Tag Archives: #WritingCommunity

Name That Book

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Bee to the blossom, moth to the flame; Each to his passion; what’s in a name? —Helen Hunt Jackson

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I’ve been thinking a lot about book titles lately since my latest book was renamed by the publisher just prior to its release. More on that later.

Coming up with a title for your book may be one of the most important decisions you make. But how do you decide what’s the perfect name?

Blurb.com had a list of criteria that I grabbed from their website and added some of my own comments. A good title would be:

  • Concise (3-5 words) – Short titles stand out to readers. Long ones are harder to remember. On the other hand, consider The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society or The 100-Year-Old Man Who Climbed Out the Window and Disappeared. They didn’t do too badly.
  • Intriguing – a title that will stand out and make readers want to buy your book. A few that I like are The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, The Remains of the Day, and The Art of Racing in the Rain.

The site also mentioned a good title would be:

  • Original
  • Informative
  • Easy to say
  • Attention-grabbing
  • Memorable

I considered some of the books I have loved and what their titles were:

  • To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee
  • A Tree Grows in Brooklyn by Betty Smith
  • The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain
  • West With the Night by Beryl Markham
  • The Woman in White by Wilkie Collins

All of these meet the requirement of being concise. With the exception of Huckleberry Finn, they are intriguing and original. They are also informative and easy to say. I’m not so sure about attention-grabbing. I guess that depends on the reader. Finally, I suppose a title is memorable only if the book is one you remember.

A couple of other attributes I’ve noticed in the book naming field:

  • Trendy – Remember how many books were published with the word “Girl” in the title?
  • Play on words – Popular with cozy mysteries.

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Reading about the art and science of naming a book got me thinking about how I had come up with the titles of my five published novels. In the order published, they are:

The Watch on the Fencepost – That was the working title, but I wanted a catchy, clever name for the book. One day when I was about halfway through the writing process, my husband and I took a walk to talk about the title. I tried out a few possibilities (A Watch in Time, Death Watch, etc.), but nothing clicked with us. Finally, Frank said, “Why don’t you just leave it the way it is. It’s unique and intriguing.” So that’s what I did. And there’s a catch at the end of the book that emphasizes the title.

Dead Man’s Watch – The title refers to a watch that was taken off a dead man’s wrist. Finding the watch turned out to be an interesting problem that led to a surprising conclusion. I also liked the trendy “Dead Man” part of the title.

Time After Tyme – After the university librarian Mr. Tyme was found dead, a couple of teams of amateur sleuths spend their time looking for a culprit. This title was inspired by the use of word play in cozy mystery titles.

Lacey’s Star – I thought this title might be too prosaic. I considered All but the Brightest Stars, but opted for the simpler title because it refers to the final clue that leads to a murderer. I like to think that readers will finish one of my books and realize the relevance of the title to the story

That brings me to the fifth book, Another Side of Sunshine.

The working title was The Other Side of Sunshine, which is also the first line of the first clue in the story. Much of the book is a reflection on shadows (pun intended), so the title seemed perfect to me. However, the publisher didn’t want the title to begin with the word “The,” so she suggested Another Side of Sunshine. In the long run, I think it’s just as good, maybe better.

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Speaking of changing titles, The Huffington Post had an article on classic books where the original title was changed. Here are a few:

  • Ernest Hemingway’s The Sun Also Rises was originally titled Fiesta.
  • Somerset Maugham’s Of Human Bondage was originally titled Beauty from Ashes.
  • Margaret Mitchell’s Gone with the Wind was going to be Tomorrow Is Another Day, Not In Our Stars, Tote the Weary Load, or Bugles Sang True.
  • Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird was originally titled simply Atticus.
  • Carson McCullers’s The Heart Is A Lonely Hunter was originally titled The Mute.
  • John Steinbeck’s Of Mice and Men was originally titled Something That Happened.
  • Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice was originally titled First Impressions.
  • William Golding’s Lord of the Flies was originally titled Strangers From Within.

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So TKZers: How did you determine names for your books? Do you have a favorite title of your books? Would you rename any of them if you could? What are some of your favorite titles from other authors? What do you think about the name changes in the list of classics? 

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ANOTHER SIDE OF SUNSHINE
A Middle Grade Mystery Novel

The Reen & Joanie Detective Agency is open for business, and the first assignment is to find a treasure hidden by the mysterious “Mr. Shadow.” 

“Fans of From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler and The Westing Game will find familiar pleasures here, wrapped in fresh clues and grounded by a heroine who learns to trust her instincts—and the people around her.” —Prairie Book Reviews

Click the image to go to the Amazon book page.

Immersion Technique #WriteTip

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Every character is the hero of their own story. Even the villain.

We’ve talked many times about the importance of fleshing out characters. This time let’s reframe the narrative for those who may not grasp the finer details of crafting a compelling villain.

It’s easy to tell a fellow writer to slip into the villain’s skin and view the world through their eyes—I’ve given the same advice—but for those who haven’t mastered characterization, it may not be enough.

  • How does one craft a killer when they’ve never committed a crime?
  • How can we champion a villain’s efforts with no real-world experience?

Sure, we can draw conclusions and make assumptions. Is that enough for readers?

  • Is there a way to pull from life experience, to really feel what it’s like to transform into somebody else?

Yes, there is. And it’s called immersion. Method actors use the same technique.

The dictionary defines immersion as “deep mental involvement.” It can also mean engagement, as in a mixture of how much you’re paying attention, how submerged you are in an experience, and how it affects you emotionally.

Immersion, whether real or imagined, taps into fundamental psychological principles like perception, emotional engagement, and the sense of presence. It involves a combination of sensory stimuli, cognitive engagement, and emotional resonance that creates a feeling of being completely absorbed in the experience.

Immersive experiences are rich and complex, drawing upon personal experiences, and engage with emotions through the manipulation of the five senses. They’re described as transformational, intense, sometimes hectic, and provoking.

What we see tells us a lot about the world around us, but what the body experiences is much more powerful.

How we immerse ourselves in a life unlike our own starts with walking in their shoes. Listen to the villain’s favorite music. Eat their favorite foods. View the world through their eyes.

  • What’s their culture like?
  • What’s their theme song?
  • What’s their religion, politics, and views on other hot topics?
  • Do they like the rain? Cold weather? Scorching hot sun?
  • Are they happy with where they live? Or have they been trying to escape the area for years?
  • What do they do for a living? Do they have buddies at work?
  • Are they body conscious and drink water all day? Or do they drink black coffee till noon, then switch to scotch?
  • Do they smoke? I’m not proposing you start smoking but you can pretend.

Even if the character’s actions rub against your values and beliefs, you must find at least one redeeming quality, or at least be able to empathize with a part of them.

Take Ed Kemper, for example. His mother was a severe alcoholic who favored his two sisters and never missed the chance to belittle him. Ed’s father, a World War II veteran, hated his wife. The couple divorced when Ed was still in grammar school.

Living with his mother was no picnic. She locked him in the cellar for days and/or weeks at a time—alone—a bare lightbulb hanging from a wire in the center of the dark and creepy space. Since the door locked from the outside, the only way out was through a trap door beneath the dining room table.

Trapped, Ed lay on the cold cement floor staring into the flame of the furnace. And it was then, he later told an FBI profiler, he saw the face of the Devil for the first time. That period of his life exacerbated his already fractured mind.

Later, at age 14, his father sent him to live with his grandparents in California. Interestingly, Maude (grandmother) was an extra in Gone with the Wind and a writer for Redbook McCall’s. Even so, Ed hated living there, calling his grandfather “senile” and his grandmother, well, this is how he described her…

“She thought she had more balls than any man and was constantly emasculating me and my grandfather to prove it. I couldn’t please her. It was like being in jail. I became a walking time bomb, and I finally blew.”

And blew he did, with the murder of his grandparents. Authorities sent him to Atascadero State Hospital, a maximum-security facility where doctors subjected him to various tests. One of which illuminated his genius IQ. They also diagnosed him as a paranoid schizophrenic.

In the six years he spent at the institution, he became one of the doctors’ favorite patients. They even allowed him to assist in conducting tests on other inmates, until 1969 when they released him into his mother’s care.

Big mistake. At 6 ft. 9 inches tall and 250 pounds, Ed was a mammoth with a genius IQ and a rage inside him.

After killing and decapitating six young women, he finally turned his wrath on Mother—the true source of his hatred—murdering, decapitating, and using her head as a dartboard. He also tore out Mother’s vocal cords and shoved them down the garbage disposal. When the disposal spat the gristly innards back out, he said to himself,

“That seems appropriate as much as she’d bitched and screamed and yelled at me over so many years.”

With his personal monster dead, Ed turned himself into police. He had no reason to kill anymore. He’s lived at California Medical Facility in Vacaville ever since. As a model inmate, he’s allowed to work as an audiobook narrator.

If Ed Kemper was a fictional villain, how would you make him the hero of his own story?

We’d need to focus on the abused little boy, alone and frightened, that still cried inside him and the personable guy who doctors adored. Does that mean I agree with what he did? Absolutely not. But as writers, we must find a way to justify his actions. We must. Otherwise, the villain will fall flat.

Now, don’t tell the reader what redeeming qualities you clung to while writing. Show them a tidbit here and there—just enough to pique curiosity and drive the plot—that make him feel more human. Or let the hero figure it out on their own.

If the villain is a series character, only reveal enough to intrigue and drive the plot. I did this with my serial killer named Mayhem. In three books, I showed him as a merciless serial killer. I also showed his love of animals, especially his sidekick Poe, the crow, and how tender he could be when caring for a wife stricken with ALS and his close relationship with his daughter and grandson.

Mayhem loves fine wine and is an expert chef, but he’s offended by bad language and numerous other things, especially rapists, cannibals, and child killers. Readers fell in love with Mayhem. Deeply in love. So much so, I had to transform him into an antihero in later books.

Readers understand, even champion, why he kills.

We did the same with Dexter. Who didn’t love to watch him murder other serial killers? Genius on Lindsay’s part.

Find a different angle for your villain. Copycats aren’t unique or memorable. Villains are some of the most difficult characters to craft because they do bad things. I also find villains and antiheroes the most rewarding to write.

The next time you craft a character vastly different from yourself, try immersion. It works for the entire cast, including heroes, sidekicks, foils, secondary characters, etc.

Chiastic Structure

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Chiasmus – noun – a reversal in the order of words in two otherwise parallel phrases, as in “He went to the country, to the town went she.”

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I recently encountered an episode of Thomas Umstadt Jr’s Author Media podcast entitled How to Write Enduring Best Sellers with the Two-act Chiastic Structure. I wasn’t familiar with the term “chiastic”, so I listened and learned a lot.

According to Umstadt

Western storytelling is typically based on the three-act structure. … However, the three-act structure is not the only story structure. There is an ancient story structure that dates back to the time of oral storytelling. This ancient structure is still popular in the East, yet it appeals to modern Western readers.

This two-act concept is the chiastic structure, and it can be used for sentences, poetry, stories, or even series. A famous example of a chiastic sentence was used by President John F. Kennedy in his inaugural address:

“Ask not what your country can do for you—ask what you can do for your country.”

No matter what length, the chiastic structure follows an ABBA model and can be illustrated by two lines crossing like this:

In the Kennedy example, A = “your country” and B = “you.” The second part of the statement is a mirror image of the first.

* * *

But chiastic structure gets really interesting when it’s applied to stories. Check out this example from Wikipedia that shows the Biblical narrative of Noah and the Ark as it moves from A to the midpoint and then resolves from the midpoint back to A’.

Amazing!

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I tend to think of story structure more as an arc. Rising action, crisis and midpoint, falling action and resolution.

However, after I read about chiastic structure, I realize I’ve used a modified form of it a couple of times in my books. In my first novel, The Watch on the Fencepost, the story begins when a young woman finds a mysterious watch on a fencepost which propels her on a quest to find the truth about her parents’ untimely deaths. Their deaths represent the loss of her closest relationships. The book ends when she finds another watch on the same fencepost that solidifies her relationship with a man who will become a special part of her life.

I always thought of this kind of writing as bookends to a story, but there’s a lot more to chiastic structure. I suppose the internal chapters have to mirror each other. I haven’t tried anything close to this, but it would be interesting to outline a story with that structure.

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So TKZers: Are you familiar with chiastic structure? Have you used it in your own writing? Is it something you think you may want to use in the future?

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Coming Soon!

Another Side of Sunshine
A Reen & Joanie Detective Agency Mystery

Spunky ten-year-old Reen and her shy nine-year-old cousin Joanie go on a quest to find a treasure hidden by the mysterious Mr. Shadow. Along the way, they discover new insights into friendship and fair play.

 

Reader Friday: TV Mystery Series

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The job of the artist is always to deepen the mystery. —Francis Bacon

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Some of my favorite TV shows to watch while I’m running on the treadmill are old mystery series. I like Murder, She Wrote, Columbo, Midsomer Murders, and a few others. My favorite is Endeavour starring Shaun Evans as the young Detective Endeavour Morse.

Recently, I decided it was time to watch newer mystery series (ones that aired starting in the year 2020 or later.) I found a lot of them. Here are a few I thought sounded interesting:

Adolescence – When a 13-year-old is accused of the murder of a classmate, his family, therapist and the detective in charge are all left asking what really happened.

Severance – Mark leads a team of office workers whose memories have been surgically divided between their work and personal lives. When a mysterious colleague appears outside of work, it begins a journey to discover the truth about their jobs.

High Potential – A single mom with three kids helps solve an unsolvable crime when she rearranges some evidence during her shift as a police department cleaner.

Grace – Brighton set crime drama following Detective Superintendent Roy Grace, a hard-working police officer who has given his life to the job.

Dark Winds – Follows Leaphorn and Chee, two Navajo police officers in the 1970s Southwest that are forced to challenge their own spiritual beliefs when they search for clues in a double murder case.

Ludwig – While seeking to unravel the mystery of his twin brother’s disappearance, reclusive puzzle-designer John ‘Ludwig’ Taylor takes on his twin brother James’s identity as DCI on Cambridge’s major crimes squad.

Grosse Pointe Garden Society – Follows four members of a suburban garden club, as they get caught up in murder and mischief, as they strive to flourish.

Only Murders in the Building – Three strangers – who live in the same New York City apartment building and share an obsession with true crime – suddenly find themselves embroiled in a murder.

I don’t have any data on the series beyond the taglines above.

So TKZers: Help me find a new series. What Mystery Series are your favorites? Have you watched any of the newer series? Which would you recommend?

What’s A Writer to Do NOW With Social Media?

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Photo by Panos Sakalakis on Unsplash

“Social media is not just an activity; it is an investment of valuable time and resources” —Sean Gardner

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Every year there are more social media platforms, more opportunities to reach readers, and more confusion. So today I invited Edie Melson, an acknowledged social media expert, to help us cut through the noise surrounding SM so we can use our platforms efficiently and effectively.

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Edie Melson is an award-winning author—and photographer—with numerous books to her credit. She’s a top-tier industry blogger, and sought-after speaker. Her blog, The Write Conversation has been part of the Writer’s Digest Top 101 Sites for Writers since 2017 and has over 6 million unique visitors. She’s also the director of the Blue Ridge Mountains Christian Writers Conference and is known as a leading professional within the publishing industry. Visit her at EdieMelson.com and through social media.

 

Take it away, Edie!

***

Social media has always been tough—challenging in so many ways. But in the beginning the process at least a little made sense. Updates came out in an orderly fashion, the rules and guidelines were minimal and we were all extremely naïve.

Now it almost seems takes an advanced college degree to understand the inner workings, algorithms, and guidelines necessary to reach the audience. But what if there was a way social media didn’t have to be that confusing and difficult?

I truly believe we’ve been looking at social media upside down—even when it was simpler. Social media was created to be SOCIAL, not sales. Yes, we used it in marketing and found ways to reach thousands. But once the new wore off, the story was the same. Nobody likes a commercial in the middle of their social time.

Beyond that, each platform has had time to grow and develop into unique communities. Because of that, what works on Facebook, may not work on Instagram or X. Once we could create updates and share them everywhere and now they each need to be—at the very least—tweaked to reflect the culture and the etiquette of each platform.

What’s a Writer to Do?

First, we do NOT give up. Although publishers are often more focused on email lists, most still require authors to have vibrant social media communities.

I truly believe there is still a process that works with social media. This answer can help us grow our reach and maintain the interest and loyalty of those who already follow us. This answer is the one thing that has always works, and truthfully I believe it always will. What’s the magic bullet?

Serve your audience.

It’s that simple and that complex. When we provide value for those who read our updates they will continue to share, comment, and read what we put out there. Don’t be put off by the idea of serving and think it’s some time-suck endeavor.

When we provide service—value—to those who follow us, we build loyalty. Even more than that, we prove we truly want to connect—not just sell them something. This builds trust and that opens the door to connections.

What does serving our audience have to do with building readership?

Trust.

Our readers follow us initially for several reasons—from interest in a writer who’s just beginning, to curiosity about author they like, to recommendations from others. They KEEP following us because they get something from us they enjoy—entertainment, information, and interaction. Beyond that, they feel a sense of authenticity from us.

Never forget, the world is full of lonely—skeptical—people.

What Does Serving Our Audience Entail

Serving our audience is as varied and unique as every writer out there. Included in service could be:

  • Links to valuable articles and blog posts
  • Videos and things that bring laughter
  • Insight on daily living
  • Encouragement in the challenges and everyday moments of life

When we serve our audience and give them value, we are also filling up their trust tanks. We give and give and give—and then their trust tanks are full enough for them to give back.

After serving and giving, then we ask. We share about a new project and ask for them to share. We offer a new book and ask for them to consider purchasing. They now trust us and what would have initially felt like a commercial, now feels more like an opportunity.

Looking at social media as a way to serve others definitely helps us as writers. We’re all incredibly weary of the rat race of chasing numbers. By focusing on service we can stop that treadmill and begin a journey leading to more value for everyone.

I truly believe we’ve been looking at social media upside down—even when it was simpler. Social media was created to be SOCIAL, not sales. Yes, we used it in marketing and found ways to reach thousands. But once the new wore off the story was the same. NOBODY likes a commercial in the middle of their social time.

Consider how our goals—and the measurement for reaching those goals—would change if our focus was on simply serving our audience.

  • We would find joy as we see how our words can help and encourage others
  • We would find contentment as we walk in our calling as writers
  • We would find peace as we let go of the things that are not our responsibility

Putting A New Social Media Approach Into Practice

Truthfully, because successful social media is all about relationship building, it works best when we treat it organically. However, because a project is easier to manage with a set of guidelines, here are two:

  • Be consistent.
  • Avoid self promotion.

It’s easy to get caught up in the to do list and forget the point.

They’re not numbers, they’re people.

We even begin to judge the worth of what we have to say by those numbers. Let me remind you why you’re doing what you’re doing. Why you sweat over a keyboard, struggling to find the right word. Why you risk rejection by submitting those carefully crafted words to editors, agents and contest judges.

We’re doing it because we want to make a difference in the world around us—a world made up of people. If all we’re looking for is higher numbers, we’ve missed the point. We’ve set a course that follows certain frustration and ultimate failure. So, if it’s not for the numbers, then what’s the point? Why even bother with social media?

The point is what the numbers represent…the point is the individuals who can be impacted by what we write…challenged by what we say…changed by what we share.

When I get caught up chasing the numbers, the significance of what I’m doing diminishes. But when I step away from the race and concentrate on who I’m writing for and who I’m writing to, things fall back into place.

I’m first and foremost a writer. For me, social media is a tool. It’s the means to an end. It helps me find my audience, serve them, and prove I want what’s best for them. But when I begin to measure my worth as a writer through the numbers of social media, I’ve gotten off course.

Soul Care for Writers

By Edie Melson

The isolation, fear and doubt often associated with writing can bring weariness and discouragement. Soul Care for Writers provides short, practical, creative activities—specifically tailored to writers—to care for your fatigued soul when you are weary, discouraged, and have little time for rest and peace. Although this book is particularly applicable to writers, it can also be effectively used by anyone who finds themselves weary and discouraged.

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So TKZers: What Social Media platforms are you on? How do you use SM to connect with readers and friends?

Reader Friday: Word Games

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Do you know what my favorite part of the game is? The opportunity to play. —Mike Singletary

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There seems to be some evidence that playing word games is good for your brain. Some people say it’s like a workout for your little gray cells. According to Dr. Oriana Cornett of St. Joseph’s Health

Incorporating puzzles and word games into your daily routine can be a game-changer for your brain health. These activities are more than just entertaining; they’re tools for maintaining and enhancing cognitive function and boosting mental acuity in a variety of ways.

Some of the areas of benefit she lists are

  • Improved Problem-Solving Skills
  • Language and Vocabulary Growth
  • Mental Agility

That’s great news for readers and writers (and for everybody else.) But whether word games improve brain function or not, they’re fun to play. Some I like are

  • Crossword puzzles
  • Wordle
  • Spelling Bee
  • Scrabble

I also have a few apps on my phone that are fun to play whenever I take a minute or two to relax. These include

  • 7 Little Words
  • Elevate
  • Wordbrain

 

So TKZers: Do you play word games? Do you think word games are good for brain health? What are some of your favorites?

 

Reader Friday: Hitchcock

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“Drama is life with the dull bits cut out.” —Alfred Hitchcock

Almost everyone I know has a favorite Alfred Hitchcock movie. I have several that I love. One of them is The 39 Steps. It was an early Hitchcock film (1935) starring Robert Donat as the cool and suave Richard Hannay on the run in Scotland. It’s doubly special because my husband and I spent a few days while in Scotland driving around looking for locations where the film was shot.

Other favorites are Vertigo, Dial M for Murder, Rear Window, and Spellbound. And who can forget the crop duster scene in North by Northwest.

 

 

So TKZers: What’s your favorite Hitchcock film?

 

 

What’s Your Brand?

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“Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication.” – Leonardo da Vinci

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Last week John Gilstrap posted about his brand, and it got me thinking about what an author’s brand is and what it does for us.

First, a little history. According to Wikipedia

Branding and labeling have an ancient history. Branding probably began with the practice of branding livestock to deter theft. Images of the branding of cattle occur in ancient Egyptian tombs dating to around 2,700 BCE. Over time, purchasers realized that the brand provided information about origin as well as about ownership, and could serve as a guide to quality.

More recently, we understand branding as a way to differentiate products in a world full of product names. Again, from Wikipedia

The key components that form a brand’s toolbox include a brand’s identity, personality, product design, brand communication (such as by logos and trademarks), brand awareness, brand loyalty, and various branding (brand management) strategies. Many companies believe that there is often little to differentiate between several types of products in the 21st century, hence branding is among a few remaining forms of product differentiation.

Wow! That’s a lot to think about.

Book Branding

When I was writing novels in my Watch mystery series, I assumed all my books would be watch mysteries, and therefore, my brand should be something related to time or clocks. I created some bookmarks and lid grippers with a watch face that I thought was cute.

In addition, my cover designer suggested putting a watch face on the spine of each book in the place the publisher’s logo usually goes. I agreed, and I love to see my books lined up in our local bookstore. Each watch face is different, but they define my series.

But then I was encouraged to write a novel on the Lady Pilot-in-Command theme, so the watch brand didn’t work anymore. The brand for the new series became anything to do with aviation: an image of a Cessna on a pen, the propeller on the spine of the book, or—best of all—the gorgeous propeller pens my TKZ friend and colleague Steve Hooley makes.

Currently, I’m writing Middle Grade novels that are traditionally published, so the book spine will carry the publisher’s logo. I’m not sure what brand we’ll come up with for that series.

Author Branding

But after reading John’s post, I’m wondering how to create an author brand for me in addition to my books.

Publishdrive.com summarizes some of the key elements for an author brand.

Author branding, which comprises your writing style, website design, social media presence, and the emotional impact of your work, not only defines your identity as a writer but also influences how readers perceive and connect with you, differentiating you from others and establishing a solid foundation for your writing career.

To build an authentic author brand identity, focus on creating a tagline that encapsulates your essence, establish a unique brand voice for consistency across communications, and understand your unique selling proposition to differentiate yourself from other authors.

Looks like I have some work to do.

***

So, TKZers: Have you put much thought into branding? Do you have an author brand? Do you have a tagline? How about an image that reflects your brand?

 

Coming Soon!

The Other Side of Sunshine
A Middle Grade Mystery

The Reen & Joanie Detective Agency is open for business, and the first assignment is to find a treasure hidden by the mysterious “Mr. Shadow.” But others are looking for the treasure, too, and they may not be playing by the rules.

Meta Stole Copyrighted Work from Millions of Authors

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On December 9, 2024, I wrote about Meta’s new terms of service, effective January 1, 2025. This month, I’m even more disgusted by what I learned. An email from one of my publishers told me Meta stole 7.5 million books and 81 million research papers to train their new AI model, Llama 3.

For those who haven’t heard the news yet, Alex Reisner first broke the story in The Atlantic…

“When employees at Meta started developing their flagship AI model, Llama 3, they faced a simple ethical question. The program would need to be trained on a huge amount of high-quality writing to be competitive with products such as ChatGPT, and acquiring all of that text legally could take time. Should they just pirate it instead?”

Meta employees spoke with multiple companies about licensing books and research papers, but they nixed that idea, stating, “[This] seems unreasonably expensive.” A Llama-team senior manager also said it’d be an “incredibly slow” process. “They take like 4+ weeks to deliver data.”

Offended yet? Not only has Meta and others stolen copyrighted work but they’ve reduced authors’ blood, sweat, and tears to nothing more than “data.”

“The problem is that people don’t realize that if we license one book, we won’t be able to lean into fair use strategy,” said the director of engineering at Meta in an internal memo.

If caught, the senior manager claimed the legal defense of “fair use” might work for using pirated books and research papers to train AI…

“[It is] really important for [Meta] to get books ASAP. Books are actually more important than web data.”

How did they solve this problem? Meta employees turned to LibGen (Library Genesis), a digital warehouse of stolen intellectual property, neatly stacked with pirated books, academic papers, and various works authors and publishers never approved.

As of March 2025, the LibGen library contained more than 7.5 million books and 81 research papers. And Meta stole it all, with permission from “MZ”—a reference to CEO Mark Zuckerberg—to download and use the data set.

Internal correspondence were made public this month as part of a copyright-infringement lawsuit brought by Sarah Silverman and other celebs whose books LibGen pirated. If that’s not bad enough, the public also discovered OpenAI used LibGen for similar purposes. Microsoft owns a 49% equity stake in the for-profit subsidiary OpenAI LP. It is not yet known whose idea it was to download the LibGen library to train its AI model.

Does it matter? They still used copyrighted material without obtaining licensing fees or giving authors the option to opt-out.

“Ask for forgiveness, not for permission,” said another Meta employee.

Even when a senior management employee at Meta raised concerns about lawsuits, they were convinced to download the libraries from LibGen and Anna’s Archive, another massive pirate site.

“To show the kind of work that has been used by Meta and OpenAI, I accessed a snapshot of LibGen’s metadata—revealing the contents of the library without downloading or distributing the books or research papers themselves—and used it to create an interactive database that you can search here:

https://reisner-books-index.vercel.app”

~ Alex Reisner, The Atlantic

Meta and OpenAI have both claimed the defense of “fair use” to train their generative-AI models on copyrighted work without a license, because LLMs (Large Language Models) “transform” the original material into new work. Work that could directly compete with the authors they stole from—by duplicating their writing voice and style!

This legal strategy could set a dangerous precedent: It’s okay to steal from authors. Who cares if they worked for months, even years, to write the pirated books and/or research papers?

The use of LibGen and Anna’s Archive also raises another issue.

Alex Reisner stated the following in one of The Atlantic articles:

“Bulk downloading is often done with BitTorrent, the file-sharing protocol popular with pirates for its anonymity, and downloading with BitTorrent typically involves uploading to other users simultaneously. Internal communications show employees saying that Meta did indeed torrent LibGen, which means that Meta could have not only accessed pirated material but also distributed it to others—well established as illegal under copyright law, regardless of what the courts determine about the use of copyrighted material to train generative AI.”

Not only has Meta and OpenAI stolen copyrighted material from authors, but they’ve distributed it to others.

By now, you must be wondering if your books are included in the LibGen library. I found six of mine, including my true crime/narrative nonfiction book, Pretty Evil New England, which took me a solid year to research—driving around six states to dig through archives—and then submit the finished manuscript to the publisher by the deadline, never mind the weeks of edits afterward. Each one of my stolen thrillers—HACKED, Blessed Mayhem, Silent Mayhem, Unnatural Mayhem, and HALOED—also took months of hard work.

Click to Enlarge

By stealing six books, they robbed me of years—years(!) of pouring my soul onto the page to deliver the best experience I could—and I’ll continue to put in the time for my readers. I suspect you’ll do the same. But authors still need to eat and pay bills. It’s difficult to write if you’re homeless.

What message is Big Tech sending to the public?

If Meta and OpenAI prevail in the lawsuits, authors everywhere are at risk.

Quick side note about pirate sites: Sure, you can read books for free. Just know, most sites include trojan horses in the pirated books that will steal banking and other personal info from your network. Every pirated book steals money from authors. If you want us to keep writing but can’t afford to buy books, get a library card. Or contact the author. Most will gift you a review copy.

Care to read Meta’s internal correspondence?

https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.cand.415175/gov.uscourts.cand.415175.449.4.pdf

https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.cand.415175/gov.uscourts.cand.415175.417.6.pdf

https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.cand.415175/gov.uscourts.cand.415175.391.24.pdf

And here’s a court document regarding OpenAI:

https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.cand.414822/gov.uscourts.cand.414822.254.0.pdf

Disgraceful, right?

The Authors Guild is also reporting on the theft and closely monitoring the court cases.

If your work is included in the LibGen library, your name will automatically be included in the class action (there are many filed), unless you opt-out. However, if you prefer to contact the attorney handling the case against Meta, contact Saveri Law Firm HERE.

Did you find any of your work in the pirated libraries?

Feed The Writer

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My guest today is a dear friend and a fantastic writer. I’ve been glued to the pages of more than one of her novels. Jan Sikes is a multi-award-winning author, who writes compelling and creative stories from the heart. Please help me welcome her to the Kill Zone.

Welcome, Jan!

Greetings, everyone. I am thrilled to be a guest in the Kill Zone today! Thank you, Sue, for inviting me.

My subject today serves as a reminder to feed the reader within each of us. We spend hours upon hours doing research, plotting, developing characters, and writing our stories. We write, rewrite, proofread, and edit day in and day out, sometimes around the clock and into the next day without a break. But are we remembering to feed ourselves, to give ourselves the nourishment we need to stay strong and alert at those tasks? And I’m not talking about food.

If you’ve gone more than a couple of weeks without reading for pleasure, pick up a book. Find a recent novel from a favorite author or try an unfamiliar author. Whichever you choose, allow yourself to get lost in the story, in the rhythms of good fiction.

Read a couple of mysteries without trying to figure out whodunit or how the author wove the plot threads together. Get lost in a love story and allow yourself to cry. Read a horror or suspense novel and give in to the goose bumps.

Writers and editors who only work at the craft but don’t enjoy reading, do not bring their best efforts to their work. When you’re not being fed a steady diet, you’re eventually not going to produce your best work.

Readers need to read.

That’s also true for writers and editors. It’s a fabulous way to slip into a fictional world for relief from stress and pressure and even from the monotony of repetition and habits in daily life. Life can be great with no need to escape. That doesn’t mean relaxing with a book, diving into the worlds of fascinating characters, can’t make it even better.

I’ve always been an avid reader and most always have a book open on my Kindle. But when I go too long without getting lost in someone else’s story, I get antsy and even a little grouchy. I need my story fix.

I require a steady diet of fiction. I need to imagine, to explore, pretend and fantasize. It is essential to feed myself everything that good stories dish up—emotional upheaval and uncertainty, conflict, danger, adventure, and definitely the satisfaction of a solid resolution that neatly ties up dozens of the story elements that have entertained me and held my attention for however many pages the book has.

If you’ve been working hard on a project—maybe even promising yourself that you’ll read something as soon as you get through with this next section or problem—allow yourself the time to read and immerse yourself in someone else’s imagination.

Don’t keep putting it off.

Feed yourself well-written books that prove nutritious, that give you the stamina to keep working. Feed yourself something sweet, or something evil—something that gets you excited about stories and what-ifs.

Ingest and digest food for the soul and mind and spirit. Reading equates to food for dreaming. Food that will give you strength for the long haul.

Reading gives your mind a break. It can revitalize your writing and allow you to smash through blocks and problem areas. Read to remind yourself of the joy in fiction. Read because it gives you pleasure. Let reading both relax and energize you.

Take a new book—tonight or tomorrow or this weekend—and jump into its world, stretching your imagination as you become the hero, sidekick or even the villain. Use the mental stimulation and otherworldliness of unfamiliar places to draw you deep. Let a story you didn’t have to create take over your thoughts so you can experience characters, their adventures, and their world from the inside, using your senses and emotions. Project yourself into an imaginative scenario that has zero connections to your writing process.

Fill yourself up with the good stuff so you can write and edit some good stuff of your own.

Jan Sikes is a multi-award-winning author, who writes compelling and creative stories from the heart.

She openly admits that she never set out in life to be an author, although she’s been an avid reader all her life. But she had a story to tell—Not just any story, but a true story to rival any fiction creation. She brought the entertaining true story to life through fictitious characters in an intricately woven tale that encompasses four books, accompanying music CDs, and a book of poetry and art.

And now, this author can’t put down the pen. She continues to write fiction in a variety of genres, and has published many award-winning short stories and novels. Learn more about Jan at: www.jansikes.com

 

A true testament of character, resilience, and the magic of never giving up.

“This is a hope-filled story that lifts spirits and elicits smiles. Though it is the second book of the series, it can be read as a standalone. I highly recommend it.” ~ Gwen Plano

Universal Link: https://books2read.com/u/booMQR