Authors and publishing professionals are leading the charge against AI use in the industry, and now, more than 50 bestselling writers have sent an open letter to U.S. publishers, demanding they take a stand against such technology. The conversation surrounding AI has been near-constant in book spaces, with each newAI debacle contributing to a largerand more disturbing trend.
Both authors and readers have been outspoken about the use of AI and the detrimental effects it could have on the industry. However, instances of AI use in book covers, marketing materials, and books themselves have continued to crop up. This is leading to heated debates on social media, with authors like Victoria Aveyard and Adam Silvera loudly condemning AI.
These authors and many others have signed an open letter to American publishersto express their concerns (viaLiterary Hub). It addresses all the major players: Penguin Random House, HarperCollins, Simon & Schuster, Hachette Book Group, and Macmillan. The opening of the letter is both fitting and ominous: “We are standing on a precipice.”
The letter then goes on to discuss how AI cannot understand the “human experience,“and therefore, should not be used to produce art. It also questions whether the “end goal” of using AI in the publishing industry would be to “fully remove us from the equation so that those at the very top of the capitalist structure can profit even further off of our labor than they already do.”
This letter doesn’t hold back, with the authors pointing out the consequences AI use in publishing could have on their art, the workers who make it possible, and even the environment. They also noted that AI could be beneficial, just not for creating fiction or replacing human employees:
“The writing that AI produces feels cheap because it is cheap. It feels simple because it is simple to produce. That is the whole point. AI is an enormously powerful tool, here to stay, with the capacity for real societal benefits—but the replacement of art and artists isn’t one of them.”
Additionally, the authors addressed the issue of AI being trained on existing works, claiming that the entire model is built on “stolen” writing and ideas. It’s worth noting thatthis letter arrives just a couple of days after a federal court ruled that copyrighted works can legally be usedto train AI, as long as those works are acquired by legal means (viaNPR). This ruling came as a blow to authors, who are now asking publishers to step up.
Their list of demands, which publishing professionals are able to signhere, pushes publishers to vow that they won’t release books that have been partly or wholly written by AI. They also request that human beings are not replaced with technology:
“We want our publishers to stand with us. To make a pledge that they will never release books that were created by machines. To pledge that they will not replace their human staff with AI tools or degrade their positions into AI monitors.”
Only time will tell if publishers will make this pledge, butit’s obvious that many bestselling authors and consumers are hoping they’ll adopt a stronger stance. The conversation surrounding AI is getting more heated than ever, and this letter is proof of that.
What This Open Letter Means For Authors & The Publishing Industry As A Whole
The Tensions Surrounding AI Are Reaching A Boiling Point
This open letter to America’s major publishers makes it clear thatthe tensions surrounding AI are reaching a boiling point, especially now that models can be legally trained on copyrighted works. Authors are understandably concerned that this will make it easier to plagiarize their books. They also want reassurance that publishers won’t forgo stories written by humans in favor of saving money with AI.
All it takes is a trip over to TikTok or Threads to see that many readers have similar feelings; while not every consumer is against the use of AI in publishing, there are plenty who are eager to boycott any creator or company embracing it. There have been calls for transparency when AI is used in a published novel, and many feel it should be pushed out of publishing altogether.
With authors and consumers up in arms over recent AI controversies in the book community, it seems inevitable that publishers will need to make a choice. Readers and writers are only growing more frustrated, and they’re now demanding answers and change.
