Val McDermid warns: AI is a "massive threat" to writers - here's what to do next
Speaking in Edinburgh, Val McDermid didn't mince words. The crime writer said more than 150 pieces of her work had been scraped to train AI systems without permission or payment - and called the practice "theft." She fears the impact stretches beyond authors to translators and other roles across publishing.
Her point was simple: the technology learns from our work, then competes with us. "They've not asked my permission and I have no say in what they do," she said, adding that legal action is coming - and what we're seeing is "the tip of the iceberg."
The stakes for working writers
Recent research attributed to Cambridge University found nearly 60% of UK novelists believe their work has been used to train AI models without consent, and more than a third say their income has already taken a hit. That pressure lands on top of a market where most authors don't earn a living wage from books alone.
McDermid also flagged a shift in translation. Some publishers are already running drafts through AI, then hiring humans to clean them up. That has clear cost appeal - and clear risks for quality, nuance, and rights management.
Despite this, she's convinced the human edge remains: "A machine can pretend to have feelings, but it doesn't have feelings. The human writer will always have a head-start."
If you write for a living, take these steps now
- Lock your contracts. Add clauses that forbid training use of your work without explicit written consent and compensation. Require disclosure of any AI-assisted workflows (especially for translation and audio).
- Clarify translation rights. If AI is used at any stage, define quality controls, human review, and who is liable for errors or defamation in localized editions.
- Audit your footprint. Search dataset mirrors, pirate libraries, and AI training set indexes for your titles. Document evidence. Keep a dated log.
- Register and monitor. Register copyrights where applicable. Set alerts for distinctive passages, character names, and series titles.
- Join your union. Groups like the Society of Authors or WGGB can help with model letters, legal guidance, and collective action.
- Protect your drafts. Avoid uploading full manuscripts to third-party AI tools. If you experiment, use summaries or redacted text. Prefer tools that allow local processing or clear data controls.
- Negotiate derivatives. Spell out what "adaptation," "audio," "translation," and "AI uses" mean. Price AI-related rights separately.
- Diversify income. Build direct channels (newsletter, membership, events). Package extras readers value: annotated editions, signed runs, workshops.
- Quality as moat. Your voice, insight, and emotional accuracy are the defense. Double down on character depth and choices that feel truly human.
Funding and policy context
At the same event, Nicola Sturgeon argued Scotland is lagging on arts support, pointing to Ireland's Basic Income for the Arts pilot. In Scotland, a proposed cut to Creative Scotland funding was reversed after an industry backlash, and a larger commitment has been pledged - but delivery is years out.
For writers, public policy matters. Stability buys time to write, tour, and test new models. Keep an eye on national schemes, and push trade bodies to advocate for AI transparency, consent, and fair pay.
McDermid's current projects
Silent Bones, the latest in the Karen Pirie series, links old cases to the Scottish independence campaign and a secretive men-only book club. A third ITV series is in the works, with The Skeleton Road set to take viewers from Edinburgh to the Balkans via a skeleton discovered atop a crumbling building.
Why your edge still holds
Machines can imitate pattern and tone. They can't live a life. The moments that move readers - surprising choices, layered motives, contradictions that still make sense - come from experience. Keep writing what only you can write, and protect the business around it.
Helpful resources
- Research and commentary from Cambridge University on AI and the creative economy
- Practical AI course lists by job (for writers and creative pros)
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