IWSG October - Witches vs Ghosts

 This is my Insecure Writers Support Group post for October 2026.

Alex's awesome co-hosts this month are: 

Ronel Janse van Vuuren,

Liza at Middle Passages,

JH Moncrieff,

& Jemima Pett!

Please stop by their blogs and say thank you. 

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October 7 question: Many people are calling for writers who use AI to disclose it. Most who employ ghostwriters do not admit it. Do you think authors who use ghostwriters should have to disclose that, too? (Thanks Melissa Maygrove for the question!)

(Thanks, Alex, for outing me. 😅)

Short answer: If authors are going to be forced to publicize AI use, then authors who utilize ghost writers should have to publicize that, too.

Novels are published all the time that bear the name of only the author and not their ghostwriter. The author takes all the credit, even though he or she didn't do all the writing. Yet you don't see ghostwriter witch hunts like those that are happening in regard to AI. 

At least not anymore. A decade or so ago, there was a similar backlash against them.

I don't think any author should be forced to publicize the details of his or her writing process. What matters is whether the finished product is of good quality. 

If the author publishes unedited AI output, it won't be. 

If they edit it enough to give it their voice and turn it into quality fiction, then it's AI assisted, not AI written. 

There's not much difference between raw AI prose and a first draft written by a ghostwriter. Both manuscripts are a rough framed house awaiting the finish work.

Are you surprised by my opinion?

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Before you assume I've gone over to the dark side, know that I have mixed feelings about AI. It's use has affected publishing in a lot of negative ways.  The market has been flooded with AI slop, and bots have been swarming KU, stealing royalties via fake page reads. 

Amazon is fighting back, though. They're catching the bots, and last month, KDP changed it's publishing guidelines to limit how many books an account could upload. The limit became 2 titles per book format (e-book, paperback, hard cover) per week. 

This does not affect updating previously published titles. Also, KDP has increased the time for e-book pre-orders from 12 to 18 months, and you can postpone the release date up to two times without penalty. For details, see KDP's help topics.

Authors who publish more than that per week (short serials, etc.) or who prefer to batch their book creation in long sessions of multiple books are understandably frustrated by the new limit. 

Still, I think this is a good thing. Pondering this change made me realize how much work has to be done behind the scenes at Amazon. Every time someone uploads a new book, each version must go through the review process, and a retail page must be created. Can you imagine what the surge of new accounts publishing AI books was like for KDP? 

Oy. I don't blame them for setting limits.

I hope Amazon can stem the flood of AI. My royalties have taken a noticeable hit despite ads, a new series, and a brisker publishing schedule.

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IWSG is the brainchild of Alex J. Cavanaugh. It's a monthly bloghop that offers a safe haven for writers to express their feelings and concerns without fear of appearing foolish or weak. It's also a venue for offering  support, both in the form of comments and positive posts. Writers of all kinds are welcome. 

We 'meet' the first Wednesday of every month. If you're interested in learning more, click on the link above. And don't be intimidated by the size of the group. We're not expected to visit everyone on the list.