amazon / Apple / Kobo / Nook / GooglePlay
A part-demon girl fights Lady Reaper
Myla Lewis is a sixteen-year old part-demon girl who fights evil souls in Purgatory’s Arena… and she’s always on the lookout for a good chance to fight evil. A SUH-weet battle opportunity appears with Lady Reaper, the famous ghoulette who wields both a scythe and nefarious intensions. Myla discovers Lady Reaper will hide inside the Demon Woods ‘ride’ at Purgatory’s Annual Lust Festival. Time to visit the fest, kick ass and take names, right? Wrong. Lady Reaper has other plans for Myla and her bestie, Cissy…
A part-angel prince faces the Grim Reaper
Lincoln is a seventeen-year old part-angel prince who protects humans from the denizens of Hell. On a routine trip to Earth, Lincoln uncovers clues that his best friend, Walker, might be allied to an evil ghoul named the Grim Reaper. Things go downhill from there…
It’s a Death Match Against Grim and Regina Reaper!
Amazon / Nook / Kobo / Apple / GooglePlay
The Great Scala Battles Regina Reaper
Myla Lewis is now a mother, wife, queen, Great Scala… and someone who adores a good battle. Cue Regina Reaper, a scythe-wielding ghoul who wants to steal the soul of Myla’s bestie, Cissy, in order to control every last ghost in the after-realms. Even worse, Lady Reaper is high-jacking Cissy’s wedding to finish her nefarious plans. To save Cis, Myla must cause new levels of trouble while Cissy and Zeke march down the aisle!
King Lincoln Fights the Grim Reaper
Regina Reaper isn’t working alone—her husband, Grim, is helping to enslave souls across the after-realms. It’s a good thing that Lincoln’s best friend, Walker, may know the secret to saving the day. But is Walker helping Lincoln… or secretly scheming with the Grim Reaper?
It’s a race against time, ghouls, and wedding bells in this action-packed adventure!
The post Deal Alert – Lady Reaper is FREE! appeared first on MHB.
June 1, 2023
How AI cons you (yes, you) out of money
There’s a lot of chatter in the author community about AI… should you use it? Is it any good? Will artificial intelligence replace humans?
Aaaaaaaaaaaand the whole conversation is a smoke screen for the biggest theft of intellectual property in the history of ever. Let me explain.
I used to work in high-tech marketing. One of the programs we’d often implement is a language auto-chat system for customer service. We’d cull a database of the best questions and answers from years of customer service communications. Since I worked in marketing, I’d sometimes get roped into reviewing what went into the system. One big question that always came up was whether we had rights to the content. We were assured that since the customer service messages were written as part of company work, then the company owned the content.
Fast forward to today’s AI systems. What’s being called AI is that same language system for customer service. It’s a series of algorithms that pick the next most likely next statement based on a dataset of responses. The AI is only as intelligent as what it gets fed. And when there’s no virtual marketer ensuring that the base data isn’t trash? That’s when you get ‘hallucinations,’ which is when the chatbot reconstitutes false source data into new lies. As the saying goes, “garbage in, garbage out.”
But what if it’s YOUR unique garbage that gets reconstituted and resold?
Perhaps you can see where I’m going with this.
If you’ve written or published anything online, that content is going into the current AI chat systems. When people say, ‘wow, this chatbot really created a great sentence’ what it actually means is that the chatbot sliced and diced a sentence someone else wrote and served it up to you correctly. Does the bot know where that sentence came from? You betcha. Does the bot pay the human who actually wrote some/all of the sentence? It doesn’t, but it should.
AI is not replacing humans. It is stealing IP from those who don’t have enough bargaining power or system knowledge to complain. And the fact that I might benefit from stealing someone else’s words doesn’t make the theft okay. And you can bet your ass that those running the AI systems are sitting in their offices now, holding their breath, and wondering if everyone will catch on that they are actually stealing your intellectual property and reselling it.
Do the AI companies know this is theft? You betcha (again). I’ve sat in rooms when they pitched customer service and talked about how the implementation can only use content generated by employees during company time. They know what they’re doing. What’s happening now is that the general public (and news outlets) have seen too many Terminator movies and assume that the content is somehow coming from an intelligent computer. It’s not.
It’s worth repeating: these AI computers are fancypants search engines using your content to source and output data without compensating you. Again, the companies know damned well who is creating the best content… because when certain statements work (meaning the conversation continues) the author/content gets prioritized higher the next time around. You may be the number one chatbot content contributor for questions about your home town or hobby… and not even know that, let alone get compensated.
Which brings me to the question about AI systems replacing jobs. I’d have no problem with this happening… if the AI system weren’t stealing content from the current job holders to replace them without paying a royalty. That’s just mean.
Also, it’s stupid. If the AI system wants to get smarter, it should compensate those with the best answers by paying them. That’s how capitalism works.
Long story short, don’t call it artificial intelligence. It’s a real-life content thief who should be paying royalties to you.
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May 23, 2023
Join the Angelbound Anniversary Fun
A decade ago, I launched Angelbound. Now, I’m thrilled to announce its anniversary celebration. For the next twelve months, I’ll launch one classic book from the Angelbond Origins series, along with a new cover, bonus material and a giveaway. Plus, everything will be live on ebook, audio, paperback and hardcover!
1 New CoverThe celebration kicks off today with a new cover and bonus content for Angelbound (Book 1), the book that started it all. After that, there will be one new cover and bonus every month! The anniversary covers are done in a style called WPAP out of Indonesia. In this approach, the artist boils an image down to its graphic elements and then applies a color palette.
1 Cool Bonus Story, Starting with Walker’s Love ConnectionEvery month, I’ll also launch the new bonus story in audio format! In a few cases, there was a bonus story for ebook and print but not audio. For those situations, I’ll add new bonus images to the print version while releasing the bonus audio content for the first time. For Angelbound (Book 1), the new bonus story is called Walker’s Love Connection and takes place before Myla meets Lincoln. You can download it here!
Ebook, Audio, Paperback and Hardcover IncludedFolks have asked that special editions be updated across print, ebook and audio at the same time… and I’m happy to oblige!
Up Next: ScalaNext month’s anniversary release will be for Scala on June 29th. Can’t wait!
Don’t want to miss out on the next release? Check out my social media for updates or sign up for my newsletter here: https://tinyurl.com/bauersbooks
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12 Months of New Audio Content!
Angelbound is celebrating its ten-year anniversary! As a practical girl, I’m using this opportunity to align the print and audio versions of this book (because unmatched content makes retailers grumpy.)
In this bonus section, Myla sneaks into Purgatory’s Arena and discovers a romantic secret about her honorary older brother, Walker.
What’s Next?The Anniversary Edition of Angelbound Book 2, Scala, will launch in June 29th! The audiobook version will include a five-chapter epilogue. This is the same content that was released previously but only in book form. Viva la audiobook!
Don’t want to miss out on the next release? Check out my social media for updates or sign up for my newsletter here: https://tinyurl.com/bauersbooks
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