5 Ways to Support Authors Whose Books Have Been Pirated for AI Training

If you’ve been on the bookish or writerly side of Instagram lately, you might have heard about the situation with Meta. Heloise Wood’s article, Society of Authors Condemns ‘Appalling’ Use of Pirated Books in AI Training, explains that “Meta has used millions of pirated books to develop its AI programmes, as reported in the Atlantic, provoking outcry from many writers and organisations such as the Society of Authors.”

I first heard about this issue when I saw Katrina Kwan’s post on Instagram about why she was leaving the platform (she has since deleted her account, which is why I haven’t linked the post). I immediately went to her Substack and saw her post there. I wanted to support her, so I shared her Instagram post to my stories. I didn’t think much of it, but my heart was broken for her.

Flash forward to that evening when I got a message from my friend, Brooke Riley. She told me that, because of the post I shared, she decided to investigate this issue. And, to her horror, she found her latest book, The Dreams Between Us, on the LibGen list of books that have been pirated and used for AI training by Meta. As a result, she decided to step back from Instagram (you can read her announcement on Substack here).

All of this has got me thinking: How can we, as readers, support these authors as they walk through this? We can’t stop Meta (although many people are trying), so what can we do to help?

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1. Spread awareness about this issue.

I only found out about this issue because another author posted how it affected her Since then, I’ve been trying to share more information about this on my Instagram stories (go follow me @breedawnwriter to stay updated because I’m not planning to let this go anytime soon).

I’m also trying to educate myself about this issue, since there’s a lot of moving parts and different companies involved. Dan Pontefract’s article, Authors Challenge Meta’s Use Of Their Books For Training AI, really helped me understand the situation. He explains what LibGen is (basically a big storehouse of pirated material) and what Meta actually did (they dipped into LibGen to find material to train their AI model). So, if you’re looking to better understand the situation, I highly recommend giving this article a read.

Additionally, if you find one of your friends’ books on the LibGen list, let them know. I know it’s hard to tell them that someone pirated their book, but if they don’t know, they can’t take any steps towards trying to protect their work. So, if you want to search for your friends (or you’re an author and want to search for yourself), click here to view the search engine via The Atlantic. If you do find your friends on this list (or you find yourself), check out this article for some next steps.

I did a quick search for some of the authors I follow, and here’s who I found on the LibGen list: Allison Tebo, Ali Hazelwood, Abbie Emmons, Ann Liang, Axie Oh, Brooke Riley, Catarine Hancock, Chloe Gong, C.G. Drews, Dustin Thao, Elizabeth Lim, E. Lockhart, Erin Phillips, Holly Black, Jenna Terese, John Green, K.A. Emmons, Kara H.L. Chen, Kara Swanson, Kat Cho, Kathi Lipp, Kelly Andrew, Kellyn Roth, Leigh Bardugo, L.E. Richmond, McKenzie Catron-Pichan, Melissa Hart, Micheline Ryckman, Nadine Brandes, Neal Shusterman, Sarah Adams, Sarah Dessen, Sara Ella, Stephenie Meyer, and Tashie Bhuiyan.

2. Do not make or share AI-generated work.

I know this issue is specifically about books being pirated and then used to train AI, but it’s still important to remember that AI is being used for other unethical things, like art. I’ve seen people post AI-generated artwork, and while I understand that this can be helpful for visualizing a character or a setting, it inevitably supports the very thing we’re trying to stop.

That being said, I personally wouldn’t recommend using any AI-generated art websites, including OpenArt AI, CharGen, Perchance, Artguru, or Imagine.Art. A lot of AI-generated artwork is based on real artists’ work that has been used to train the AI models. So, it’s a very similar thing to what is happening with Meta, LibGen, and the pirated books.

Instead of utilizing AI art, I highly recommend reaching out to your artsy friends and commissioning artwork. Many artists offer different art for a variety of prices, so you can choose something that’s more affordable for you. Some artists I follow (and adore) on Instagram are Hannah Muldery, Avendell, Alef Vernon, Allyah Hope Amstutz-Washburn, Kayleigh, Kiyo, Lydia Elaine, Ashley, Gabrielle Ragusi, and Chiqui. Not all of these artists are open for commissions, so make sure you check before contacting them.

3. Follow authors on their platforms.

One of the easiest ways to support authors is to follow their blogs, newsletters, and/or social media accounts. This allows you to stay in touch with them, but it also allows them to build their network and audience.

If you want to support your author friends the most, go subscribe to their blog or newsletter. Giving your favorite authors your email is one of the most helpful things because that is the golden ticket when it comes to marketing. It’s one thing to click the follow button on a social media page; it’s an entirely other thing to relinquish your email address. So, if you want to show support, let your author friends have your email address by subscribing to their blog/newsletter.

Some of my favorite author newsletters include: Kara Swanson, Josiah DeGraaf, Kat Cho, Brooke Riley, Nadine Brandes, Victoria Lynn, and Leigh Bardugo.

4. Buy their books.

The best way to help your author friends is to buy their books. It supports their work, helps them financially, and can help their books rank higher on websites like Amazon. However, if you’re looking to avoid Amazon, Barnes and Noble, or other big businesses right now, check out these other places to buy books: Bookshop, Better World Books, Thriftbooks, Libro.fm (for audiobooks), World of Books, and Books of Wonder.

Check out this Book Riot article for a huge list of indie bookstores that you can shop at from anywhere (but it’s organized by state).

Here are some book recommendations if you’re looking to support some authors who have been impacted by this Meta/AI situation: The Dreams Between Us by Brooke Riley, Asking For a Friend by Kara H.L. Chen, Ignite by Kara Swanson, The Mermaid’s Tale by L.E. Richmond, and A Crown of Chains by Erin Phillips.

5. Request their books at your local library.

If you aren’t in a place where you can financially support authors, one thing that really helps is requesting their books at your local library. Amelia Clawford actually just posted about this on Instagram and started a challenge for April and May to see how many books we can get into our libraries. I’m planning to participate once I have time to sit down and request some books, and I’d love to see you get involved too. So, go leave a comment on her post if you wanna join the challenge!

Some of the books I’ve requested/want to request at my library include Break The Beast by Allison Tebo, Dust by Kara Swanson, The Nightmare Virus by Nadine Brandes, Once I Knew by Victoria Lynn, 100 Days of Sunlight by Abbie Emmons, and Sixteen Minutes by K.J. Reilly.

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I know that it’s easy to lose hope in humanity when we see people abuse their power and hurt the ones we love. But, I hope that this post has given you back some of that hope because, just as there will always be people who do bad things, there will also always be people who do good things.

In a world full of darkness and sin, we can be the light. It’s not easy, and it might not always feel worth it, but I promise that we can make a difference. We can show up for our author friends and remind them that they are loved. That their writing matters. That piracy doesn’t have to mean the end of their journey.

God is still moving, my voyagers. I know it might not seem like it, but He is. He has not abandoned us in this, and He never will. I hope that brings you some comfort today. I hope, at least in this moment, that knowledge is enough to give you the peace to keep going.

Let’s Talk!

How are you feeling amidst the chaos of this whole situation? How can I pray for you, regardless of whether you’re directly involved in this or not? Which of these support options do you want to try? Let’s talk all things supporting authors down in the comments below!