With the state of our country right now, I am not sure why I am surprised. Everything that is currently occurring is like April Fools Day and the TV show PUNKED, got together and had a baby. You can’t make this shit up. But, this isn’t about our political climate, it is more about the essence of being able to do whatever you want with no consequences.
When I wrote my first book, Her Turn, I wanted to bring a story to an audience who were thirsty for an escape. It was during the pandemic and an orange man was in charge. This was a bleak period and people were looking for distractions. I hoped my book would bring a smile to people’s faces along with making me a little Cha-ching. I was not prepared for how blatantly disrespectful a group of individuals could be.
On Monday, I found out that my book was one of 7.5 million that were pirated by META. Seriously. Here is a quote from an article in The Atlantic.
“The Atlantic says that court documents show that staff at Meta discussed licensing books and research papers lawfully but instead chose to use stolen work because it was faster and cheaper. Given that Meta Platforms, Inc, the parent company of Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp, has a market capitalisation of £1.147 trillion, this is appalling behaviour. According to The Atlantic, Meta argued that it could then use the US’s ‘fair use exception’ defense if it was challenged legally.”
Wow. Just wow. I can’t even wrap my head around the dishonesty and disrespect suffocating these authors. I spent many hours laboring over my book. The creative process that resulted in the birth of this story was really pivotal. It was during a time where I was care giving my mother, and I was quarantined with my family. It was a therapeutic evolution. It helped me translate a lot of my feelings onto the page while giving my characters strong voices laced with humor. All of that work that ended up pirated by a corporation who has no remorse.
When I told Brian, he spun the story line. I had shared that J.K. Rowling, Stephen King, and a host of other well-known writers were on the list too. He basically congratulated me on the fact that I am among great writers. He has a point, but I would rather be on a New York Times Bestseller list with them than sharing a stake in a multi-million dollar lawsuit.
Nothing is safe. Nothing is sacred. This country is quickly emerging as a “no consequences for your actions” territory. Karma is a bitch and I hope she creates havoc on these thieves.
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