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Two romantasy authors have publicly defended their use of artificial intelligence after being caught with AI-generated prompts left in their published works. While their readers are far from impressed, the writers insist that it does not take away from their craft. Excerpts from novels published by K.C. Crowne and Lena McDonald have been spreading across Reddit, Goodreads, and Bluesky, after readers discovered revision notes that read like ChatGPT and cues that reference the style of other authors embedded in the copy. “I’ve rewritten the passage to align more with J. Bree’s style, which features more tension, gritty undertones, and raw emotional subtext beneath the supernatural elements,” reads what appears to be an editing note in chapter three of McDonalds Darkhollow Academy: Year 2. (J Bree is also an author of romance and fantasy novels.) McDonald has since addressed the incident on the About the author section of her Amazon book page. “The truth is, I used AI to help edit and shape parts of the book, she wrote in a recent note. As a full-time teacher and mom, I simply can’t afford a professional editor, and I turned to AI as a tool to help refine my writing, adding, my goal was always to entertain, not to mislead. Harmless brainstorming or active deception? McDonald is not the only author who has been caught using AI prompts in recent months. A top-ranked author on Amazon who writes under the name K.C. Crowne published a book called Dark Obsession in January, one of many dozens of titles under the author’s byline. However, it wasnt long before screenshots from the mafia-romance novel began spreading with what appeared to be an AI prompt in the middle of the page. Certainly! Heres an enhanced version of your passage, making Elena more relatable and injecting additional humor while providing a brief, sexy description of Grigori, the passage reads, according to a screenshot posted on Reddit. Crowne has seemingly responded to the accusations via her personal assistants Facebook account. Ive recently started the practice of using AI to make very minor edits, Crowne clarified according to a screenshot of a Facebook thread. Crowne also wrote in an email to Futurism: “Earlier this year, I made an honest mistake. I accidentally uploaded the wrong draft file, which included an AI prompt. That error was entirely my responsibility, and that’s why I made the tough decision to address it publicly.” She explained that she occasionally uses AI to brainstorm or to tackle writers block but that every story I publish is fundamentally my own.” She also added, “I only use AI-assisted tools in ways that help me improve my craft while fully complying with the terms of service of publishing platforms, to the best of my ability.” Fast Company has reached out to Crowne for comment. We could not find a contactable email address or public social media account for McDonald. New territory and fresh questions in an old industry These incidents add fuel to the fire that has been raging about AIs infiltration of creative fields. When it comes to the major players in publishing, their position on AI is tentative. Penguin Random Houses AI approach champions human creativity and advocates for intellectual property, but adds we will use generative AI tools selectively and responsibly, where we see a clear case that they can advance our goals. Meanwhile, Hachette UK opposes machine creativity but encourages responsible experimentation with AI for operational uses and recognises the benefits of remaining curious and embracing technology. In this new murky territory, if authors are turning to these AI tools for brainstorming, editing, or even drafting, is it their duty to disclose this to unsuspecting readers? Or is an author’s final seal of approval enough to claim the work as their own? Thats provided they have proofread the work and deleted any giveaways.
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In my twenties, I was the kind of employee managers loved and therapists worried about. I worked late without being asked. I answered emails during vacation and treated 11 p.m. messages like asteroid-headed-for-Earth emergencies. My identity was stitched to my output, and I wore burnout like a badge of honor. Somewhere along the way, many of us signed this invisible contract stating that success demands sacrifice. For us, time, health, and relationships were all fair game in the pursuit of professional validation. But now, more people are realizing its a contract they want to break: According to Gallups most recent global report, employee engagement is down two percentage points to just 21%, and manager engagement saw an even more dramatic drop. An alternative to quiet quitting For me, becoming a parent made me realize that powering through was not just hard, but unsustainable. My time was no longer mine to give away so freely. I started making small changes like declining late meetings, muting notifications after 6 p.m., and blocking Friday afternoons for deep work so I could log off fully over the weekend. Each change felt like a micro-rebellion against my internalized idea of what defines a great professional. Many employees today just make these shifts subtlysomewhere between 20% and 40% of the workforce are quiet quitters, according to data from McKinsey and the Understanding Societyand part of me was tempted to just pull back quietly, too. Instead, I decided to swing the other way. I got louder about what I needed. I told colleagues when I was logging off, and then actually logged off. I pushed back on two-day timelines and offered alternatives that protected both the quality of my work and my sanity. Most importantly, I stopped padding my newly found boundaries with apologies. This approachwhat Ive come to call loud livingisnt about doing less. Its about showing up better, with focus and clarity. It isnt about less ambition, but ambition that doesnt cost you everything else. Heres how anyone can move from burnout-fueled achievement to sustainable success, without even having to be quiet about it. 1. Redefine Success for Yourself First Traditional success metrics like promotions, title bumps, and glowing performance reviews are easy to chase because theyre visible and externally validating. But I realized that those wins dont mean a lot if they come with a side of chronic exhaustion and missing important things in my personal life. I started redefining success on my own terms: Did I get the important work done and make it to storytime? Did I show up fully without sacrificing my health, sleep, or relationships? Measuring success this way didnt make me less ambitiousit made me more intentional. And it gave me a reason to protect my time as fiercely as I used to chase someone elses version of achievement. 2. Tag Your Calendar Transparently I used to write busy as a default time block, thinking it made me look like I wasnt slacking but having things other than my job responsibilities on my calendar. But busy doesnt communicate priorities. Swapping it for things like deep work, school pickup, or thinking time not only made my day more manageable, but gave colleagues insight into how I work best. It signaled that all timenot just meetingsis valuable, and that caregiving or creative work deserve just as much space as Zoom calls. Transparency in your calendar builds trust. And when people see you respecting your own time, theyre more likely to respect it, too. 3. Clearly Communicate Personal Nonnegotiables It still feels moderately uncomfortable telling my team, Im not available before 9 a.m. because thats school drop-off. I expected eye rolls or assumptions that I was less committed. Naming nonnegotiables doesnt mean youre rigid. It means youre clear on what keeps you grounded, and youre modeling a healthier way to mesh life and work without hiding behind vague time blocks and secret stress. 4. Put Up Your OOO Message, Even If Youre Not on Vacation Out of office replies used to feel like something reserved for work travel and time off. But I think we can all agree that life doesnt wait for vacation. When I started using OOO messages for moments like caring for a sick kid and going offline to reset, I noticed something powerful: people responded with understanding, not judgment. By expanding whats worthy of an OOO message, we start the process to normalize that time away is not always tied to beaches and life milestones like weddings. Sometimes its about boundaries, bandwidth, and being human. 5. Ask Your Team (and Yourself) the Tough Questions Worklife alignment starts with curiosity, not just policies. What does someone really need to feel present at work and at home? Whats the thing they never want to miss, or the time of day when theyre truly in flow? These arent just nice-to-know details, but critical inputs to help teams collaborate effectively and do their best work. By asking these questions not just as a manager, but as a teammate, and answering them for ourselves we start treating each person as a whole human, not just a job title. This kind of clarity reduces burnout, builds empathy, and makes it easier to plan work that honors priorities and the people. Normalize having honest conversations around personal priorities and boundaries. Managers and teammates alike can ask: What are your personal nonnegotiables? What time of day do you work best? Whats one thing you want to protect weekly? What do you never want to miss? 6. Practice Saying No Without Apologizing If you were raised in hustle culture, saying no can feel like a big ol failure or make you seem weak. For years, I padded every boundary with Im so sorry followed by justifications. But over time, I realized that being clear about my limits wasnt disrespectful. It was actually responsible, both for myself and my team. Saying, I cant take this on right now, but heres when I can revisit based on whats on my plate, is honest and professional. The Boundary-Filled Future of Work Worklife balance may not be a universal reality. But worklife alignmenta career that adapts to your life, not erases itis worth building toward. Is this realistic for everyone? Not always. Some roles require reactivity, and others rely on client schedules, shift work, or global time zones. But even in those cases, we can normalize transparency over perfection. Being clear about bandwidth, boundaries, and priorities helps teams operate more effectively andwith more empathy. And, we could all use a bit more empathy. Parents and non-parents alike. We need to start treating boundaries as a performance tool, not a privilege.
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Welcome to Pressing Questions, Fast Companys workplace advice column. Every week, deputy editor Kathleen Davis, host of The New Way We Work podcast, will answer your biggest and most pressing workplace questions. Q: What should I do if I think my coworkers are gossiping about me?A: In past columns Ive said that much of office life can feel like high school, and this is the ultimate example. This is a situation that feels awful but that you have little control over. So while you cant control other people, you can control your own actions and reactions. Here are a few things you can do: Dont engage in negative gossip yourself “Gossip is an important part of human communication,” says Jason Morgan, vice president of behavioral intelligence at Aware. Its a way that people build relationships, feel more connected, and help soothe their anxiety. In other words, we are social animals that need to talk to each other and, often, about each other. But that doesnt mean that the content of our gossip has to be vicious or hurtful.You dont need to bring someone down to bring yourself up. If you think your coworkers are talking negatively about you, your first step should be to evaluate your own gossiping tendencies. You’re never going to stop people from talking, but the more negativity you put out into the world, the more thats likely to come back to you. Use gossip as a force for good Good gossip is beneficial to everyones well being. Fast Company contributor and behavioral scientist Art Markman points out that gossip can bring people together or it can create factions. Lead by example and start the kind of gossip that makes people feel better. When we celebrate other peoples successes and positive life events, we are bringing our community together, Markman explains. When we let team members know about a sad experience in the life of a colleague, it can create outpourings of sympathy and attempts to help. These are quite positive uses of gossip that can improve the overall sense of community. Deal with it directly If trying to use office gossip as a force for good isnt working and your coworkers are still saying negative things about you, you need to decide if its worth intervening. If the gossip is annoying but ignorable, then do your best to turn the other cheek. If its impacting your daily well-being, you have a few choices:1. Confront it with humor. Sometimes taking a lighter approach might be more effective than an awkward conversation. For example if you overhear two colleagues whispering about how you are a know-it-all, you can say something like, oh, tell me about itthat Kate, shes a real pill! That will shame them enough to either stop their gossip, or at least be more discreet.2. Take it as feedback. You can take a more mature approach and view the content of their gossip as feedback and consider some behavior changes. (Maybe you do interrupt too much?) 3. Have an uncomfortable conversation. If you’re feeling brave enough you can confront the gossip directly. After all, we arent in high school anymore and hopefully in the years since youve gained some self-assuredness. You can start it off with something like Ive heard you and Dan talking about me and I just want to let you know that Id love to hear your feedback directly.4. Talk to your boss. This is generally the type of problem you can handle yourself, but if it rises to the level of creating a toxic work environment, you can get your boss involved. Just make sure you’ve already tried to take some steps to mitigate it yourself. Want more about office gossip? Here you go: Three steps to end office gossip How work gossip has changed in the age of hybrid work How to make office gossip your ally This is when gossip can be healthy in the workplace
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