Відео

The problem is that it is completely possible for Chat GPT to write a novel. And a pretty good one at that. AI has gotten to the point where it is able to make stories, art, and even complex UA-cam videos that are indistinguishable from the human forms. Funny enough it's the calculating and all these other things that we expect AI to get is where it is most likely to trip up. This is because to program an AI it has to learn and the learning process is eerily similar to how we learn. For example, you rarely find a writer who has not read a lot of books. That's why they have to give an AI a lot of books. This poses a danger for writers because if someone just uses an AI to write a book then publish their story they are subtracting the human from the process. Dramatic wording I know but I don’t know a better way to say it. After that we all know what comes next. A corporation will see this as an opportunity to make money and monopolize the process. Don’t think so? When you get a minute lookup the UA-cam channel Ceric Artman. Is that AI? Then look up Blooms and watch how he shows you it is an AI. Don’t believe me on the writing? Write me a story that a person might write about a fictional old west. Make it compelling and give me the best you've got. For write now we're only working on the first chapter. Chapter One: Dust and Ash The town of Bitter Creek wasn’t much to look at-just a sunbaked strip of shacks, a leaning saloon, and a church that hadn’t heard a hymn in years. The dirt road through its center could swallow a man’s boot if he wasn’t careful, and the wind carried more dust than whispers. But it had one thing other towns didn’t: it had Marshal Grady Kane. Grady stood on the porch of his office, leaning against the weathered post, one hand resting lightly on the butt of his Colt Peacemaker. His badge caught the late afternoon sun, glinting against his chest like a promise-or a warning. Bitter Creek had seen better days, but Grady was determined to keep what little peace there was left. The stagecoach rolled in, kicking up a plume of dust so thick it obscured the horizon. Its arrival was a rare event, and by the time the horses skidded to a halt in front of the saloon, the townsfolk had started to gather, eager for news or trouble-or both. A man stepped out, his boots hitting the ground with a weight that suggested he wasn’t just passing through. He was tall, with a face carved from stone and eyes as sharp as a hawk’s. His duster coat flared in the breeze, revealing a pistol at his hip and a rifle slung over his back. Grady straightened, his instincts prickling. Strangers in Bitter Creek usually meant one of two things: they were running from something, or they were bringing it with them. The stranger met Grady’s gaze and tipped his hat. “Marshal,” he said, his voice low and rough like a whiskey-soaked promise. “Name’s Caleb Dunn. I reckon you’ve heard of me.” The name hit like a thunderclap. Caleb Dunn-outlaw, gunslinger, and the man behind the infamous Red Mesa Massacre. If half the stories were true, he’d left a trail of bodies across the territories that no posse could keep up with. “What brings you to Bitter Creek, Dunn?” Grady asked, his voice calm but his hand inching closer to his gun. Dunn smiled-a wolf’s smile. “A deal, Marshal. I’m here to make you an offer.” The crowd murmured, shifting uneasily. Dunn raised his hands, palms open. “I ain’t here to cause trouble,” he said, loud enough for everyone to hear. “But trouble’s coming, whether you like it or not. I’ve seen the riders-thirty men strong, maybe more. They’re headed this way, and they aim to take everything that ain’t nailed down.” Grady felt the weight of the town’s eyes on him. He had faced his share of desperados, but thirty men? That was a small war. “What’s your angle?” Grady asked, narrowing his eyes. Dunn’s smile faded, replaced by something colder, more calculating. “My angle is survival. I’ll help you defend this town-for a price.” “And what’s that?” “A pardon,” Dunn said. “Full and unconditional. You put it in writing, and I’ll fight by your side.” Grady’s jaw tightened. He didn’t trust Dunn any more than he trusted a rattlesnake not to bite, but the town didn’t stand a chance without help. Thirty men against a marshal and a handful of farmers? It would be a massacre. The sun dipped lower, casting long shadows across Bitter Creek. Grady glanced at the townsfolk-men and women clutching their children, their faces etched with worry. He knew what he had to do, even if he hated it. “Fine,” he said at last. “You’ve got a deal. But if you cross me, Dunn, you’ll find out just how fast a marshal can draw.” Dunn grinned again, the wolfish gleam returning. “Fair enough, Marshal. Fair enough.” As the crowd began to disperse, the tension hanging in the air like a storm about to break, Grady felt the weight of the decision settle in his gut. Trouble was coming to Bitter Creek, and he’d just made a deal with the devil to stop it.

I'm the same way about using similar phrases close together. It's also one of my pet peeves, so I watch it like a hawk in my own writing. Also, what font are you using? I've been using Avenir for my revision font; yours looks similar to it. For my main writing font, I love Merriweather.

I'm just finishing up work before the holidays start! Love the extra lists, I do that too 😅 Hope you have an amazing holiday period 🎄💜

What state do you live in?

I recently came across your videos. I'm a retired office worker and a total novice who simply enjoys writing. For what it's worth, it seems to me you made a very wise decision. I'm learning a lot from your experience in getting your books published from this video and a recent one you made. Thanks for sharing your journey!

I'm with Sherry in wanting to Eat All The Things right now but I'm also so close to 100K in Q4 (at 97K words today! I'm gonna do both. 😄 Also, playing again for the algo.

The two exact same to do lists is so real lol! Its a nice little technique I use when I'm procrastinating!

Hi Meredith! Agented writer here, though not in the romance genre. I haven't followed your querying journey but know from personal experience it's horrifying. One thing - have you considered submitting directly to Harlequin directly through Submittable? I know they have a Regency imprint and you can bypass the whole agent thing and go right to the source.

In my country publishing works exactly the same as you were surprised by) It's a normal stream of event for us. Quite comfortable, I'd say but it might be smth we are used to)) So weird to see some real confusion over the thing that's so normal)))

I watched this days ago and I'm still in shambles 🙃 I truly don't know how I would have handled this, but I really think you made the right decision. I just know that agent is coming

I'd get nothing done if it wasn't from the dopamine that comes from checking a little box on my to-do list! Seriously though, totally admire your ability to get anything done at this time of year. All I want to do is (re)watch old x-mas movies and eat All The Things.

It really bothers me that they didn't even want to read the whole manuscript. Like, who does that? Also, the fact you wouldn't have an agent to advocate for you to go over those contracts is just scary. Under those circumstances I think you absolutely did the right thing. Also, don't later books in a series make a lot less money than the first one? Wouldn't that mean you'd be making barely anything by the time you made it to...a 6th book? It could end up being about 10 years of your life with constantly diminishing returns just due to the fact some readers won't stick around with a series past the first few books. I think you should feel very comfortable with your decision and chalk this up to a good learning experience. Now you know even more how much you need an agent involved in whatever the future holds for your publishing career. In the meantime, you get to continue focusing on creating the stories you're passionate about. Well done making the tough choice. Something tells me future Meredith is going to thank you for doing what was right for you and not just running away with the chance to become published. Being an author is not just about writing a good story, it's also about handling the business side of things wisely and you've proven here that you can do both. You have a bright future ahead--just keep going.

I would have probably scarcity-mindset-ed my way into accepting it even if I was leery.

Cant wait to read all 6 books of this series Mery!!

I think you made the right choice, without them reading the rest of the book, it kinda made me wary for you 💜

Omg this video feels very Sliding Doors for me because many moons ago, I got a similar-ish offer from a small press, and unlike you, I actually took it! My experience was… disappointing? Underwhelming? At times frustrating? I chalked it up as a learning experience and decided to never work with a small press again. All in all, I think you made the right decision!

I would have made the same decision. It was such a difficult thing to have to navigate just on your own. It was great to have your mentor to give you advice. I will say the moment they said we expect it will be polished etc. they lost me completely.

It sounds like you made the right decision for you. It is weird they didn't want to see the whole manuscript. Also, when you don't get an advance on royalties they have a reduced incentive to market your book. Sounds like you grew from the experience. Let's all keep writing, everyone!

Ah! I have SO many thoughts on this! But the sum of them all is this: I think you made the right choice. I’ve been in the querying trenches for as long as you have, but as a ghost-querier if that makes sense. Querying on behalf of a client I ghost-wrote for. I’ve learned SO MUCH about the industry in that time, I’ve spoken to multiple agents and former-agents, and the fact that this small publisher didn’t even ask to see the full MS before making an offer tells me that they didn’t care about the book quality. They just thought it would sell based on the first 3 chapters and they wanted a piece of the pie. Not the worst thing ever, but your gut said it wasn’t right for your book and I agree with your gut.

Strange that they didn't want to read a synopsis or finish the draft. That seems like a pink flag to me. 🤔

As a hybrid author I’m glad you trusted your gut. For them to not read the full book was the first clue of a No for a new author. There are legit smaller publishers and you won’t get an advance, but will get higher royalties, but they only offer contract for each book.

I am curious ... in this sort of situation, is informing any of the agents you are still querying about the offer an option? And might you have (if you wanted to) made finding an agent a stipulation to be met before signing (along with a time-limit, of course)?

Congrats on the offer, though you passed on it. Just wanted to note that my mentor has advised that if I get a book deal offer before getting an agent, then I should inform any agent with my query that I have a book deal offer. That often causes the agents to want to get on calls and potentially make an offer of rep, even if they also recommend not taking that particular deal.

This was FASCINATING. Thank you for sharing. Congrats on the offer and on having the self-confidence to say no. 👏

Congratulations! Even if it didn’t work out, it’s so validating for you! Fingers crossed you’ll end up with the deal of your dreams in the near future.

Sounds like you made the right decision!

That was a crazy turn of events! I’m glad you had Alexandra to turn to and I’m hopeful the right deals will come! Congrats on the offer, and for making the best decision for yourself and your work.

As difficult as declining your first offer from a real publisher has to be, which is the whole object of the exercise, I think you showed the better wisdom doing so. Having your options open is always good. As your Grandpa Dick used to say, "They've still got their widget, and I've still got my money." The easy choice would have been to take the first bag of candy you could, knowing you'd always have bragging rights that you became a published author your first time at bat, but you'd be signing a deal with no one looking out for your interests--like a FSBO in real estate. Not a fan. So congrats for at least getting props for your work a second time, including your mentor. I have to believe your choice will be rewarded in due time.

Seemed like a well-reasoned decision to me 😊

Hi Meredith! Long time lurker, first time commenter here 😂 anyway, I just wanted to say that I also got a small publishing house offer on a previous book I was querying, and that was an offer after them only reading the first three chapters with similar terms that you described. I appreciated the offer (it was a legit house) but it didn’t sit right with me either, and ultimately I declined. That was a tough choices when the trenches weren’t going well AT ALL for me, but, low and behold, I got agented with the next book I wrote and am now out on submission to big 5’s with an awesome agent who is super editorial and a total champion for my voice and my work. All that to say, listen to your gut and trust your process, your talent, and your journey. It’s going to get you where you want to be. Stay the course. 🥰❤️

Good for you, Meredith, knowing what you want and going for it. I have a friend who is published by a small press and she likes it, but she isn't happy with their editing. She doesn't get a lot of money off her books and got no advance, but she agreed to it because she just wanted her books published and it works for her. I'm proud of her, but I, personally, agree with you on your thoughts on the topic. I think it's important to know what you want out of a deal and not let anyone force you into something you just don't feel right about. So good for you!

Congrats on the offer, and also congrats on being able to take time to decide whether or not it was truly the best offer for you. Even before you said it, I had a feeling that the fact they hadn't read the book in full would be the big thing that'd keep you from saying yes (not that the other cons didn't add to that decision ofc). And not to say that this publishing house doesn't do their job well, as you said in the beginning, you even know a writer who works with them. But I think, as writers who seek agents, you WANT someone who loves your book to work on it with you. I'm sure your book is great, you think it's good, but it's like... how can THEY know they actually want to publish this if they don't at least read the full book? It's like "do they care about the actual book or story at all or do they just want to publish anything that SEEMS well-written?" I like to think I would've made the same decision. Like yes, i want to publish, but i want the people who decide to help me publish to actually LIKE the book and how can they like it if they don't read it?

Hello. Thank you for sharing the pros and cons of being published with a smaller publishing company. I definitely see the pitfalls of signing a contract without them reading the entire manuscript I think it did the right thing.

It takes someone with a real strong sense of self-worth to make this kind of decision, especially when it seems perfect on the surface. What a great boost of confidence, though! Take the good and carry on.

I find this so deeply inspiring. Like I adore that you were able to sit with yourself and really practice the ‘no agent/no deal is better than the wrong agent/wrong deal’ in reality. I told myself not to query agents that I already knew I didn’t want to work with, but I did so anyway after rejections rolled in. Now, one of the fulls out is with someone that I’m like 85% sure I’d say no to if they offered lol (I do think it’s gonna end in rejection anyway tho based on QT submission stats lol) and I’m like ‘you have to stick to your guns better!’ at myself lol so it’s really cool to watch you actually do so even with a literal deal in your face. Amazing, amazing, amazing.

Wow - so many congratulations on that offer!! That's AMAZING and must feel really good! But I think I would have made the same decision...my impresson is that a lot of writing and publishing is being patient and thinking critically about what you really want. (I keep doing it for myself when I want to jump back into the querying trenches with my book after getting a decent response...like no, no I have time, let it sit, don't rush with something that doesn't feel just right) What a happy thing though...it feels to me like you have great momentum with SmoochPit and the deal offer, which must feel SO good!!

How exciting. I think you made the right choice, but it must have been really hard to turn it down.

It definitely felt weird that they didn’t read your whole book let alone asked you for information on your series my only worry is that they would use it to feed it through AI. You did say that its a reputable small press with people you know under it. Its still good that you followed your guy. Im excited to see the rest of your journey

I had to come down to see if you'd accepted or not, I couldn't take the suspense. Whew! I totally agree that signing without connecting about a revision plan/vision would be too far, even if they'd read the full manuscript. I'm sure your ms is excellent and they clearly see promise in your sample, but I'm glad you protected your work and YOUR vision for it.

So exciting to get the offer, but sounds like you made the right choice. I wouldn't want to go into a contract without someone reading my full work either! Sometimes the very fact that you're torn between yes and no means it's a no. You don't want to start such an important relationship with wariness and doubts - especially if you're tying yourself in for three whole books! When the right opportunity comes around for you, you'll feel happy jumping in.

It must have been exciting to get the recognition of your hard work and I'm sure it wasn't an easy decision. A lot of new writers would jump at the chance without being as thorough as you were working through realistic expectations of what this choice would mean for your future work. I think you made the right choice even if it means it will be longer before I get to meet your characters 😊

That is amazing, and so validating! I've considered some small/digital publishers as well but haven't submitted to any yet. There are a few with good reputations who publish books I know are high quality. Their submission guidelines usually ask for the whole MS though, and I agree I'd feel weird about accepting a contract without anyone having read to the end. I think you need to go with your gut on these things and you made the right decision. But I think it's a nice confidence booster too:)

Ear problems are horrible x You poor thing x

I really appreciate you going through all the pros and cons. I think I would have made the same choice as you

You made the right choice.

Glad you got the ear checked, but ear infections suck. I always hate having to change character names like I don't wanna! 😅

Love the purple hoodie! I suspected an ear infection.

Watch and comment again for the algo! 😉 The worst I ever got was 40+K words into a novel where no one had a name... 👀

What IS it with you and doctors?? They actually come in handy when you're in pain. I heard that somewhere. Ugh! I know: maybe find a doctor who is also a writer. Win/win.

Naming characters is so hard! I love the name Jemima though! Maybe I'll use that one!