Trying to Sell Your Skills but Come Off as Obnoxious

 

If you’ve ever been on Threads, you’ll see a lot of scammers trying to sell their alleged skills to you. Some of those people may be genuine artist just trying to give you an opportunity to sell you their skill on creating a cover for your book, however I’ve come across way too many on social media that genuinely seem interested in your book, then trash your cover by saying that either it’s ai generated or you could’ve done better by not selecting on of the generated images from KDP or IngramSparks. They will say that your book won’t sell with a cover like that, they come off as snarky and mean-spirited.

 Personally, I don’t like it when these supposed artists jump into posts created by the author and then they begin to scrutinize their work. As an author, I have created a couple of covers myself for some of my books, but most of my books (novels) have KDP covers. Below are images of the books that I created covers for. In the Company of Elves book cover, is an actual photo from a trip I took to Yosemite national Park.

For these books I used Render/Blender and some digital art tweaking. As I mentioned before, In the Company of Elves cover art, is an actual photo. No tweaking it or enhancing it. When you get on Threads, particularly in Book Threads or Author’s Threads, no self-published author is safe from scammer harassment. Some of those scammers pretend to be authors themselves but once you get into a conversation with them, then they’ll start peddling their artistic skills and the price you’ll have to pay them for their art. I totally understand that they have a degree and want to get people to buy into their services, I get it, but they don’t have to criticize, demean or accuse indie authors of things that they can’t prove themselves.

Also, the fact that ai has caused such upheaval in the industry of the arts, people call everything ai nowadays even though they don’t have proof. So, if an indie author created their own cover/book, some people (Trolls) want that author to prove they didn’t use ai. What? Don’t do that. An author is putting his or her work for you to enjoy and read. They are not asking to be put on trial. And yes, that’s what it feels like for some authors. It is sickening and ridiculous at this point. Most indie authors have started blocking accounts under the assumption that those accounts are trying to scam them. By the way, in traditional publishing, the cover art gets done by the company with approval of the author. No, I’ve never published with a trad company but I’m fine with what I chose to do, I just don’t like the constant bombardment of, “I can do your cover better,” or “I can edit your work, and people wouldn’t think it’s ai.” 

These people will cause dramas where there shouldn’t be, just to harass the authors into buying their services. They do not know if you used ai or not, they’re just pushing the fear of ai and hurting indie authors that truly wrote their own books by using false accusations. 

It’s a madhouse online. In addition, with the economy the way it is, everyone, except those who are privileged of well off financially, can't afford to pay for cover art, videos or an editor. They can barely afford food! I'm lucky that I have someone who can edit my work now and I trust his skills. 

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Betrayal

 

As my son and I drove along Lazycreek Road in our small town, we passed Oakbridge Road, and I casually wondered if my ex-friend still lived there. Curious, he asked what had happened between us. Although I felt a bit uncomfortable sharing, I realized he was now an adult at 29, so I decided to open up. I explained that the fallout occurred 40 years ago in 1986 when I was in love with a man who didn’t feel the same way. I had confided in her about becoming intimate with my boyfriend, which was a significant moment for me as it was my first time. To me, it felt like magic, and I viewed him as my soulmate. 

My ex-friend and I had been close since middle school, and I had hoped she would keep my secret safe. Unfortunately, she shared it with her boyfriend, who later became her husband. He told her to distance herself from me, labeling me a "slut." At that time, I was in my early 20s and certainly didn’t fit that description. My ex-friend and I came from conservative families, but I was the black sheep in mine. That year, I not only lost my first true love when he broke up with me a few months later, but I also lost a friend due to ignorance and stupidity. I felt a wave of disappointment when I learned that she had moved to Menifee in the 90s. Though this entry may not relate directly to my books, it offers a glimpse into how I draw inspiration for my male characters from real men I've encountered. Comments are appreciated.

(Images used in this blog are for entertainment purposes. BTW, the earrings the woman is wearing in the photo are similar to a pair of earrings I had at the time.)

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