Lmst

We've set up a Mastodon instance at https://social.authorhelp.uk/

Our account will be moving to that server.

A white lorry, of the type used to move house, driving on a road

@nicolecluttrell @authorindiespeak @writingcommunity
This is from the article:

As evidence of infringement, the suit filed by authors points to ChatGPT generating summaries of their novels when prompted. They argue that’s “only possible if ChatGPT was trained on Plaintiffs’ copyrighted works.”

I don't know any other way of finding out, or even if that claim is accurate.
~Robin

Apparently, OpenAI crawled the #Smashwords catalogue to feed its language model. Now a group of authors are suing over that behaviour.
https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/business/business-news/authors-sue-openai-novels-1235526462/
#WritersOfMastodon #WritingCommunity #IndieAuthor
@authorindiespeak @writingcommunity

Author Help boosted:

My two cents on the #Meta #ThreadsApp discussion. I think my past experience in the publishing industry has given me a unique perspective on the #Fediverse.

The evolution I've witnessed in that industry over the years has helped me to recognize a similar evolution in social media now. My experiences there have shown me how the Ordinary Person has eventually become empowered by new technology-- in this case, ActivityPub and the Fediverse. I don't foresee a reversal in that evolution.

Regardless of what Meta does or does not do with their Threads app, I'm sure of one thing:

#TheFutureIsFederated.

#PublishingIndustry #MetaThreads #ElonMusk #Zuckerberg #MarkZuckerberg #MetaThreadsApp #Threads #Federated #TwitterExodus #RedditMigration #Mastodon #TwitterMigrants #RedditMigrants #Change #ParadigmShift #SelfPublishing #POD #KDP #TraditionalPublishing #PrintOnDemand #ActivityPub #ActivityPubBased #Writers #WritingCommunity #EditorsOfMastodon

https://annethewriter33.wordpress.com/2023/07/06/the-future-is-federated/

@newstik I don't know, but apparently it's by https://agrafkastudio.com/ so you could try contacting them.

Author Help boosted:

@AuthorHelp @JamesGleick Some more info on the book fair and who designed the poster https://kottke.org/23/07/duck-cover-ukrainian-book-fair-poster

@TunaMiguel thank you for the correction.

@drinkswriter @authorindiespeak @writingcommunity depressing, though :(

The British government has a vision for creative industries, but publishing appears to be something of an afterthought.
https://thenewpublishingstandard.com/2023/06/26/britain-has-a-new-vision-a-creative-industries-sector-vision-books-and-publishing-arent-really-part-of-it/
#WritersOfMastodon #WritingCommunity #IndieAuthor
@authorindiespeak @writingcommunity

@darkufo we have a similar number of followers here as we had on Twitter. But we get *far* more engagement here.

An incredibly powerful poster for the 2023 Kyiv book fair.

Edit: @TunaMiguel has pointed out that it's actually a magazine cover. Mea culpa.

Poster showing people (coloured blue and yellow), including a baby in a pram, holding up an open book. The book is shielding them from explosions, aircraft, bombs, and tanks, all coloured red.

Author Help boosted:

Doing a test here to see how much reach this #mastodon account with 550 followers has compared to the same test on #Threads with a 430 Follower count.

I suspect I already know the answer.

If you see this please Boost and Like, and if you want to leave a comment feel free to that.

FINAL UPDATE - 4 Days Later

Mastodon
Likes: 3,200+
Boosts: 2,600+
Replies: 150+
Followers gained: 225

Threads
Likes: 17
Retweet/Boosts: Unknown. No stats
Replies: 4
Followers Gained: 330

Author Help boosted:

I heard someone describe #Mastodon as social media for people who like #Linux. Now I’m curious. How many of you actually like Linux?

(Please boost! Hoping for a sufficiently large sample size that’s more likely to represent the wider #fediverse.)

Author Help boosted:

Now at my mom’s local library. (Her and I are running errands together.) It’s also awesome!

An LGBTQIA+-themed book display at a public library. A large banner across it reads, “BE YOURSELF”. Said banner is flanked by trans and progress Pride flags. There’s an even larger progress pride flag in the background.

British publishers are very happy to see growth from BookTok, but they're dangerously reliant on TikTok.
https://thenewpublishingstandard.com/2023/06/26/british-publishers-hailing-excellent-growth-of-english-language-exports-to-europe-thanks-to-booktok-are-sleepwalking-into-disaster/
#WritersOfMastodon #WritingCommunity #IndieAuthor
@authorindiespeak @writingcommunity

Author Help boosted:

The #IndieAuthor business is a constant adventure, a never-ending learning experience.

When I wrote my first #ScienceFiction novel, I thought I knew about the market. After all, I'd been a sci-fi reader all my life. I knew what readers wanted … or so I thought.

I swiftly discovered that what readers of indie-published sci-fi wanted was very different from what readers of trad-pubbed sci-fi want. If you look at the top-seller lists and the awards lists, what you're seeing is mostly trad.