NaNoWriMo

Recently you may have been hearing some rumblings about NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month) and their stance on AI. Let me tell you, it is absolutely not a good look. This is definitely not the first time that they have had controversy in the past but this is just the newest one on a topic which a lot of book people, and the creative community in general, has a very strong stance on.

Essentially, NaNoWriMo has said that you can use AI to write. Which is one thing, but how they have worded it is another. According to their website:

“We believe that to categorically condemn AI would be to ignore classist and ableist issues surrounding the use of the technology, and that questions around the use of AI tie to questions around privilege.

• Classism. Not all writers have the financial ability to hire humans to help at certain phases of their writing. For some writers, the decision to use AI is a practical, not an ideological, one. The financial ability to engage a human for feedback and review assumes a level of privilege that not all community members possess.

• Ableism. Not all brains have same abilities and not all writers function at the same level of education or proficiency in the language in which they are writing. Some brains and ability levels require outside help or accommodations to achieve certain goals. The notion that all writers “should“ be able to perform certain functions independently or is a position that we disagree with wholeheartedly. There is a wealth of reasons why individuals can’t “see” the issues in their writing without help.

• General Access Issues. All of these considerations exist within a larger system in which writers don’t always have equal access to resources along the chain. For example, underrepresented minorities are less likely to be offered traditional publishing contracts, which places some, by default, into the indie author space, which inequitably creates upfront cost burdens that authors who do not suffer from systemic discrimination may have to incur. “

Their wording is one of the large things that is rubbing people the wrong way. The creative community does not like AI and to then say that people who don’t like people to use AI are classist and ableist is a pretty extreme statement.

Writing has always been relatively restricted in a way – back in the day you had to be able to have had the education to actually write, and had the access to someone who would publish your work. Both of these things are technically still true but there have been tons of advancements. For those with physical challenges, there are plenty of softwares out there to help you write and get your story to the page.

AI does not help you write.

It generates content for you based on prompts that you put in. And what it spits out is based on data from others – some of that data being taken from others without their consent. Therefore it raises questions about copyright infringement. But that’s a whole other can of worms.

Also using an AI to edit your work, or whatever they are trying to get at in the first bullet, is just the reality of being a writer. By allowing people to use AI’s to edit your work, or generate your art, that means other people who do those jobs will be put in difficult situations. I’m not saying the writing field is fair, but by allowing someone to use it for certain things that puts the hardship on someone else. It just passes the buck.

In another blog post on NaNoWriMo’s website they were compiling ways to help you when you are stuck and in a rut. They wrote:

“3. Use AI

It’s the first NaNo event since Chat GPT opened to the public and countless AI tools are popping up. AI can be a great way to brainstorm and spark inspiration.

As writers, we often get hung up on finding the perfect way to say something. But you don’t need to let one sentence slow down your writing flow.

Rephrase by ProWritingAid is a brand-new feature meant for writers like you. You can highlight any sentence, click Rephrase, and generate a new sentence. Shorten or lengthen a sentence, change the tone to formal or informal, or add sensory detail.

Here’s a boring sentence I wrote: “Quinn entered the dark and cold forest.”

And here’s a sentence Rephrase gave me: “Quinn shivered as he stepped into the cold, dark forest, the air thick with the scent of damp earth.”

I can build off that! Now I’m more excited to write this scene that was feeling bland.

Sign up for ProWritingAid to get access to Rephrase and more than 20 in-depth writing reports.”

It’s one thing to use a thesaurus for another word but it’s a completely different thing to have an AI write your entire sentence.

I want to read a book written by a person, NOT an AI.

The allowance of AI in writing is a dangerous slope. As NaNoWriMo is a place that many people of many ages join in on, and people do actually work to get their books published, it is opening a can of worms for the future of writing.

Do you want to read a book written by AI?