Since my first book was published in 2017, many things about the author life have surprised me.

There are the obvious ones…

Juggling multiple deadlines and books at different stages.

Learning how the publishing business works.

And how much of a writer’s time is spent on work other than actual writing.

The AI revolution

What I didn’t expect, though, was that in this age of AI (artificial intelligence), I’d receive messages from authors beyond the grave.

Jane Austen (1777-1817) contacted me via my Facebook author page praising my books and asking to chat.

I’ve had similar emails from Frankenstein author Mary Shelley (1797-1851), Victorian novelist George Elliot (Mary Ann Evans 1819-1880), and Irish novelist and poet James Joyce (1882-1941).

Various well-known contemporary writers have also been in touch with fulsome endorsements, including for books that won’t be out until 2026 or I didn’t write.

Once, a reader calling my writing “so special…soft, deeply human, and full of heart” would have made my day.

And what about this gem?

“You’ve given readers more than a romance, you’ve given them a sense of belonging.”

Each day when I check my author email accounts, I find several such gushing messages.

Invitations to feature my books and “connect with my audience” at book clubs from Seattle to Mumbai abound.

So do offers to create review posts, book trailers and other videos.

And then there’s these plaudits for my latest sweet Jen Gilroy sweet contemporary romance, The Hero Next Door:

“You’ve taken small-town charm and blended it with city-slicker chaos, sprinkling in heart-tugging sweetness that could make even the crankiest cat smile…So do we let this summer love story simmer quietly, or do we turn up the heat?”

Those “heart-tugging” words are certainly persuasive.

The problem?

They’re fake, AI generated, and sent by scammers, often impersonating real people, seeking to extract money from authors trying to gain visibility in a crowded market.

While I now start my working day deleting and blocking, this deluge of spam also makes it harder for me to identify and connect with genuine readers and authentic speaking invitations.

And it’s only the tip of a very large iceberg, one where AI written books may replace real authors entirely, a dystopian scenario feared, according to recent research, by more than half of UK published authors, me included.

While I don’t have a solution to these messages and what they represent, some days laughter is the only recourse.

An author colleague has recently been contacted by Louisa May Alcott (1832-1888) famous for Little Women.

Since Alcott is one of my favourite writers, I feel rather left out that she hasn’t emailed me too!

And if the real Jane Austen is out there, I’d like to tell her what her books, Pride and Prejudice and Persuasion especially, mean to me.

P.S. For my American family, friends and readers celebrating tomorrow, I wish you a very happy Thanksgiving!