Should writers be using AI to write their books?

Recently, over the weekend, I had someone in my DMs make a rude comment claiming my book was one of those (fill in the blank) AI books.

But that commenter didn’t realize I don’t rely on AI to churn out books. Many authors are using AI tools to outline their manuscripts or even write their full books!

Since AI’s inception, AI tools have been used in the workplace to make business decisions, automate tasks, or summarize notes (e.g, Microsoft’s CoPilot). Even content management systems like WordPress are incorporating AI, whether it’s generating web images or optimizing your blog post title to improve search engine optimization. We now have AI tools geared towards writers, such as Sudowrite, to help writers expand their ideas and expedite content creation.

But should writers be using AI for their writing?

Before we answer that question, I want to be very clear. I’m not here to bash or shame anyone who uses AI tools. AI is a very powerful tool, and whether people like it or not, it’s here to stay for a while. So, before you decide whether to use it or not, it’s important to know what it is and how it’s being used so you can make an informed decision.

What is AI?

AI, which stands for artificial intelligence, can be defined as a branch of computer science that strives to mimic human intelligence, such as learning, problem-solving, and reasoning.

ChatGPT

The most well-known example of an AI tool is ChatGPT. Similar to search engines like Google, you can type a question, and it will pull relevant data based on what you searched for. But the AI component of ChatGPT takes research to another level. Instead of making the reader sift through dozens of search results to find the information they’re looking for, this AI tool reasons you probably just want to see the answer. So it displays your answer in a concise bulleted list that’s easier to read.

ChatGPT is a very powerful AI tool because you can use it for many different things. As a writer, you can use it to research topics, brainstorm ideas for your plot or characters, write your book blurb, or even outline your manuscript (stay tuned for future posts for more details on how to do this). It’s no wonder many people, including writers, use ChatGPT when drafting their manuscripts. I’ve personally used this tool for researching facts about the ancient Romans since I write in that period. While you still want to do some fact-checking, it’s a handy shortcut.

Even though ChatGPT is pretty clever predicting what you’re trying to say, you still need to be specific in your instructions to get tailored results for your needs. The more information you can give it, the more detailed the results! There’s a slight learning curve in learning ChatGPT, but if you’re familiar with how search engines or chatbots work, it won’t take too long for the average person to learn how to ask the right questions to get specific results.

Here’s my final takeaway on the strengths and weaknesses of ChatGPT as it relates to writing.

Pros:

Great for brainstorming ideasGreat research tool, especially when writing in certain genres (e.g., historical fiction, science fiction, etc)Great for outlining and organizing your ideasFree to use

Cons:

Slight learning curve to learn how to use ChatGPT for more nuanced requests.AI Editing Tools

Today, there are a handful of AI tools, such as Grammarly or ProWriting Aid especially designed to help with the editing process, from helping you improve your grammar, catch spelling mistakes, and much more. These tools are a game-changer when it comes to the editing and proofreading process, especially if grammar is not your strength! Even if you are good in one area, these tools can point out blind spots in your writing and enhance your writing without having to sacrifice your original voice. Let’s focus briefly on one of those tools: ProWritingAid.

ProWritingAid

What I appreciate about ProWritingAid is that it does more than catch your typical grammatical, spelling, and punctuation mistakes. ProWriting Aid also detects things like passive voice, excessive use of adverbs, and repetitive sentence structures. Once you have your manuscript loaded, you can run a full summary report of how well your manuscript is doing in several categories including writing style, readability, pacing, and much more. It even suggests rewrites to make your sentences more concise and engaging. While these suggestions are optional, many of them help fine-tune your sentences.

While you’re getting FREE proofreading, copyediting, and line-editing wrapped into one, it still doesn’t replace the need for a human editor or beta reader. Here are some strengths and limitations of this particular tool.

Pros:

Ability to adjust your settings as it applies to your document type (e.g, technical writing, business, creative writing, etc).Can get more in-depth feedback on your chapter by using Chapter Critique (similar to what a beta reader would do in offering specific feedback on what’s working and what’s not in your manuscript).Can use the Sparks feature to generate ideas on how to edit or expand your writingThe free option gives you access to all the online features I listed above.

Cons:

Some suggestions are only available to premium members, which is NOT free. Some of the features that are available are limited for free members. For example you are limited to nine suggested rephrases a day.You get only one manuscript analysis, and that’s even with Premium members.Chapter critiques only look at the first 4000 characters in your book.Some grammar/punctuation suggestions are inconsistent (Ex: one moment it’s telling you to take out the comma, and then if you do, it’s suggesting you reinsert one back where you removed it).Writing Tools

The final set of AI tools we’ll be discussing are geared towards the writing/drafting process. There are a couple out there like Sudowrite, Jasper, and Writesonic, but we’ll focus on one of the most popular ones for creative writing: Sudowrite.

Sudowrite

This robust AI tool promises to help writers in all stages of the writing process, whether you have already written the full draft or have an idea of the plot. Even if you only upload one chapter, the AI tool will auto-generate a synopsis, characters, genres, and world-building elements (e.g., culture, government, technology, etc.) for you based on the provided content. If the details don’t match your vision, you can revise the synopsis and other plot points. If the auto-generated details are accurate, you can choose the option to write, which will autogenerate the rest of your draft based on the synopsis. If you would like to change what’s written, simply highlight the desired text and choose the option to rewrite.

Sudowrite has a feature called the “Story Bible” where you can outline your book, flesh out your character’s traits, and add world-building elements. This feature allows the user to add or modify what the AI tool has generated for you and helps you keep track of the details about your character, plot, and worldbuilding, so you can keep the plot points consistent.

Here are some pros and strengths to consider when using Sudowrite.

Pros

Great for overcoming writer’s blockCan rewrite sentences, expand on existing ideas and refine your writingHelps accelerate the drafting process by doing the writing for you

Cons

AI Generated content can come off sounding genericSubscription cost to utilize full featuresLots of tweaking needed to get the AI to match your author style/voiceConcerns over AI

The three AI tools I mentioned earlier can help writers at each stage of the writing process whether it’s brainstorming ideas or autocompleting your rough draft. However, there are concerns about whether writers should be using AI.

Going back to the question I posed earlier, at the root of the commenter’s gripe with AI, is that he felt it undermines the integrity of the writer. Let’s address some of those concerns.

Breach of Ethics?

Can you call yourself a writer if someone or something helped you write your book? Before AI, if a writer didn’t want to write their book they hired a ghostwriter to do it for them. Although it’s not widely talked about, a good portion of books have been ghostwriten with the “author” getting the credit on the front cover. These books are still respected and are allowed on reputable publishing platforms such as Amazon.

Granted with AI, it adds another concern: plagarism. While Sudowrite tool claims to guard againt plagarism, I wonder how much of your content is being recycled for the next writer to reuse for their draft. At the end of the day, you still have to make the writing your own by staying true to your author voice even if that means going back and tweaking what AI came up with.

Another concern is the perception of writers who use AI. When I started publishing in 2013, there weren’t any other “shortcuts” let alone AI to rely on. It took months, even years to go from the rough draft to a revised, formatted manuscript ready for publishing. But with AI, writer’s can churn out books in a matter of weeks or less!

Because AI expedites the publishing steps, some may assume using any AI cheapens the quality of the book. While these are valid concerns it really depends on how the tools are used. Are these simply tools to assist in the writing process or is the author relying on AI to do the bulk of the work?

Certain aspects of publishing can be challenging or tedious like editing or formatting especially for first-time authors. There are AI tools for editing and formatting that can help a less experienced writer. That’s where AI can serve as an extra pair of eyes to catch those embarrasing mistakes before you publish the book. Not only can these tools save you time, and money, but they can help polish your book so that it matches the high-standards seen in traditionally published books.

Of course balance is needed when using these tools. I personally never want to use AI at the expense of my creativity. My favorite part of writing is the drafting, so I personally would not give AI full reign to autogenerate my entire draft.

Even if you feel comfortable leaning more into AI for the writing process, AI tools have their limitations. While the suggestions may be decent, it may not necessarily fit your vision for your story. Even if you provide an outline, the AI tool won’t perfectly match your voice and unique style.

While I personally feel that writer’s should not be overly reliant on AI, I’m not of the opinion that any tool that uses AI is “bad.” As I mentioned before AI can be very helpful especially in the administrative or monotous steps in the writing process such as editing.

What I want readers to take away from this article is that AI has its place in the writing world. Each author has to decide if they’ll use these tools and how they’ll use them. While AI is not supposed to substitute for good writing or creativity, these tools can help expediate some of the menial steps in the publishing process from editing to formatting so you can have more time for what you enjoy the most: the art of writing!

Happy writing!

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