Our Work is Drowning
What We Can Do About It
With the turn of the year, I promised myself I would read more stories from my fellow creators on Vocal. I didn’t just want to read those who subscribed to me and who I subscribed to, but those on Vocal that I don’t follow. I seriously thought this would be one of the easier of my goals for this year to achieve. Boy, was I wrong?!
You see, I expected to meet up with the usual AI writers who didn’t disclose their work. Easy to recognize, easier to avoid. Vocal has had its share of them since AI writing came out. Judey has been teaching us how to identify AI work, all while she’s been (in a professional manner) reminding offenders of Vocal’s Policy concerning the use of undisclosed AI.
What I wasn’t expecting to see was page after page of attributed AI alongside the undisclosed AI stories. I’ve had to dig five pages deep into the Latest Stories section to see one article from a legit Vocal Creator! This is plumb ridiculous! Our stories are getting buried! They are being lost! Our work is being drowned out by AI pieces created by SPAM artists! These AI users produce five to ten stories in less than two hours effectively covering any chance of non-AI users' work from being seen!
I recently saw a story by a Vocal Creator where they singled out one “unknown” Creator and the awards they won while using AI. This writer made some valid points with their article. They also showed the tools they used to discern AI. I applaud this user for coming forth with their worries at this time.
I’d like to go a step further and ask you all to battle this undisclosed AI before it gets to the Award stage. Stop reading users' stories who comment links on your stories, asking you to read and support them, too. Don’t read anyone who publishes an un-godly amount in a short time, every day (Those who post ten stories in an hour or more, every single day!!!). Most of all, don’t read anyone who has a ridiculous amount of stories but has only been a member of Vocal for a very short time. (1420+ stories in less than three months!!) Stay away from anyone who publishes into the wrong community: i.e. The story was published to geeks but should have been Feast. These are all signs I have seen that most AI users have in common.
If you have access to an AI scanner, use it to check for undisclosed AI stories. I honestly use at least two of the three I have bookmarked on each article. If the reports come back at least 80% AI or more in both scanners, and their article has any of the markers Judey has taught us to look for, I report the stories. (Keep in mind, that scanners can have inaccurate results!! Do not go by a scanner's results alone when reporting!!) Over the last four days, it has taken me two extra hours a day to read through Vocal stories because of all the AI users and the scans I’ve done.
Sadly, since Vocal put the AI check box in place in the publishing phase, undisclosed AI seems to have gotten worse. It’s up to us to stand together as legit users and support each other. We need to be vigilant and not waste our time reading AI. I’m not talking about minor spell checks, grammar checks, or picture creators, either. I’m talking about the creators who use AI to create part or all of their written articles, stories, and poems.
As for the authors who post AI following the Guidelines, the only way around seeing them in the latest stories feed is to push Vocal to implement a filter for us to use, where we can select non-AI stories only. I, for one, have already asked for this feature because I’m tired of sorting page after page to find a good story created from an actual person’s mind. I encourage each of you to lobby Vocal for this added feature.
Now, I want to make myself clear. I am not calling for a witch hunt. That is not what this is about. I want you all to learn the signs of what an AI story looks like and learn how to report it properly. Don’t go reporting someone because you think they may be using AI. Know they are. If you can’t be sure, don’t report; just don’t read their work.
If we stand united, we legitimate Vocal Creators- plus and free members- can help clean the site of the many SPAMMY AI creations and the users that believe AI is worth using. Whether it's by reporting an undisclosed AI account, or by not reading their articles, we have options that we can implement. Together, we can let Vocal know that all this AI content flooding the site is not ok for us creators who are the real authors and writers of today and tomorrow.
So, I ask you to join me today and unsubscribe from anyone who posts twenty articles daily, every day. Don't read anyone who leaves a link to one of their stories in a comment on one of yours, UNLESS you've asked for links. Avoid users who have hundreds of stories in less than three months.
Please, I ask you, to let Vocal know that you are through with your articles, stories, and poems being drowned, covered, and buried by AI stories, and you want solutions to the AI Menace. AI accounts should have limits to the amount they can publish in one day! We should be able to have a filter allowing us to sift out the disclosed AI from the Latest Story section! Most of all, we should not have to wade through the undisclosed AI as we do.
Please don't use this or anyone else's call as a reason to create a "Witch's Hunt".
Thank you all for reading my rant. I'll end it here now. Looking forward to a civil discourse on the subject.
Please read this piece by another user, concerning their stance and worry about AI.
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Rereading
I reread my favorite books, over and over again, for a very simple reason: I love the characters and enjoy spending time with them. Maybe I grieve their loss, maybe I bargain with the text: if I read you better this time, maybe Benji won’t die, maybe Manderly won’t burn, and maybe Lenny and George will get that piece of land and have something to call their own.
By Harper Lewis4 days ago in Writers
Comments (29)
Thanks for this excellent article… sad state of affairs that there is a need for it. I especially liked your paragraph: “ I’d like to go a step further and ask you all to battle this undisclosed AI before it gets to the Award stage.”✅
I echo your sentiments here…. I haven’t bothered trying to search for new creators in an over a year… it’s just not worth wading through the AI ocean of crap for…. Even in the competition entries. It’s frustrating to me.. so to avoid being frustrated, I just look away!
To be honest, I wish Vocal hadn't opened this platform up to AI at all and I said as much when it happened. The problem is only going to get worse. I'm not a fan of using AI for editing either, but at least creators who make that choice aren't using it to initially create the text. Even on the freelancing platforms, I'm seeing more and more jobs that encourage using AI. It's becoming impossible to price original work competitively, because the people that post the jobs don't care how it's created and the "writers" who use it are undercutting us.
Sorry, one more question. I use Grammarly and Hemmingway Editor to fine-tune a lot of my stories, do you consider this to be AI?
First of all, I see your comments on many of the creators I follow. When I saw you had a Top story (congratulations, by the way), I wanted to read it. I am trying to read more Top stories and more creators on Vocal. It gets difficult though, because there are so many, and sorting the will appeal from all the others takes time. I totally agree with everything that you said about AI creators. It is destroying the environment for those genuine creators. I have to say that Vocal is not as bad as other platforms I have been associated with. On these, you write a story and get it published, but it is like a drop in the ocean because of all the other AI fodder that is produced. I feel bad because some of the images I produce on Nightcafe as I can't get an image to match what I am writing about. AI is slowly destroying writing, reading, thinking, and every other skill we are meant to have.
Congrats on Leaderboard - great piece here. I, too, am sick of seeing all the AI pieces spread everywhere with the author pieces pushed to the back of the line. I usually don't read the ones marked AI.
I honestly had no idea AI was so bad on here... shows how much I venture out of my Vocalite bubble! 😅 But I will admit to using AI assist for editing my pieces so maybe that's a thing too?? Although I was told before that doesn't count as true AI content... 🤷♀️ Anyway, all that to say congrats on third place in most discussed stories this week MC!!
Wooohooooo congratulations on your Leaderboard placement! 🎉💖🎊🎉💖🎊
I've been asking for Vocal for filters for years but they seldom listen to me, when I find AI stuff I report it and never follow read my links from new users, and only from existing users when it pertains to my story. I wish Vocal would show some support for real Creators but for them it;s all about the numbers. Excellent article
I would love for Vocal to implement a filter. But honestly, I think it would be best to stop allowing AI altogether. I'm all for another platform for AI creators to share their work, but Vocal is not that platform.
Amen... it is a shame that it happens to begin with! 😊
Been out of it lately, but yep, Vocal authenticity is getting lost, hope it gets found again. Hiya folks. Great o see you all.
This is very sad. Many creators on Vocal use AI to write. Now, the work of creators who put in their creativity, effort, and time to write something may not be read as much, which is very discouraging. Everything you say truly matters. Your advice is absolutely right, perhaps it will bring some positive changes. Thanks for sharing your thoughts with us! ✨😊
You right. It is getting out of hand. We dealing with AI and storystealers, they be stealing my girl Dharrsheena stories so bad. It be making me mad, because sometimes I don't even be knowning its her stories, and be giving up a good comment she deserves. Anyways that was so off topic, I’m going to be more careful not to interact with people who do suspicious AI user stuff.
Yes!!!! I couldn't agree more, MC. I know what you mean about our work getting drowned out by AI. I had a similar experience the other day on the Latest Stories tab - I was surfing it with my boyfriend and it was so embarrassing to have to go 5+ pages just to find one or two human-written pieces. D: I just wanna show off the platform and the writers I love, lol! I like your idea of a "No AI" filter - I think that would be *amazing* to have. Thank you for writing this and sharing your thoughts, Mother Combs!
Ah man, there goes my dream of starting a witch hunt! Come onnnn, let's start one. I promise it'll be fun 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣 I've never thought about having a filter to choose non-AI stuff in Latest Stories. I feel that's a brilliant idea. Because like you said, it's a long stretch of pages before we find a piece from a legit writer. Anyway, that unknown creator that DK mentioned, I can't drop names here as well? No? Okay fineeeee 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣 Hey you should send this piece to Justin hahahahahaha
That's why I feel I Haven't been so active on here, I'm trying though!! The AI part is sooo true, I think anyone can tell at this point whether the comment is AI, it just seems so artificial. Thanks for sharing this, Combs! We needed this! 💌🌟
Go get them! I am like Carolyn, I’m kind of lazy and lately I’ve been down so I have not been good about writing or reading. But I will be on the lookout. Another great article.
Gotcha, Sharon. There is one person on my subscriber's list I think fits this 'spammy' category....does about 20 stories a day. Will unsub from him. It not only floods notifications but spoils authenticity.
Sad but true!
Well done for calling it out. I think I have been pretty lazy and wishy-washy about reporting AI. However, you're right. If I have to wade through AI generated stories to find something decent, then I'm probably going to give up. That's not cool. Anyway, this was a really interesting article. Well done.
Great article, MC.
Daaahlink Mum - I, for one, am fed-up, too. Thanks to our Village Mum, Judey, for helping keep our heads 'above water' - Get Vocal to more carefully regulate this: More should 'Come Aboard' with this rocking-sinking ship. There can be a dozen entries posted with unrelated 'Goop' wrapped around our Shorts in one day. - My Respect - StepSon in l.a.
Thankyou for being the sensible one and wording this all so very eloquently and Mother Combsy. lol. I've long felt it was an issue, the growing number of AI stuff and just pure spam shitola. I'd put up a piece and then within minutes, it'd be on page 2 of latest stories lol. And it'd happen to everyone else. I have also been left a bit miffed by what DK said, not what she said in the way she was wrong, that she was right and I had been blindsided. I've long had issues with comments and the idea of people AI commenting...I'd give some people a pass because...time, language issues. But, I have a whole schtick about rambling/mumbling in comments. I think it's always been my way to show people I am not just saying "This was awesome. You're the best" lol. So, they definitely know it's a Paul comment. Anyway, tht's beside the point...that all came spilling out there. See. no captcha necessary - I am human. lol. Well...I am human, just not a great one at times lol. Anyway, I hope Vocal start listening more to all these concerns so many people are raising. Thank you again for being a star, Sharon!
I'd been gone for so long &, even after coming back, only reading those to whom I am subscribed & for whom I get notifications, I've not had a real sense of how ubiquitous this problem has become. I also haven't been paying attention to Top Stories since it became overrun with articles concerning AI & using AI to compare what it produces with actual research. Once was interesting. Twice was okay. But it got old real fast. I just had one leave a comment on my latest story that was nothing more than a link to one of theirs. I think I'll go to their profile & see how many stories they've produced over what period of time.