The Problems With Generative AI In Creative Spaces

The following is a guest post written by FaithL, a member of the StoryForge community.

“I am just messing around.” 

“I am poor and cannot afford to pay for artists anyway so how is it hurting them?” 

“Nothing is original! Artists and writers steal from each other all the time.” 

“People against AI do not understand it and will fall behind!” 

“Adapt or die!” 

“Generative AI is the future! You cannot stop it! Just give up!” 

This is what I hear all the time, every Gen-AI User I have come across posing as artists and/or authors have been nothing but self-centered and entitled to take what does not belong to them for their own, often financial, benefit.

I am an artist and writer so this is a double whammy for me. I used to do a webcomic of my story Enchanted Stones on Instagram but stopped when I learned Meta was bringing in Generative AI. 

Generative AI is unethical and it would cost too much to make it ethical.

Generative AI is unethical and of course, the companies will not want to be ethical in consulting each artist and author for permission and license to train the bots on their art and/or writing because that would cost a lot of money. It is so much easier for them to steal from underneath artists, rip their artwork bar by bar. Regardless of follower count although it significantly hurts small creators who do not have as near as much reach as those who are widely known on social media. Opt Out is unfairly stacked up against the artist, there is nothing to stop their work being scraped when reposted by others for review after the book is published.  

AI Companies are going as far as to lobby the UK Government to have a “pass” on the Copyright on the countless of British and UK Based artists, musicians and authors. All they offer us is an “opt out” but it is long and strenuous process. 

How is it fair for a small independent creator like myself to be made to go through all these companies? Fill in their form, show my passport and wait for a response. That is if I can get hold of them at all!

Gen-AI fanatics insult the real artists they steal from to try and hide their insecurities but reality is they have so little faith in themselves and their ability to create they choose to be spoon fed like a baby. They do have a brain and a reasonable ability but they do not care who suffers from job loss, their copyright infringed so long as they get what they want. 

I am learning disabled so my career options are limited, I have been working so hard on my story Rosa Woodlock for about three years now. I have posted so much about my characters and story on Instagram to try and build an audience as I work towards officially publishing. To think some neurotypical, none disabled person could take any of my characters, Rosa or Ash and play as if they are their own infuriates me. Take a moment to think, how that would that make you feel? 

“But-But Faith I need a good image for my book cover and I cannot afford an illustrator!” 

No excuse! Learn to budget for a project, shop around, do it yourself, get a commercial license for an image that is created by a REAL artist or Photographer. In the olden days books had plain covers with only the author’s name and title. Try that.

Calling creators “gatekeepers” for wanting to defend their basic right of Ownership to their own work is like a burglar calling a homeowner a “gatekeeper” for locking their doors and windows every time they leave. Being poor does not entitle you to free stuff, many artists I know are no where near wealthy, they live in rented accommodation, work non art related jobs just to make ends meet. 

I am definitely not wealthy by any means, I had been on benefits for years until I got my first job. I had to make do with basic £ Shop supplies until I could afford better so no it is not a “privilege” for me to be able to afford to sustain my art when I work so hard for what I have, despite my disability. Not like a Gen-AI “artist” or “author” who chooses to be spoon fed, ignoring all the free tutorials on YouTube and TikTok, revising English or any language lesson to brush up on their literacy skills. 

If you do not believe you can achieve your dream without stamping on the backs of others who could be even MORE poor than you, how can you say you deserve your “dream” to come true? 

That is the sentimental part, these days it does not seem Gen-AI “Artists” or “Authors” have dreams they just see it as another opportunity to get rich quick. Like a participant in The Squid Game stabbing their opponent in the throat with a fork to bag a chance to win the billions in the giant piggy bank. 

“If you get beaten by AI it just means you were not good enough to begin with.”

“You only have 578 followers, you are a nobody, no one cares.” 

“You should stop putting your art online if you do not want it to be stolen!”

“I can steal your art right now and make money, you would not even know it! That’s the crazy thing!” 

This is the true colours of the Generative AI “community” Do you want to be part of this group? Are you going to stand by your fellow creatives or throw us under the bus to make your life easier? For the sake of making a few bucks? 

There is a difference between using spellchecker changing “there” to “their” for you and typing into ChatGPT or whatever: “Make me a novel about a girl with Earth magic who is an orphan gets trained by a Fire bender coming back to her home country and fight an evil werewolf” The basic premise of MY story then play it off like their own. Publishing and monetizing it before I even have a chance to! 

Nothing comes from nothing but REAL artists and authors but in effort into their work and care not to trample on others in pursuit of their goals. I take inspiration from different sources, Disney, Dreamworks, Fullmetal Alchemist, Karate Kid, Avatar The Last Airbender and The Legend of Korra. Only little bits not bar by bar. 

“It is important to draw wisdom from many different places. If we take it from only one place, it becomes rigid and stale. Understanding others, the other elements, and the other nations, will help you become whole... It can make you more powerful.” - Iroh, Avatar The Last Airbender