When I was first introduced to AI for writing, I was truly impressed by what it could generate. As a test, I gave it some parameters and watched it come up with a whole story idea. I got it to break the story down to chapter titles and then I even asked it to write a chapter in full.
Crikey.
It was amazing.
It wasn’t perfect, though.
Among other things, it followed clear tropes, which isn’t too bad for genre writing. But it became very tropey, with no surprises, which in turn made it bland. This became more obvious when I gave it different story ideas to explore. The more examples I asked from it, the less impressive it became. All the stories the AI gave me were basically the same. Even the style of writing was bland, lacking atmosphere and imagery.
While this will improve over time, I still don’t believe AI will wholly replace us. Why?
Because AI lacks that special touch humanity brings to a story. We offer stories that are unexpected, we offer a different perspective, we can capture those special moments that shine when taken from our own unique take on the world.
How then can AI help us?
It can do those tasks a lot of us don’t enjoy. It writes great advertising. It can help us break down our already written story into an exciting blurb. It can help us with taglines and synopses. It can shorten research time. It can even help us through a writer’s block by suggesting possible solutions when we’ve written our characters into a corner. And so much more. It's like an assistant who is super helpful when you know what questions to ask.
AI is a tool to enhance our creativity. The best thing we can do is embrace it, to learn how best to use it, and reap the benefits.
What are your thoughts on AI for writers?
14 comments:
That it lacks our humanity is the only thing separating us now. We're human and it's Borg.
I agree that AI is a helpful tool for the jobs of a writer you mentioned. I also agree that it lacks the human creativity needed to write a story.
Humanity is the word I used in my post, too. As I have thought more on this though, I'm afraid there are many people out there who would be happy enough for a "surface" read, and not one that demonstrates depth and nuance. I also worry whether the technology may improve enough to mimic "humanity."
I've not played with it and probably should. But while it lacks the human touch now, how long before it doesn't?
I haven't played with AI yet, but I know a lot of authors have found it helpful for blurbs. I agree that it will never achieve the human touch
I like your ideas for using AI as an assistant. We do have to embrace the times and move on. Even for a blurb, though, it has to stand out and can AI provide that special something? I'm sure it will improve. But I don't think it will achieve the original thinking that a human can.
I agree. I know there will be issue to iron out but that's true when anything new crops up.
That's what I've been saying. AI will never have the creative spark that humans have. Can it learn to write a good story? I think so, but I can't imagine it spitting out a story that ends up being a timeless classic on par with Jane Austin.
Yes! I also experimented with it and found the exact same results. It's repetitively tropey, and it really likes purple prose with the exact same rhythm to its sentence structure each and every time, no matter the prompt.
I agree with you. Humanity is quirky, interesting, unique, and God-breathed. AI is not. It can be a tool, but it can't replace us.
I don't know how smart AI will get and the scariest part is that no else does either.
I hope real human writers are still writing great books this time in the next century.
Alex, Borg...lol.
Natalie, human creativity is the main difference.
Liza, I think of AI writing similar to the book, "I Am Number Four," written by a production team, rather than just one or two writers. Sure, it became a bestseller success with a movie as well, but it didn't change the way most books are written. The traditional way of writing has remained as strong as ever.
L. Diane, It will definitely improve over time. I think of the AI art and how much it has improved in just a year. The quality of art is insane. So with the AI writing. But there still needs to be a human behind the AI, directing it.
Jemi, It's sooo good for blurbs.
Nick, Like most things, if you direct the AI to write a blurb, you'll still need to tweak it to achieve that special touch.
H.R., exactly. All new things need to be adjusted until they "fit" right.
Patricia, It certainly couldn't write a classic without a heavy hand from a human. Then the question remains...did the human write it or the AI?
Tyrean, God-breathed. Well said.
Debs, I honestly believe it will never replace us. Not wholly, anyway ;)
Susan, Personally I think it's exciting. An intelligent tool is still a tool.
Carol, humanity will never stop writing and never stop telling stories. Our methods might change, though.
AI is a machine and it will give you what you input. So for writing, yes, it will give you a blurb or a synopsis but then you will have to work at it. It will not replace humans and their creativity. And people should use it ethically.
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