07/10/2026
I recently joined a local FB reader group that inevitably has authors, too, and local businesses. I was really excited to be part of it and get to know others in it. Unfortunately, the group released their AI stance (slash non-stance) and after careful thought, I've decided to exit the group quietly.
I'm sharing this here not to stir up drama, but to once again reiterate my stance on AI given there is so much happening in publishing around this disruption.
I do not desire to work with authors who use generative AI to write their books.
I do not desire to work with authors who create book covers with AI to market their books.
Generative AI is theft, plain and simple.
My worries about AI stem not from using images (which is a different kind of theft but related to this conversation) or using editing software like Canva Pro but aspiring authors thinking readers want to read AI written books that they've put their byline on. I have no interest in supporting that or editing books like that.
Staying in groups that let this pass, or that think businesses who lean heavily into AI images should be accepted in the community in the same way as real, authentic photography isn't something I can support. It's not only false advertisement for a business to use generated images for a space they haven't actually built, but it makes you wonder what other corners they're cutting.
As an editor, I pride myself on doing the work on my own. I do not plug clients' content into AI. I do not want to train LLMs on their human written words. I use the existing software like spellcheck if I need it, but I otherwise rely on the dictionary and style guides related to my clients' work.
My contracts detail this stance as well and I am more than happy to pass that along to prospects if they have questions.
While it's a hard stance to come to, and maybe tags me as a Luddite to some, the reason I became an editor long ago was to work with people. I don't want to look at the writing that comes out of AI. I want to see what your ideas are and how you approach a genre. If that loses me prospects, so be it. At least I've made it clear where I stand.
