AI-generative technology is still a new area, and it's changing faster than we can keep up. A writer's personal choice to use this technology needs to be based on the facts as they currently stand.
The following document details what AI technology I use in my work as a writer and story coach (and editor). Be advised that I am not anti-AI, but there are ethical concerns associated with AI-generation. This document details where I draw the line.
Difference between AI-generated and AI-assisted
While there is still a little gray area as to what is classified as AI-assisted works, the line between AI-generated and human-generated is clear.
As of June 2026, this is how the definitions are being applied to US copyright:
- AI-generated
- If the story (or artwork) was created/written by an AI program from a prompt but without human intervention, the story is classified as AI-generated.
- The US Copyright Office will not issue copyright for an AI-generated story under any circumstances.
- Human-generated
- If a writer used AI-generative technology to assist with research, prompt generation, outline a story, or basic copyediting, but the words on the page were written by the human, then the story was human-generated.
- Human-generated stories are protected under copyright law in all countries.
- AI-assisted
- The legal definition of an AI-assisted story is still a gray area, but there are still some circumstances in which copyright will be issued under US copyright law.
- If a story was initially generated by AI but was substantively rewritten by a human (and such documentation can be provided), then copyright may be obtained. Evidence of substantive rewriting will be required.
- If portions of a story were generated by AI, but the bulk of the story was human-generated, copyright can be obtained, but may be restricted to the human-generated portions. Evidence of substantive rewriting will be required for the AI-generated portions.
No AI in Writing or Rewriting
My own works are human-generated. This includes my blog posts. I feel that writing (and rewriting) is the most creative part of the process, and hence requires human input. (It's also the part of the process I enjoy the most.)
Because of the copyright concerns associated with AI-generative technologies, I have elected to not work with clients who use AI to write their stories for them, even if the story was substantively rewritten by the human and could potentially be granted a copyright in the US. However, I will still work with stories where writers used AI to assist in their research or outlining. If the words are still the words of the writer (in their voice), then I'm happy to take a look.
No AI in Editing
I won't use AI to rewrite (or analyze) my own works, so why would I do that to a client?
When you hire me, you are hiring the human, not a computer program.
I do not use ChatGPT or any other AI tool to generate reports or to analyze client manuscripts. When working on a manuscript, it is just me with my red pen in the hand, and eventually Microsoft Word with its built-in Track Changes feature.
I use ProWritingAid (a program similar to Grammarly) and the built-in spellchecker with MS Office, but I do not use the AI-generative tools associated with either program. (And I have MS Copilot turned off in my installation of MS Office, because I despise its intrusive nature.)
Please feel assured that your manuscripts won't intentionally be added to the AI training pool by me. However, due to the terms of service for Google and Microsoft (and other software providers out there), it is getting harder and harder to ensure that files that just happen to pass through their systems aren't being scraped for AI training. I do what I can to ensure that the data on my computer isn't included in this mess, but I can no longer 100% guarantee it.
No AI in My Covers or Audiobooks
At this stage, I won't use AI to generate my covers or audiobooks. (Not that I have any audiobooks, because I can't afford it.)
Don't get me wrong: I have considered it because of cost factors. BUT I refuse to have my hard work that is human-generated to be tainted by AI-generated covers and audio messes.
This means that my covers will continue to be human-generated works of art. (And there are cost-affordable human options for covers.)
Within the space of audiobooks, AI voices are just not up to the task. Don't get me wrong, I will happily use those AI voices as an editing tool, helping me to identify sticky sentences and typos that have slipped through the system. But emotional inflictions still feel off to me… and the number of words that the AI voices mispronounces…
How can an IV line be a four line? (Don't answer that. I know exactly why AI voices get it wrong every time, but the first time I heard it, it had me confused, wondering if it was meant to be I.V. instead of IV. FYI, it is actually IV, with no periods/fullstops. And even when editing this policy using AI voices to read it aloud to me, the system still insisted on saying four instead of IV.)
No AI in Translations
This one is a matter of pride and principle.
AI-generative technology has issues with the nuances of the English language, particularly when you consider similes and metaphors. It also struggles with colloquialisms and sarcasm.
If it struggles that much with my native tongue, how can I trust it to get the nuances of a language that I don't speak correct? This is why a human fluent in both English and the translated language needs to be involved.
But a translator will likely need to rewrite the AI-generated mess, just so it works. Hence, it would be best to just work with a human translator from word go, rather than messing around with AI translations.
My Use of AI
While I won't use AI to write or edit, I would be lying if I said that I didn't use AI technologies at all.
As I mentioned above, I use ProWritingAid and MS Office. Both of these systems have AI tools embedded that do not use the prompt concept seen in ChatGPT. Both systems will suggest editorial changes, using an AI-powered tool to generate those suggestions. (It doesn't mean that I have to take on board those suggestions. Sometimes, the suggestions look like those from a drunken writer.)
I also use dictation software that automatically punctuates my sentences while I dictate my writing into my word-processing system. Sure, it's an editing mess afterwards, but when the hands rebel and I struggle to type, the writing has to happen somehow. However, it is still my words… just the computer's odd sense of punctuation.
I have also taken to using the AI voices within the Read Aloud feature in MS Word. Those voices are nice to listen to, and hearing your words read back to you helps with the editorial process in a significant way.
Powerpoint's slide designer is also AI-powered, and sometimes those suggested layouts are better than what I originally came up with.
Google's search engine is AI-powered, as is the search engine in Facebook and Instagram.
I know that's not what people see as AI, but that is the reality.
As for the prompt-type AI, I now use AI-generative tools to assist with writing ALT text for images and promo copy.
And I use AI-generative tools to help me understand how my GEO (generative engine optimization) and AEO (answer engine optimization) are working. These are the next level of SEO (search engine optimization), and it's important to me to ensure that within a search, regardless of how that search is conducted, that my books, blog posts, and information appear in those searches. (Am I being appropriately attributed for my work? Am I being properly quoted?)
Look, it's the state of the world that we now live in, and I'm determined to not disappear in it.
The Landscape is in Flux
The landscape surrounding AI is in a constant state of flux. Cases regarding copyright are still waiting to be heard, and the technology itself is advancing faster than we can keep up.
There is a possibility that I might adopt AI to take on mundane business administration tasks in the future (no guarantees either way). Regardless of how I elect to use AI in the future, I will keep my followers updated.
If you are interested in reading my thoughts about AI (as the technology progresses and the landscape changes), check out my blog posts on the topic.