I AM A FRAUD

An honest conversation about creativity, tools, and the choices behind the story.”

Let’s Have a Real Conversation

I am a fraud.
There, I said it…

Not the polished version. Not the “let me explain it in a way that still makes me look good” version. Just the raw, uncomfortable truth sitting right there on the table.

I want this to feel less like an article and more like a conversation. Like you and I — and yeah, probably my brother too — are sitting across from each other at a coffee shop or your favorite lunch spot.

I’m not trying to perform here. I’m trying to be honest.

So here’s the deal: I’m going to spill the beans. Fully. The kind of honesty that makes you hesitate before you say it out loud — because once it’s out there, you can’t take it back.

And in return? I want your real thoughts. Not the polished ones. The ones you’d actually say if we were face-to-face.

Just… maybe a little grace too. I’m human.

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Refining, Not Replacing

Every article I’ve published — yeah, even this one — has gone through AI.

I know how that sounds.

But let me clarify before assumptions start running. All of the content you’ve read? That’s mine. The ideas — honestly, like 95% of them — the direction, the concepts, the heart behind this entire project… that came from me and my brother.

That part has never been outsourced. Not the vision. Not the creativity. Not the meaning.

But after I sit down and write — after the thoughts are already on the page — I’ll take that draft and run it through AI. The prompt is usually something simple:

“Make this sound better.”

“Make this fit a Substack-style article.”

That’s it.

Then I go back through everything. Line by line. Thought by thought. Making sure the original ideas are still there, still intact, still communicated the way I actually meant them.

If something feels off, I change it. If something sounds like it lost my voice, I pull it back.

Because I’m not trying to replace my voice. I’m trying to refine it.

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Waiting for Your Reaction

Whew… I’m glad I got that off my chest.

Because if this were real — if we were actually sitting across from each other — that’s the moment where I’d go quiet. Not dramatically. Just enough to give you space.

And honestly? I’d be watching you. Trying to read your face before you even said anything.

I’d want you to tell me it’s okay. That nothing really changed. That this confession didn’t suddenly cheapen everything we’ve been building here.

That it didn’t make it feel less real.

But I also know I don’t get to decide that for you.

So I’m just going to sit here. A little uncomfortable. A little exposed.

And wait.

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The Question You Might Be Asking

In today's social climate, AI isn’t a neutral topic.

For some people it raises real questions. Not just about creativity, but about integrity. About ownership. About where the line is between assistance and replacement.

I get that. I’ve sat with those questions too.

And I don’t have a clean answer that ties it all up. What I have is this: the ideas are mine. The world is mine. The vision is mine. AI is the tool I used to communicate it better.

Whether that’s enough — that’s for you to decide.

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My Actual Stance on AI

I love AI.

Not in a casual “yeah it’s kind of helpful” way. I mean I genuinely believe it gives me access to tools I wouldn’t have otherwise. Tools that let me bring things to life that, honestly, I simply couldn’t create on my own.

Without it, you’re not getting a rougher version of these articles. You’re getting grammar mistakes, scattered thoughts, no clear direction. I’ve seen it. AI helps me take what’s already in my head and shape it into something worth reading.

And it’s not just writing.

I can’t draw. Not even a little.

So when I have an idea for a monster — something I can see clearly in my head but have no way to put on paper — yeah. It’s hard to ignore a tool that could make that real.

I already know the pushback: “That’s not real art. It’s a cheap copy of actual talent.”

And there’s a part of me that nods along. I understand why that line feels important to protect.

But I keep coming back to the same question: why would I choose limitation on purpose, when there’s a tool right in front of me that could help me create something meaningful?

I don’t think that tension is as simple as people want it to be.

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Two AI Pieces You’ve Always Seen

So with all that said — there are actually two AI pieces that have been staring you in the face from the beginning.

The first is my profile picture. Last year when Sora 2 came out I got a little obsessed with it. One of the things I did was make a video where I had a neck tattoo — something I’ve always wanted but never pulled the trigger on, between the cost and the career questions. I loved the way it looked. So I took a screenshot from that video and used it as my picture. To me that’s no different than using an anime avatar — it’s just a version of yourself you want to put out there.

But I love the way it looks on me. So instead of waiting forever, I took a screenshot from that video and used it as my profile picture. To me, that’s no different than when people use anime characters or other avatars—they’re just a version of themselves they want to put out there.

The second is the Punkey logo. I took the original design and ran it through AI — something like “make it more anime style.” The result just pops in a way the original didn’t. Sharper. More like what I actually imagined.

And that’s the thing. Even when I’m using AI, it’s not about replacing what’s already there. It’s about helping it shine.

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Why I’m Telling You Now

You might be wondering why now. Why not just keep the secret?

Because up until now every piece of art shown in the previous articles was designed by an artist. We've had several. The fiverrs for starting concepts. Artists that answered an open call to do test pages. Then Mel and Erwin that did chapters and more character concepts. They all did their best and we will always appreciate their work. However, time constraints, scheduling conflicts, and a limited budget could only take us so far.

Due to that, I want to start sharing the AI-designed Kaiju I’ve been working on. And I couldn’t do that without being upfront first.

It’s not just a handful either. I’ve made dozens that haven’t seen the light of day — some fully fleshed out, some experimental, some just me testing what’s possible. I’ve used AI to color manga panels. I’ve used it to help design a possible card game based on Monster Lynk.

This isn’t a lazy shortcut. It’s a tool I’ve been using to bring a world to life that I couldn’t build alone.

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If Things Had Gone Differently

In a perfect world, we would have kept our original artist. She would have designed all of these Kaiju. We’d be deep into the story, pages and panels flowing exactly as we imagined.

But perfect worlds don’t exist.

And in some strange, messy, slightly imperfect way — that’s why I’m here. Talking to you. At this hypothetical coffee shop. Spilling all of this.

If things had gone exactly as planned, this conversation never would have happened.

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So… Now What?

I don’t have an artist anymore. I don’t have the resources to hire one — not the way it would take to bring every Kaiju, every character, every panel to life exactly as I see it.

So the question becomes: how do I make Monster Lynk real?

And the only answer I keep coming back to is: use the tools I have.

For now, that means AI.

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Let’s Keep the Conversation Going

Thank you for sitting with me through all of this. Confessions, AI, creativity, ethics — it’s a lot. But I want to be transparent. We all deserve that.

Now it’s your turn.

How do you feel about the AI Kaiju designs? About using AI to bring Monster Lynk to life? About any of it?

Drop it in the comments. No judgment. Just the real thing — like we’re still sitting at that coffee shop, figuring this out together. Because Monster Lynk isn't just mine anymore. It's ours.