What influence does artificial intelligence have on literary writing?

Michaela Nicolosi Hüsler: AI is used in very different ways. Some authors plan their novels and develop their characters with AI. Others even use it for the act of writing itself. At first glance, AI offers quick solutions to many of the difficulties that authors face. For example, the problem of the infamous writer’s block. When ideas fail to flow and the story comes to a standstill, you can simply ask AI, and it will find potential solutions. Learning the art of writing is becoming superfluous, because AI can supposedly fill in all the gaps. Ideally, it should write the whole book.

Another problem is that large sales platforms have adjusted their algorithms so that books are practically no longer displayed after three months. To avoid being forgotten, you need to publish a new book as soon as possible, or you have to invest a lot of money in advertising on these platforms. Without AI, it’s almost impossible to produce novels so quickly.

There’s a catch, though. AI eliminates the human element, the heart of a novel so to speak, the personal life experience of the person writing it, which always flows into a book. And a book without a heart can’t survive any longer than a body without a heart. You can entertain the public with such books, but you’ll never be able to touch or even change other people’s lives, because there is no human-to-human connection.

It’s even more difficult today than in the past, especially for writers who have chosen to self-publish and so can’t rely on a publisher and its advertising materials.

There are only three factors that you can influence in order to score points with readers and hold your own as an author. Firstly, the quality of the product, that is, the originality and masterly implementation of the idea. Secondly, advertising is crucial: you need an appropriate budget and you need to know your audience very well. And thirdly, you need to be very productive. The days when you could publish every two or three years are over. Now you have to publish at least one book a year, preferably with something shorter like a novella in between times. Otherwise, readers will forget that you exist.

But we mustn’t forget that writing is a creative activity. If we leave everything to AI, we miss out on the opportunity to engage with ourselves, to grow and sometimes even to stay healthy. Writing a book isn’t easy, but it’s always worth it, regardless of whether it’s a success. It’s quite simply a wonderful feeling to hold your own book in your hands.