Do you have to use an AI writing assistant?
Absolutely not.
The robots have taken over our lives. Or at least, that seems to be the extreme view in the writing community of the rise and rise of generative AI.
Many writer lament the development of AI writing tools like ChatGPT as the death of writers, and essentially every other profession.
People fear the over-saturation of the market by substandard books engineered in AI writing applications.
What is even the point of trying to sell books in a market that is already overflowing with ultra-productive human authors let alone robots that can pump out “good enough” books in minutes?
But it doesn’t have to be so bleak.
Yes, many industries will see human jobs replaced by AI tools. Yes, the digital book market will flood with AI generated books. And these will be good enough for some readers. Yes, there is a minefield of ethical issues in terms of the use of intellectual property that these models are trained on.
Yes, there will come a time when the technology advances to a point where even the most learned reader will not be able to tell the difference between an AI written book and a human book.
But you can continue to write, just as you always have. You CAN write without an AI writing assistant, if that’s your choice.
Generative AI is not going away. AI functions will be embedded in our lives as much as the internet is now.
There’s no avoiding AI and there’s no point fighting it.
Still, there will always be readers who want 100% human written books, and there will always be writers who want to write their books 100% from their own minds.
Even if we don’t use the AI writing tools available now and in the future, it’s important for writers – and anyone who works in a field where AI has a presence – to understand the applications.
You need to see how they work, what they’re capable of, and what their limitations are. And then make your choice of whether or not to use them with an informed mind, not a fearful panic.
Consider the ways AI writing assistant could help you, even while you retain creative control and mastery of your work.
Could you use AI to assist you writing your books, rather than imagining a machine coming in to write all your books for you?
I wrote about how I do this in this article – How To Use AI In Your Writing and Stay Human.
If you still choose not to use AI, then make that a part of your writing persona.
Relationships with readers as the real life human behind the words has always been important for writers, particularly independent authors. And even more so in the age of AI. So if you’re positioning yourself as a 100% human generated author, this is even more critical.
The choice of how you write and what you write and how you publish and how you connect to your readers is still and always has been up to you.
Generative AI is just another tool available to us to use to help us work, and like everything else, it’s your choice whether to use it or not.
But if you do fall into the anti-AI camp, do consider why.
Examine your fears around the technology.
Examine how it make you feel in terms of your individual self-definitions.
Approach this new reality from a place of informed decision rather than pessimistic fear.
If you still choose not to play in this new game, then do so proudly and keep on writing.
