Clarkesworld Fights a Flood of AI-Created Stories
On February 20, Editor-in-Chief Neil Clarke announced that Clarkesworld Magazine was closed to submissions because of the influx of stories created by AI.
Many first heard of this when Clarkesworld Magazine tweeted, “Submissions are currently closed. It shouldn’t be hard to guess why.” In the world of science fiction, this was a tweet felt around the globe.
What Does This All Mean?
This was startling because Clarkesworld is a very responsive magazine. Open to stories from writers all over the world. Yet they had to temporarily shut the door on submissions because of the flood of AI “stories.”
Some magazines are open to submissions for just short periods. Others are closed to new authors. Clarkesworld is always open to submissions. So when Clarkesworld had to shut down submissions, it shocked both SFF writers and readers alike.
There is no word yet on when Clarkesworld will reopen to submissions.
What Is Clarkesworld?
Clarkesworld is an award-winning SFF magazine that publishes science fiction and fantasy. They also pay well, and that is probably what made them attractive to the spammers.
Like many modern magazines, Clarkesworld has an online submission process. This makes it easier for writers (including disabled and international writers) to submit their work. But it also makes it tempting to spammers.
They have been forced to add “We are not considering stories written, co-written, or assisted by AI at this time.” to their submission guidelines.
Unlike many magazines, Clarkesworld has an incredibly rapid response time to story submissions. It took just one day to receive a response to one of my stories — and it was a positive rejection rather than a form response!
If you’re interested in reading Clarkesworld, the magazine is available both in digital and print forms. Check their Subscribe page for options. You can also support them on Patreon. If you want to support them, they have some affordable options.
A New Form of Plagiarism Using AI
Clarke noticed this trend increasing in recent months, and he blogged about it on February 15 in the post A Concerning Trend. Clarke also gave an interview about this to Quartz.
Submissions from plagiarists have always been an issue for publishers. In the past, people had to copy an old story, change the names, tweak the story, and hope the publisher didn’t notice. (The publishers noticed.)
AI changed things. And amplifies it to unheard-of levels. The AI programs are not writing new stories — instead, people are using them to create stories cobbled together from published texts.
Now, Clarkesworld is getting a flood of submissions created in this way. These are nothing more than a shiny new form of plagiarism. And, as Clarke notes in his post, Clarkesworld is not the only magazine experiencing this alarming trend.
What Are the Solutions?
For now, Clarkesworld is not only rejecting the AI-generated submissions — they are banning the people who send them. Clarke is also looking into other solutions. And becoming frustrated.
Some have suggested going back to snail mail submissions. Neil Clarke gave that “solution” a firm “No.” He explained, “Print submissions are not viable for us.” Insisting on print-only submissions would cut off too many real writers, particularly those outside the United States. Identity confirmation tools are also out because they could restrict authors from entire countries from submitting.
Others have suggested asking writers for a submission fee. But submission fees are frowned upon in this field. (Some literary magazines do have submission fees, although that is not without controversy.)
Lots of designers claim their programs can detect AI submissions. But as Clarke pointed out, they are not perfect. What if they incorrectly flag a legitimate submission? What if they fail to detect AI-generated text?
Others suggested using AI to detect the AI submissions. Clarke also said “No” to this. Some of the companies that create AI software also sell detection tools. Why pay them to fix the problem they engineered?
As if genre magazines needed more bad news! As I described in my article Did Amazon Deliver a Blow to Genre Fiction Magazines? in December, genre fiction magazines like Clarkesworld, Analog Science Fiction and Fact, The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction, Interzone, Uncanny Magazine, and others got bad news. Amazon was “winding down” Kindle magazine (and newspaper) subscriptions.
What Are the Consequences for the Field?
As Clarke said in his blog post:
“If the field can’t find a way to address this situation, things will begin to break.”
It will make submission times longer. It will affect editors who give feedback on submissions. (Are you sending feedback on a real story?) Some magazines might shorten their submission windows, or worse, shut off submissions from new writers. If many publications do that, the field will stagnate.
Luckily, Clarke also added:
“No, it’s not the death of short fiction (please just stop that nonsense), but it is going to complicate things.”
Coverage Around the World
Because a magazine that publishes science fiction was affected by what many still see as a technology straight out of an SF novel, this has been covered in newspapers and other media outlets around the world. From The Washington Post to TechCrunch to The Guardian (they mistakenly called the stories “pitches”).
But is it really just a science fiction problem? Other publications will be affected. They just might not know it yet.
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