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One of the unfortunate consequences of the rise of large language models is how they anre impacting the indie and self-published corners of the bookish community. I’m seeing more and more authors from these sectors use LLMs not only to design their book covers but also to help write or even sometimes do all of the work of writing their stories. (This is something I know because many of them actually admit to it!).
I am morally opposed to the use of LLMs in general because of how harmful they are to the environment, the widespread theft of written and visual imagery that was used to create them, and the devastating number of people who have lost their jobs as a result of these things. Therefore, the number of indie and self-published authors I review on my blog is seeing a steady and probably permanent decline. As committed as I used to be to featuring authors that needed such exposure, I can’t ethically continue to do so under current conditions.
You have the right to your own opinion on this topic, of course, but I will only be approving kind and respectful replies here.
So this post is looking back at a happier time before all of that stuff started happening. Here are ten self-published books I’ve reviewed here in the recent past. To the best of my knowledge, no LLMs were used in the creation of them.
The links below will take you to my reviews of these stories!
1. Homeless by Neil Shooter
2. Love Bug by Zoe Tasia
3. Five Miles Out Of Black Creek by Neil Shooter
4. Amina by P.B. Cannon
5. Marginal Worlds by Alfred Bekker
6. Cosmophobia by George Saoulidis
7. Mayday Mayday Mayday by Holly Schindler
8. Beach House on the Moon byLeigh Kimmel
9. Chasing June by Holly Schindler
10. A Hundred Julys by Holly Schindler
I also limit the amount of newer self-published/indie books I read and review for this same reason. It’s sad because I’ve found some real gems that I love being able to promote. I’ll be checking out the books you recommended here.
I’m so sorry you’ve run into it as well! Hope you like these titles if you read them.
The only good thing about LLM-content becoming pervasive is that the more we see of it, the more recognizable it is. When people started generating flyers for events and such, it seemed fresh for a week or two — but now they all look the same.
That is a great point! It’s getting easier and easier to spot for sure.
I agree LMM content is problematic. I certainly wouldn’t want to read a book concocted by AI in whole or part.
Thanks for sharing your #TTT
You’re welcome. Thank you for stopping by.
We need complete transparency when reading and purchasing books!
Oh, absolutely!
No matter how a book is published, trad or indie, I love supporting authors who have poured into their story or to see a book cover that an artist has designed. I hope we continue to see art being created by amazing storytellers or artists, but I suppose perhaps that is changing, at least for a time. It makes me sad but I guess time will tell. Thanks for featuring and sharing some of your favorite indie books. 🙂 And thanks for visiting my list this week!
You’re welcome. Thank you for stopping by.
I totally agree with the problem with LLMs and AI. But it makes me sad that it might push readers to steer away from indie published books because so many of us are staying far far away from all that and are writing completely human books. This new world we live in and have to navigate is so frustrating and sad. This looks like a great list! Thanks for stopping by my page. I’m trying to get back into the blogging thing and yours is the first comment I’ve had in AGES!
You’re welcome. I wish more indie authors would clearly state they didn’t use LLMs for anything. I’d happily support them in that case!
Places like Smashwords are absolutely overrun with authors who are using them, and that’s one of my main sources for indie titles.
I fully agree on LMM content being a big fat no for me. It’s such a put off for me when I see a cover that from a distance, looks really nice, and then I open it up big and it becomes so obvious it wasn’t created by a human. 😮💨 I’m doing a lot more research on any author before picking up their books now because I don’t want to be seen promoting or engaging in that type of content in anyway!
I’m glad you’re taking the same stance!
I agree it’s so sad to see the impact of LLM models on indie books!
Absolutely.
Some of these look like really neat books! I agree that the need to research whether a self- or indie published book used LLM content means I will likely read fewer of those books, which makes me sad because I’ve found some great books & authors from self- & indie published lists before.
It’s such a shame because indie authors needs more exposure for sure.
I find it very difficult to find good indie reads because it’s just not something I’ve ever been plugged into — so thanks for the recs! And yes, it’s getting to be such a minefield with LLM usage.
I have to do a lot of digging for good new indie authors for sure.
Watching out for AI writing is an annoying new hinderance…
Absolutely!
It is insane that this is now a problem we have to look out for! I love supporting Indie authors and helping them get the recognition and visibility that they don’t get by being traditionally published. I also enjoy supporting traditional authors, LOL! I will say I am surprised by the amount of authors I have seen today that I thought were traditional, that are actually independently published. The market really seems to be growing.
Yes, that was a beautiful surprise today for sure.
The first time I have heard of LLM. Of course I have heard of AI and abhor that being used to “write” books. I am cautious about what I read but I guess maybe any one of us could unknowingly be trapped in.
That is quite true.
From things I’ve seen and heard in the book world, LLMs and AI are making their way into trad publishing. I think that’s almost as scary and disheartening because we trust that people at publishing houses are against it.
Thanks for stopping by my blog earlier today.
Ugh, thanks for the heads up. That’s terrible.
As someone who thinks space is lowkey scary, I’m definitely draw to Cosmophobia.
Space is scary for sure!
I feel the same way about LLM that you do and…..yes, it does feel like it’s going to be permeating every facet of the publishing industry. And it’s problematic that the way people are testing for its use, is using LLMs themselves, that are trained on real writing and then regurgitate that this writing is similar to other writing it’s seen and therefore, it must be this arbitrary amount of AI. I don’t know what the answer is but real people are going to be caught up in the accusations and others who probably DID use AI will slip through.
I’m 100% sure you’re right about that. It’s really sad.
I never heard the terminology LLM before. I’ve heard of AI, though. I wish there was an easy way to know if a book is AI. Maybe there is and I haven’t seen it yet. Very interesting topic.
I think authors should start mentioning upfront whether or not they use it and, if so, what for!
It’s nice to see you spotlighting indie published books. And I agree, I can’t support LLM-produced books, cover art, etc. Sadly, that seems to be the way the publishing world is going!
Sad but true. And thanks.
Interesting! I know very little about indie/self-publishing, except that I have avoided these kinds of books for decades because the ones I have read tended to be poorly written, poorly edited, and poorly marketed. I do like Holly Schindler, though. I haven’t heard of the other authors you mentioned.
Happy TTT!
Susan
http://www.blogginboutbooks.com
There are some gems there, but I’ve noticed the same trends as well. 🙂
Yes, it really is sad how prevalent AI is being used in the book industry.
Absolutely.