Fictional Influence

Fictional Influence

Book Corner

Nobody Actually Wants to Change Publishing

They don't want it gone. They want in.

Kristin McTiernan's avatar
Kristin McTiernan
Jan 16, 2026
∙ Paid

This week I released a video called “Dear Elon: xAI Has a Serious Problem.” Thirty-five minutes breaking down how Elon Musk’s AI company is hiring writing specialists using criteria that exclusively filter for people approved by ideologically captured institutions—Big Five deals, Hugo nominations, New York Times Book Review coverage, 50,000+ unit sales. Every single qualification screens for the gatekeepers Elon has publicly opposed for years.

I thought the indie author community would care.

Almost nobody touched it (outside my normal viewers). The reasons were more interesting than the video itself.

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