You don’t have to use AI. You’re not obligated to like it. But if you shame writers for using tools that make their creative lives easier — you’re not protecting the craft. You’re gatekeeping it.
I’ve been in the publishing space long enough to see trends come and go, usually accompanied by some sort of hysteria. But nothing — and I mean nothing — has rattled writers quite like AI. It’s dramatic. It’s unnecessary. And it’s stopping good writers from doing good work.
So let’s put the pitchforks down for a minute and talk about AI like professionals who care about the writing craft — and the industry — rather than fearfully guarding the past.
Because here’s the thing: AI isn’t replacing writers. But writers who know how to use AI will absolutely outperform those who refuse to evolve.
Not because AI writes better than you. Not because AI has imagination. But because AI removes friction — and friction is what stops most manuscripts from ever becoming books.
The Real Problem Isn’t AI. It’s Fear of Looking “Less Than.”
I’ve spoken to indie authors who won’t even admit they use AI to brainstorm because they’re worried someone will accuse them of cheating.
It’s wild, considering that:
- We use editors.
- We use beta readers.
- We use software that checks our spelling, grammar, pacing, and adverbs.
- We use writing coaches, mentors, manuscript assessors, social media managers, marketers, and designers.
No one screams “fraud” when an author hires a ghostwriter. But mention AI and suddenly people become moral philosophers.
Let’s be clear: Tools don’t define the writer. The writer defines the work.
If AI were truly the threat some people claim, we’d be drowning in bestselling, Miles Franklin Literary Award worthy novels generated overnight. That’s not happening — for a reason.
AI Doesn’t Create Meaning.
I’ve tested AI with everything from plot structures to character arcs to dialogue drills. It’s fast, it’s clever, and it’s not sentimental. But it has a glaring flaw: AI can’t feel the story.
It doesn’t understand pain, longing, humour, cultural nuance, or the little emotional shifts that make a scene matter. That’s your job.
What AI can do is this:
- Help you process ideas faster
- Challenge weak plot logic
- Provide variations you hadn’t considered
- Produce rough drafts you can refine
- Tighten pacing
- Spot inconsistencies
- Give you a starting point when the page is too white and too quiet
Is that cheating? Only if you consider brainstorming with a friend cheating or asking your editor for structural advice cheating. Or using Grammarly cheating. It’s not the devil or the muse. It’s a tool and tools are only dangerous in the hands of people who misuse them.
Let’s Talk Ethics — Without the Hypocrisy
I’ve heard writers say, “If you use AI, you should admit it.”
Fair enough. Transparency matters — especially in a world where readers trust your voice. But let’s also acknowledge this: Many bestselling authors don’t write every word in their books. Some don’t write half. Some don’t even write the first draft — their ghostwriters do. Yet nobody hounds them with moral outrage.
If an author gives AI the story beats, the structure, the direction — and then rewrites, reworks, and reshapes it — what part of that is unethical? It’s the same process used with junior ghostwriters, writing assistants, or collaborative teams.
AI becomes dishonest only when you pretend you didn’t use it at all, or you used it instead of creating the story yourself. That’s it. That’s the whole ethical line. Everything else? Noise.
A simple line in the disclaimer solves the entire debate. Something clear, honest and respectable like: “This book was developed with the assistance of AI tools for drafting and refinement under full creative direction of the author.”
And for most indie authors? Readers won’t care. Readers care about a good story.
AI Levels the Playing Field for Writers Who’ve Been Shut Out
One thing the loudest critics overlook is this: AI makes writing accessiblein ways the industry never did.
I’ve worked with:
- dyslexic writers
- writers with ADHD who can’t hold structure
- older writers who struggle with physical typing
- storytellers whose ideas run ahead of their ability to capture them
- writers for whom English is a second or third language
- people with incredible voices but low technical skill
AI doesn’t replace them, it frees them. It gives them a way in and the chance to build the stories they always had but never had the tools to express.
If the literary community can’t celebrate that? We’ve lost the plot.
So How Should Indie Authors Use AI?
Not as a shortcut, a magic wand or as a way to outsource creativity. Use AI as the:
- assistant who helps you brainstorm
- analyst who spots patterns
- technician who tidies your grammar
- sounding board that never gets tired
- drafter that gives you clay instead of a brick wall
And then you (the author) take that clay and sculpt the book. The story, emotion and meaning still comes from you. AI can accelerate, refine and support but it cannot replace the heart of a writer, and that’s all readers truly care about.
If You Want to Be Competitive, Learn the Tools — Don’t Fear Them
Indie publishing is already tough. Margins are tight, marketing is relentless and editing costs can break new authors. Then there are those deadlines that slip because life gets in the way.
AI is not the enemy here. Inefficiency is. Isolation is. Fear is.
AI won’t turn you into a master storyteller but it will remove the obstacles that stop you from becoming one and in a crowded market, that kind of advantage matters.
The Bottom Line: You don’t have to use AI. You’re not obligated to like it. But if you shame writers for using tools that make their creative lives easier — you’re not protecting the craft. You’re gatekeeping it.
Writers should be lifting each other up, not policing the method someone uses to get words on the page.
At the end of the day, readers want good stories. They don’t care if you typed it, dictated it, drafted it with AI, or wrote it on the back of a serviette during your lunch break.
What matters is that the story lives. That it connects. That it finds its way into the world.
How you get there? That’s your process — and it’s valid.
Always.