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Writer's pictureJoseph Delmari

About AI Images and My Work

Updated: Sep 15

I know, as of this writing date (9/13/24) there is a lot of mixed feelings about AI generated images. I realize this. One of the reasons that Kevin stopped browsing Pinterest is because it's just completely flooded with AI images and art. I don't like it in so much volume either, but I have found a beautiful side to it, and that's regarding the image generation of my characters.


I have had these people in my mind and heart for well over 30 years. I know there has been a lot of talk about Artificial Intelligence stealing work away from artists and I can relate to that, being a writer and doing voiceovers. AI is a threat to a lot of creativity. I view it as a tool, however. I use it frequently for research and informational checking. I'm not on Pinterest, but I saw the flood of the images and the soulless feeling they give in the days and weeks before Kevin stopped using it. It's just too much, as is the case with any new novelty. Some of the images are pretty, some are weird, but the volume is just annoying.


With regard to my work, however, I have been able to bring to life my characters. Here on my book pages, when it says "Meet the Characters" or something similar, when you click on that link and get to see all of those headshots, those are my characters. I scour image generations to find the ones that perfectly capture the people I have in my heart, which is the reason that there are different looks to the images. This isn't something that I feel I am taking away from an artist. I would never commission an artist and drive them crazy to get the absolute perfect image of what my character is. Besides, they hate that. Art is very personal, even when it's being commissioned by these geniuses in the craft. The artist still has an idea in their own mind and heart what their work is going to be. It is an extension of them. It is a part of them. If you are commissioning an artist for anything, please be good to them and patient. Let them work. Let them create. They are so very important to the world.


As for me, and for my part, I'm able to generate many images and then sift through them to find the ones that capture the perfect image of my character to share with my readers. That is the primary reason that I do it. I already know these characters. I created them. The reason that I am doing this is because I really want people to know who the characters are. Yes, I know that people like to form an idea in their own minds and hearts of what a character is and what they look like, but in my own way, this makes me feel closer to my readers, followers, and fans when I share the characters with them.


I'm saying, "Here, this is my character. This is who they are to me and this is what they look like." In doing that, I hope to form a connection with the people who read my work and who love it. I want them to know what I feel is the character that they are reading about. I have never posted an image of a character that is not what I want. There is just too much advancement in AI image generation for that. I am patient and curious about AI at this point. I have come to realize that it's not going away and it's a tool. I have to use it as such. When done properly, it can be very helpful and that is apparent with my characters.


The one thing that I refuse to accept, is using it to write. That is where I side with creators when it comes to their commitment to opposing it with that regard. I would NEVER use AI to write a book. No way. That just does something to me at my very creative core. I have been writing since I was 18 years old. I find the very notion of a book written by AI abhorrent, so I know what artists feel like with regard to it. I may use it, yes, and I use it frequently, but I am perfectly capable of writing my own stories, thanks Skynet :)


What I am not, is an artist. What I am not, is a genius. I don't know how to draw and I don't know everything in the world. I write about things that I sometimes need help with, and thus I require AI that is citing sources when it gives me information, because we all know what the dreaded "hallucinations" of AI can produce ... at least the AI that's not sourcing its information. The reason I use AI now, when I used Google search in the past, is because I want my writing to be as factual whenever possible. I don't write crap and expect my readers to just believe it. I want to do my research and I want to be able to present to them a story that is sensible.


Yes, I know that I write fiction and people often say "Oh, it's just make believe, so get over it." Well, that's fine, but you have to understand that when people are reading and they come across something that just doesn't sound right, they are gonna be like ... "Wait ... what?" I don't like that to happen, because that can interrupt the flow that my novels are known for. I have a very flowing style of writing that can just drift along and carry my readings with it. That is my writing style. I like my work to be a 'movie for the mind' and so my writing reflects that.


My love for AI character images comes from the fact that I can visually bring to life the characters that I'm writing for. It is nothing more than that. I just want people to see the characters and be thrilled. I want them to think "wow!" and more than ever, I want them to form that emotional attachment that comes with identifying with certain characters.

We all do it. There's no way around that. You could read something as wondrous as Lord of the Rings with all zillion of its characters and just like one or two. (I like the wizards hehe) That's okay for readers to do. Forming a connection means that I have done it. I have done it! I have written something that someone loves and FEELS and let me tell you, that's just about the greatest thing ever for an author.

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