anyone who has used Chat GPT, for work or otherwise, knows that it won't be replacing jobs or artists anytime soon. they insist on us using it at work and it honestly just slows me down by the time I add more prompts and direction
on top of that, AI tools have been involved in writing for longer than most people think. spellcheck and Grammarly come to mind. could anyone say your work is not 100% your own if you used spellcheck to help along the way? I think not!
Interesting!! Slightly different take there, cause I wouldn’t say it slows me down. I suppose it also depends what people are using it for. Easier to prompt it to give me 5 stats about XXX than it is to write a piece in a specific tone of voice etc. Loving the discussion around this all though, thanks for reading!!
Thank you for writing this! I have been wondering this sooo much recently. I also use Chat GPT for work (in comms and marketing) but write outside of that and haven’t used it because I’m worried it makes me less of a writer and I don’t want it to make me lazy or limit the creative process my brain needs to go through. But I like the nuances you’ve presented here and there are definitely ways to incorporate AI without it totally taking over.
AI is definitely disrupting the writing industry and possibly the publishing industry. Those who say otherwise should know that there is SO MUCH demand. I work as a ghostwriter, and we recently launched a package that is cheaper because it’s essentially an AI-written book supervised by professional writers, and the demand for both fiction and non-fiction is astronomical. So, it’s not far-fetched to think that bookshelves will soon be filled with these.
I use AI for work and find it helpful, but that's because my niche is non-fiction. It definitely feels like I’m cheating when I use it for creative writing, especially my own. I think you shouldn’t ask it to write scenes for you (e.g., the climax of your story) because it only produces what it has previously ingested, which means you might unintentionally be ripping off someone else. Still, it’s difficult to be original in art anyway, so that's not as black and white too.
On the flipside, AI does help get more stories heard. I don’t have a clear answer to this, but it’s definitely interesting to think about.
Yesss!! I always find it interesting when people say it isn’t actually taking off, because in my industry it has already taken off and more. The most marketing recent agency I worked for was looking at their AI offerings, too.
I feel guilt for using it as a creative. But also, I often ask it to help find an attention grabbing title for a piece I've written. Or to come up with 5 pieces of social media content from my own essay /work. Without it, I could trip over myself for HOURS! This then gives me time back to actually write and spend more time in my genius. It's a fine balance I think and no black or white answer.
Thank you SO much for reading. I think you’ve summed it up so well in saying it’s not black or white. If you’re getting more time to be authentic and creative in other areas, I think that’s a good thing for you!
I was just having this conversation with a woman who has written 19 USA Bestselling Novels. The goal is to use technology as an assistant- a brainstorming tool and an editing tool, a way to get to the conclusion that's eluding you. ChatGPT will never be able to write like me, the same as any other writer wouldn't be able to. Art in any form is at its best when it conveys emotion- which is something a computer will never be able to truly feel or express. I don't think we need to be scared of tools, as long as we learn to use them.
This is such an excellent piece. You’re right, it’s such a nuanced topic. I write memoir, specifically short personal essays every week for my Substack and I’d never consider using ChatGPT for help there. I’ve been thinking about it recently, however, when I used it to help me write an instructor’s manual for a client opening a Pilates studio. It was SO helpful. As in, it wrote the whole damn thing for me. The moral issue I ran into was how to bill my client. As I’m paid hourly, this project that should have taken me hours took 15 minutes. I found myself actually pissed off. Am I going to miss out on pay now? I know this is ultimately what we worry about, losing jobs to machines, and I’m sure more experienced freelancers understand how to factor the tool into their rates, but it really is something I’ve been thinking so much about.
So excited to discover your Substack! I found you through the note you posted 10 days ago! Absolutely love your writing and content and excited to keep in touch!
Thank you SO much, that’s so so kind of you. And honestly I totally get what you mean about it being different depending on what you’re writing and where it’s coming from. Thats a huge part of what inspired the piece. And I think if you’re spending time editing what the AI has done and making it personalised to your client you can definitely still factor that into your rate! It’s all about getting ahead of the technology, right? I’m really glad you found it interesting though!
Great post. I work for VFX in TV and film and the question of AI is an interesting one, especially after the writers and actors strikes in the US recently. Our industry have been using machine learning tools for a while now, but rather than replacing whole teams of artists, it's more about streamlining small, admin-y tasks instead of flat out replacing what we do. It's a hard one - as a writer I've never used it but I find myself still wanting to keep up to date with what's happening with it all as it's kind of fascinating really!
Yess! That’s interesting! It’s similar in my industry, nobody WANTS to replace marketers with AI, so the focus is much more on streamlining and augmenting, like you say.
My worry with that is always that we’ll end up in a place where teams are made up of more seniors/creatives, and those starting out won’t have any kind of admin or interny tasks to get their foot in the door! Not always, obviously, but definitely sometimes surely?
Yes, definitely - that's one discussion point in VFX at this very moment. We also don't have a union over in the UK so can't fight the future, so to speak!
Ah nooo! It’s actually quite scary, isn’t it. One of my friends works in film (we’re also both in the UK) and she’s in the same boat! I feel for everyone without unions 🥺
This is such a difficult topic of conversation to have. All the spheres I’ve seen it discussed in tend to devolve into arguments and mud-slinging, which isn’t a productive way to discuss something. There’s a lot of nuance to the topic of AI because, like you said, it’s not just a cut and dry “AI bad! Humans good!” answer.
I really need to do more research, especially on the energy consumption issue I keep seeing brought up. I probably need an ELI5 explanation of why AI (or generative AI?) takes up so many more resources than something like a Google search. (Is Google just an AI engine? I’m making my own head hurt now. I’m going to stop. Lol.) Anyway, I think you handled a tricky topic really well here!
I actually found it really hard to separate all the different topics, as in, I actually DO think it’s really important to discuss the environmental impact, but I think, from the looks of it, that’s a lot more cut and dry because… it’s bad hahaha.
The creativity question is something I wanted to work out my opinion on aside from those other issues if that makes sense? Either that, OR I’m just ignoring the bigger issue because it’s scary, who knows hahaha.
If you find any research/info that I might have a chance of understanding please let me know!!
Thanks for writing this, Ellen! Lots of great points. :)
I've only used AI (Gemini, Grammarly) to improve on my own ideas, outlines, and drafts. But I can't and don't want to push pieces out that are written "AI-first". It seems unauthentic to me? I get that it can help us though, and as someone working in digital advertising, far be it from me to shoot do a blanket NO to new technology. I don't use it much either, since I read about the environmental impact of an AI prompt vs. a Google search.
Yess! I think authenticity is the thing, right? Like, I feel if you're using AI it should be transparent. For me it'd be fine for someone to say "here's this piece of creative work I've done by generating these things on AI and working on the prompts/flow/etc myself" but if they said "here's a piece of my writing" and it turns out it was 50%+ AI it'd be like... hmmm, no.
And yes! The environmental impact is such a huge thing. Didn't want to go toooo into it here because I was going to end up with a dissertation, haha. Thank you for reading though!! I love this kind of discussion soo much, I'm so happy I've found people in the same boat haha
I’m a school librarian and was collaborating with English teachers on a project when this exact question came up. Because we work with middle schoolers, we decided to limit AI use for the project because they don’t truly know what good, strong writing is yet and need that level of discernment when assessing products generated by AI.
Fantastic post, Ellen! I go back and forth on this issue as well. I’ve found that AI is most useful to me when I’m using it for refinement instead of it generating new text. I don’t see anything wrong with asking a bot for suggestions - more times than not, I’ll end up not using them anyway. But prompting is a craft that needs to be honed in on.
Yesss! Agree, and genuinely, the most helpful thing it does often is showing me what I don't want. I think it's just what you make of it when we're talking about creative writing specifically. Thanks so much for reading!
I definitely using AI to help you with little things is okay. Technology was created to help us. Obviously determining how much help is too much help is a bit tricky to determine especially when it comes to how they person might use it. Super interesting conversation
I believe technology is merely supposed to help us, it’s up to us to commit to the work and do it
Right!! It’s not as black as white as I’d like it to be, haha
Thanks so much for reading! As I pressed publish on something this long there was a moment of “nobody wants this” hahaha
anyone who has used Chat GPT, for work or otherwise, knows that it won't be replacing jobs or artists anytime soon. they insist on us using it at work and it honestly just slows me down by the time I add more prompts and direction
on top of that, AI tools have been involved in writing for longer than most people think. spellcheck and Grammarly come to mind. could anyone say your work is not 100% your own if you used spellcheck to help along the way? I think not!
Interesting!! Slightly different take there, cause I wouldn’t say it slows me down. I suppose it also depends what people are using it for. Easier to prompt it to give me 5 stats about XXX than it is to write a piece in a specific tone of voice etc. Loving the discussion around this all though, thanks for reading!!
Thank you for writing this! I have been wondering this sooo much recently. I also use Chat GPT for work (in comms and marketing) but write outside of that and haven’t used it because I’m worried it makes me less of a writer and I don’t want it to make me lazy or limit the creative process my brain needs to go through. But I like the nuances you’ve presented here and there are definitely ways to incorporate AI without it totally taking over.
thanks for this - it really got me thinking about this subject!
Aw I’m so glad!! Thanks for reading
AI is definitely disrupting the writing industry and possibly the publishing industry. Those who say otherwise should know that there is SO MUCH demand. I work as a ghostwriter, and we recently launched a package that is cheaper because it’s essentially an AI-written book supervised by professional writers, and the demand for both fiction and non-fiction is astronomical. So, it’s not far-fetched to think that bookshelves will soon be filled with these.
I use AI for work and find it helpful, but that's because my niche is non-fiction. It definitely feels like I’m cheating when I use it for creative writing, especially my own. I think you shouldn’t ask it to write scenes for you (e.g., the climax of your story) because it only produces what it has previously ingested, which means you might unintentionally be ripping off someone else. Still, it’s difficult to be original in art anyway, so that's not as black and white too.
On the flipside, AI does help get more stories heard. I don’t have a clear answer to this, but it’s definitely interesting to think about.
Yesss!! I always find it interesting when people say it isn’t actually taking off, because in my industry it has already taken off and more. The most marketing recent agency I worked for was looking at their AI offerings, too.
I feel guilt for using it as a creative. But also, I often ask it to help find an attention grabbing title for a piece I've written. Or to come up with 5 pieces of social media content from my own essay /work. Without it, I could trip over myself for HOURS! This then gives me time back to actually write and spend more time in my genius. It's a fine balance I think and no black or white answer.
Thank you SO much for reading. I think you’ve summed it up so well in saying it’s not black or white. If you’re getting more time to be authentic and creative in other areas, I think that’s a good thing for you!
I was just having this conversation with a woman who has written 19 USA Bestselling Novels. The goal is to use technology as an assistant- a brainstorming tool and an editing tool, a way to get to the conclusion that's eluding you. ChatGPT will never be able to write like me, the same as any other writer wouldn't be able to. Art in any form is at its best when it conveys emotion- which is something a computer will never be able to truly feel or express. I don't think we need to be scared of tools, as long as we learn to use them.
Such an interesting point!! Thanks so much for reading 🫶🏻
This is such an excellent piece. You’re right, it’s such a nuanced topic. I write memoir, specifically short personal essays every week for my Substack and I’d never consider using ChatGPT for help there. I’ve been thinking about it recently, however, when I used it to help me write an instructor’s manual for a client opening a Pilates studio. It was SO helpful. As in, it wrote the whole damn thing for me. The moral issue I ran into was how to bill my client. As I’m paid hourly, this project that should have taken me hours took 15 minutes. I found myself actually pissed off. Am I going to miss out on pay now? I know this is ultimately what we worry about, losing jobs to machines, and I’m sure more experienced freelancers understand how to factor the tool into their rates, but it really is something I’ve been thinking so much about.
So excited to discover your Substack! I found you through the note you posted 10 days ago! Absolutely love your writing and content and excited to keep in touch!
Thank you SO much, that’s so so kind of you. And honestly I totally get what you mean about it being different depending on what you’re writing and where it’s coming from. Thats a huge part of what inspired the piece. And I think if you’re spending time editing what the AI has done and making it personalised to your client you can definitely still factor that into your rate! It’s all about getting ahead of the technology, right? I’m really glad you found it interesting though!
Great post. I work for VFX in TV and film and the question of AI is an interesting one, especially after the writers and actors strikes in the US recently. Our industry have been using machine learning tools for a while now, but rather than replacing whole teams of artists, it's more about streamlining small, admin-y tasks instead of flat out replacing what we do. It's a hard one - as a writer I've never used it but I find myself still wanting to keep up to date with what's happening with it all as it's kind of fascinating really!
Yess! That’s interesting! It’s similar in my industry, nobody WANTS to replace marketers with AI, so the focus is much more on streamlining and augmenting, like you say.
My worry with that is always that we’ll end up in a place where teams are made up of more seniors/creatives, and those starting out won’t have any kind of admin or interny tasks to get their foot in the door! Not always, obviously, but definitely sometimes surely?
So fascinating though. Interesting to hear about other industries too! Thanks so much for reading
Yes, definitely - that's one discussion point in VFX at this very moment. We also don't have a union over in the UK so can't fight the future, so to speak!
Ah nooo! It’s actually quite scary, isn’t it. One of my friends works in film (we’re also both in the UK) and she’s in the same boat! I feel for everyone without unions 🥺
This is such a difficult topic of conversation to have. All the spheres I’ve seen it discussed in tend to devolve into arguments and mud-slinging, which isn’t a productive way to discuss something. There’s a lot of nuance to the topic of AI because, like you said, it’s not just a cut and dry “AI bad! Humans good!” answer.
I really need to do more research, especially on the energy consumption issue I keep seeing brought up. I probably need an ELI5 explanation of why AI (or generative AI?) takes up so many more resources than something like a Google search. (Is Google just an AI engine? I’m making my own head hurt now. I’m going to stop. Lol.) Anyway, I think you handled a tricky topic really well here!
Thank you SO much, that’s so kind.
I actually found it really hard to separate all the different topics, as in, I actually DO think it’s really important to discuss the environmental impact, but I think, from the looks of it, that’s a lot more cut and dry because… it’s bad hahaha.
The creativity question is something I wanted to work out my opinion on aside from those other issues if that makes sense? Either that, OR I’m just ignoring the bigger issue because it’s scary, who knows hahaha.
If you find any research/info that I might have a chance of understanding please let me know!!
Thanks for writing this, Ellen! Lots of great points. :)
I've only used AI (Gemini, Grammarly) to improve on my own ideas, outlines, and drafts. But I can't and don't want to push pieces out that are written "AI-first". It seems unauthentic to me? I get that it can help us though, and as someone working in digital advertising, far be it from me to shoot do a blanket NO to new technology. I don't use it much either, since I read about the environmental impact of an AI prompt vs. a Google search.
Yess! I think authenticity is the thing, right? Like, I feel if you're using AI it should be transparent. For me it'd be fine for someone to say "here's this piece of creative work I've done by generating these things on AI and working on the prompts/flow/etc myself" but if they said "here's a piece of my writing" and it turns out it was 50%+ AI it'd be like... hmmm, no.
And yes! The environmental impact is such a huge thing. Didn't want to go toooo into it here because I was going to end up with a dissertation, haha. Thank you for reading though!! I love this kind of discussion soo much, I'm so happy I've found people in the same boat haha
I’m a school librarian and was collaborating with English teachers on a project when this exact question came up. Because we work with middle schoolers, we decided to limit AI use for the project because they don’t truly know what good, strong writing is yet and need that level of discernment when assessing products generated by AI.
To clarify- we were planning a book trailer project for students.
Fantastic post, Ellen! I go back and forth on this issue as well. I’ve found that AI is most useful to me when I’m using it for refinement instead of it generating new text. I don’t see anything wrong with asking a bot for suggestions - more times than not, I’ll end up not using them anyway. But prompting is a craft that needs to be honed in on.
Anyway, cheers
Yesss! Agree, and genuinely, the most helpful thing it does often is showing me what I don't want. I think it's just what you make of it when we're talking about creative writing specifically. Thanks so much for reading!
I enjoyed this post, Ellen! And I like your take… that the writers using AI are like “creative directors”!
Thanks so much! I just feel, credit where credit's due, you know! It's still this creative thing these people are doing.
I definitely using AI to help you with little things is okay. Technology was created to help us. Obviously determining how much help is too much help is a bit tricky to determine especially when it comes to how they person might use it. Super interesting conversation
Ahhh thanks so much for reading! Agree, I don't actually think there's any sort of right answer as such?
thank you so much for your thoughts, i'd probably be tossing in bed pondering the question myself
Hahaha, thanks for reading! I wish there was more of a concrete formula for it. I’m basing my opinion on like, vibes 🙃