Happy Wednesday! The Insecure Writers’ Group is a group of writers offering motivation and encouragement to all those taking on the challenges of writing. Every month the ISWG sponsors a blog hop where writers can blog about a topic related to overcoming obstacles and exploring various aspects of the writing journey. If you’d like to participate in a future hop you can join here. It’s always a great experience, and I recommend it to anyone who is interested in writing and sharing with other writers.
The co-hosts for this October 4 posting of the IWSG are Natalie Aguirre, Kim Lajevardi, Debs Carey, Gwen Gardner, Patricia Josephine, and Rebecca Douglass!
Every month there is an optional discussion question, and this month the question is the following:
The topic of AI writing has been heavily debated across the world. According to various sources, generative AI will assist writers, not replace them. What are your thoughts?
This is a really tough question. The main reason why it’s so hard to answer, is because this is well…all really new. Something that seemed like science fiction a couple of years ago is now becoming more and more commonplace and integrated into our daily lives, and it can be every bit as disruptive and terrifying but also as wonderful as you can imagine.
I believe in my heart, as I think many writers do, that human beings are uniquely imaginative. I’ve worked quite a bit with AI, and even though I find it able to imitate a human being’s speech and thought patterns to a shocking extent, it is still not as creative or imaginative as a human being. The human experience is processed through a complex brain, and I don’t feel that the emotions a human brain produces and infuses into its writing are able to be replicated by a machine in the most authentic form. That’s not to say they can’t be mimicked (they can, and they are), it’s just to say that AI is not human. Humans are unique beings. And I believe that their writing is unique.
I think we can all assume AI will continue to evolve. It will become more advanced, and with this will come new challenges. Every industry and career on Earth is vulnerable to it, but there is also definite upside to the productivity and innovation that AI can achieve when used in responsible partnership with humanity. What path it will all ultimately take remains to be seen. I hate the idea of a world where books are solely produced by machines mimicking humans. I for one would not want to read that book, and I imagine many other readers feel the same. Because, although I like to write, I am first and foremost an avid reader. And I want to read books that are written by people and I will always search those books out first. I feel strongly about that.
What are your thoughts on AI? Are you envisioning a grim Terminator Skynet future? Or are you imagining something closer to Star Wars, where humans and droids work seamlessly together? Or maybe something in the middle? Let me know in the comments!
Have a great Wednesday ☺️
-Winter
Winter Betancourt 
AI is definitely a new frontier and like with nearly all technology it can be used for good purposes or bad. It’s up to as humans to use it responsibly. I personally envision a Star Wars/Star Trek-like future where we can live with AI in, overall, harmony.
But because this is an imperfect world theres always going to be a monster robot like Terminator or Logan’s Run’s Thinker or Box here and there. But we as humans can always overcome them. If we made them then we can rise above them when they go too far. Just my personal vision.
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I honestly can’t read half of what is published by Trad Publishing today because it feels too predictable and rote. I love discovering new genres and indie authors because it isn’t so predictable. I often see the same complaints from other entertainment fans (music, TV, movies, etc) and I think that the more corporations try to focus on what sells instead of what inspires, the further from the fans they will get. I agree that there are a lot of exciting possibilities with AI if we use it responsibly.
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I totally agree! I love reading works that are written out of love and with passion, not just with a formula of what will sell. It is clear when something has been produced with solely profits in mind, and it really hurts the enjoyment immensely.
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