AI in the Literary World

Posted on June 10, 2024 in UK

Artificial Intelligence is one of the biggest controversies since the right way to pronounce ‘scone’. In the literary world, it can be used to proofread, assist in market research, even generate artwork and writing.

As an aspiring editor, I was recently asked ‘isn’t editing redundant because of ChatGPT?’ The question irked me. Could we not argue that AI has the ability to make everything redundant? Is AI a threat to the literary world, or could we adapt to coexist with this new era of technology without the worry that jobs will be at risk? Already we have seen that writing jobs have decreased by 33% since the release of ChatGPT.

ChatGPT is an AI chatbot intended to help users refine conversation, but many users have been using it to compose written content such as articles, essays and even books. With just a few prompts you can get your computer to write a story for you. Some writers may jokingly wish for this in the woes of writer’s block, but does anybody really want to be robbed of their artistic integrity? 

The problem is, the AI systems that these sites use have been plagiarising whole chunks of writing from books already written and works being published online. Author William D. Cohan was among many to discover their books were being used to train Meta’s generative AI system without permission nor consultation. Without the original owners of the work being compensated, this is classed as theft of intellectual property. Other writers who have seen their books being used by Meta without consent include Lauren Groff, Michael Chabon, Zadie Smith and Stephen King. It can then be argued that without these great writers, using AI in content creation would not be possible to the standard we currently see.

Authors and editors aren’t the only ones being affected by this new technology. There has been a rise of using AI for design and advertising in the past few years. A case study by the Publishers Association showed that three quarters of publishers are using or plan to use AI for marketing and sales. 

Last year, Bloomsbury Books came under fire for the use of AI-generated art on the paperback cover of Sarah J. Maas’ Crescent City. Many artists were disappointed by this discovery, suspecting that they did so to avoid paying illustrators. Another instance of AI being used in cover design was in 2022 when Tor Books used AI-generated imaging for the cover of Christopher Paolini’s Fractal Noise.

The use of AI-generated content has also been used in advertising and publicity. The Bradford Literature Festival faced backlash for the use of generative AI in their promotional materials, pointed out by illustrators who declared it an infringement of creators’ work. However, many businesses, inside and outside of publishing,  are becoming more cautious about the use of generative AI following the Willy Wonka Experience scandal in Glasgow, in which an event used AI tools to create misleading false images to encourage sales, only for visitors to be left disappointed that their expectations were far from met. While AI can be useful in sales and providing audience insight, it should never be used as a replacement for designers and marketers. Marketing is built on consumer trust and the rapport that companies have with their audiences. 

This isn’t to say that AI is inherently bad. The use of artificial intelligence can save time by completing tasks that may be often overlooked or less appealing, therefore allowing publishers and writers to be more productive. Using AI can help analyse successful stories, sales trends and utilise text-to-speech technology to allow for accessible reading.

It is important to remember that AI was developed to assist workers, not replace them. Much like alcohol, cars or antibiotics, AI must be used responsibly and in moderation. There is a way to coexist with artificial intelligence without the loss of creativity and authenticity, but it is up to the publishers and writers to preserve the originality and diversity we treasure in the literary world.

Written by Shannon Robinson