You may recall how I recently discussed the KENP Scam, whereby AI-generated books are flooding Amazon in a blatant attempt to collect KENP royalties. You may have wondered just how easy it is to do so in practice — write a whole book from scratch. Geeky Gadgets and The Nerdy Novelist have the answer.

Anthropic’s Claude 2 Writes

Robot with children's book | From the blog of Nicholas C. Rossis, author of science fiction, the Pearseus epic fantasy series and children's books

While ChatGPT has stolen the spotlight, it faces certain length restrictions that make it unsuitable for writing long copy. Instead, it’s Claude 2 by Anthropic that makes it easy to write a whole book, thanks to its ability to handle large docs and so-called super prompts.

The super prompt has proven to be an invaluable asset in brainstorming story ideas and endings, particularly for a science fiction novel that The Nerdy Novelist is currently working on.

The capabilities of Claude 2 extend beyond mere brainstorming. The Nerdy Novelist utilized the AI tool to generate a detailed story synopsis, character descriptions, and a comprehensive outline consisting of 12 chapters. The AI’s ability to create such intricate details is a testament to its advanced programming and potential in the literary world. Claude 2 was also used to generate a list of 12 highly detailed action beats for a script.

The Nerdy Novelist then embarked on a more ambitious task: using Claude 2 to write 50,000 words, adhering closely to the desired beats. This endeavor showcased Claude 2’s capacity to handle large amounts of data and generate substantial chunks of text, a feature that could revolutionize the process of writing lengthy works such as novels.

The Nerdy Novelist found that Claude 2 does an excellent job of sticking to the story beats and writing a coherent chapter. This assessment underscores the potential of Claude 2 as a tool for writers, offering a new and innovative way to approach the writing process.

Illustrate a Children’s Book

While Claude 2 is great for text, it can’t handle image generation. For this, you need tools like Fotor (used to create the illustration for this post) or Midjourney.

Scott Swanson has created a full four-part series on how to write, illustrate, and publish a children’s book on Amazon, whence the video below:

For children’s picture books, straightforward prompts can yield impressive results. To achieve a more cartoonish style, tags like clip art, doodle, or cartoon can be added to the prompt. Midjourney can also mimic the styles of specific illustrators.

The AI can create comic books as well, constructing scenes in a visually engaging manner that propels the story forward. Character design sheet prompts can be employed to create various poses for a single subject, facilitating the creation of a character with a range of emotions.

If you wish to try out Claude 2 for yourself, keep in mind that it’s currently only available in the US and UK.

Patrick’s Experiment

Many creators are worried that AI will usurp their positions, and I can see why. If you are one of them, you should read Patrick Gillespie’s experiment. Patrick gave AI a writing prompt, instructing it to write a fable. At the same time, he wrote a fable himself using the same prompt. The result is borderline hilarious, as the difference between the two fables couldn’t be starker.

Patrick’s experiment aptly illustrates why I consider AI an opportunity rather than a threat. Imagine a writer with a vivid imagination but limited drawing skills who wants to create a children’s book. Traditionally, they would need to collaborate with an illustrator, which could be costly and time-consuming. With AI, however, they can use intuitive software that can turn text descriptions into illustrations. This not only speeds up the creative process but also allows the writer to maintain a cohesive vision for their work. And if you get stuck writing your book, Claude 2 can help you overcome your writing block.

In fact, I would argue that AI is a boon to creators. Just like Amazon has democratized publishing, AI is democratizing creative tools. It also opens up avenues for experimentation. Creators can quickly iterate through different designs, compositions, or even story arcs, using AI to execute these ideas in a fraction of the time it would take manually. This rapid iteration can lead to more innovative outcomes, as creators can easily explore a broader range of ideas.

Moreover, AI can act as a creative partner rather than just a tool. For instance, AI algorithms can suggest plot twists in a story or recommend color palettes for a design, based on the data they’ve been trained on. This collaborative aspect can help creators break through creative blocks and discover new perspectives they might not have considered otherwise.

The economic implications are also noteworthy. By reducing the need for specialized skills or expensive equipment, AI lowers the barriers to entry in various creative fields. This enables more people to monetize their talents and ideas, contributing to a more diverse and vibrant creative landscape.

Finally, it’s important to consider the educational benefits. As AI takes on more of the technical load, creators can focus on honing their unique artistic vision. They can spend more time learning about storytelling, composition, or whatever it is that drives their creative passion, rather than getting bogged down by the technical details.

So, to me, AI doesn’t just make creative work more accessible; it enriches the creative process itself!