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Terry Freedman's avatar

Thanks for including me. Now, although I've never used AI in my writing here, I have used it for research. Also, a couple of weeks ago, I was completely stumped over a sentence that I really didn't like, even though I'd written it. AI came up with a good alternative. So, how much of a purist should we each be? I'm intending to write about this one of these days, but it seems to me that it's OK to ask AI for a bit of help sometimes.

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A.C. Cargill, All-Human Author's avatar

Certainly your choice. Best wishes.

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Terry Freedman's avatar

Does this mean you're going to boot me off your list? I hope not. All my writing is AI-free apart from one sentence I included in a review (not here) two weeks ago!

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A.C. Cargill, All-Human Author's avatar

Thanks for clarifying. You had me worried a minute there. I have you as definitely human written. Do you use AI for images, etc.? If not, I’ll include you in the AI Free Zone.

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Terry Freedman's avatar

I'm afraid I do, but only for images, not writing. You've been listing me as DHW I think

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A.C. Cargill, All-Human Author's avatar

Yeah, the whole image thing is frustrating. I can’t really call someone AI Free if they use AI generated images. But I don’t want to exclude you and other good writers. Heavy sigh. For now, I will have two lists: the “dhw” folks and the AI Free folks (I need to split the lists anyway, they get too long). No judgment or discrimination meant by that.

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Vivian Keller's avatar

I was thinking about the whole clip art issue. I do include my own photos as well and usually indicate ai clip art vs own work. It can take weeks to finish a painting. I am also a watercolor artist dabbling with the procreate paint program and purists would be non computer assisted art, where only hand drawn would be required. (I suddenly saw a category of handwritten only, calligraphy with pen or pencil …). I think for writers, those who use their own photographs or artworks exclusively are an exceptionally rare breed, so perhaps giving credit for mixed media would be good because even AI generated images are only as good as the keywords and choices made. I use a lot of my own photos and artwork but sometimes ai gives me the image that is an appropriate emotion for the writing being presented.

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Natalie Phillips's avatar

FWIW, my earlier series had AI imagery as I struggled to find the equivalent in paid or free photography and didn't have the cash to pay an artist every week.

However, all writing is and always will be AI free and I decided 6 months ago to stick to stock art or abstract creation only (made by myself; no AI).

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Nick Richards's avatar

I wrote Tranith Argan myself, 100%. I write my essays too. I hire artists for my art, or use Shutterstock for photos.

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Steve's avatar

I don't appear to be listed. Substack deluges me with emails, and I work a ton of day job hours lately. My interactions with AI are generally arguments. Unless it gets a lot better, it's a horrible fact checking tool.

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A.C. Cargill, All-Human Author's avatar

Couldn’t figure out which Steve to tag. Now I know and can add you. Whee!

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Haly, the Moonlight Bard ✒️'s avatar

I, too, am AI free...and for some weird reason at the bottom of the N-Z list 🤣🤣

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A.C. Cargill, All-Human Author's avatar

You had some character at the beginning of your name, so when I alphabetized by the first character, it put you at the bottom. I will fix in the new lists. Thanks.

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Haly, the Moonlight Bard ✒️'s avatar

Holy cats I completely forgot about that! What a fast-paced and incredible 10 months it's been here!!

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Camila Hamel's avatar

I am a fiction writer, and I do not use AI. I believe no matter how sophisticated it becomes, AI will never succeed in killing off artists' desire to create, and that we humans have natural advantages an AI will never be able to match. AI will eventually succumb to digital dementia, it's just a matter of time.

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Richard Glover's avatar

I am not a robot and my fingers show the damage from my soul finding its way out through them.

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Raegan Teller, Mystery Author's avatar

I do not ask AI to write for me. I have used it for research and to create images for my newsletter.

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Randall Allen Dunn's avatar

Yes, I’m AI free. I’m not opposed to using it but I can’t see trying to tell good stories with it. However they do it, stories speak from an individual writer’s soul, something that AI simply doesn’t have.

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A.C. Cargill, All-Human Author's avatar

I hope some day text, images, music, videos, etc. generated with any AI involvement will declare it. But we have so many people out there who don’t know the difference between you and I sitting down and thinking up a story (real creation) versus telling ChatGPT et al. to make a story of an elf eating chocolate and the AI stringing together a bunch of words in accordance with its programming.

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Thérèse Judeana's avatar

Thanks, A.C.! I know I’m already marked as dhw, but I’ll just add that I don’t use any AI images on my Substack.

I generally do my own artwork, though some of them (such as most of the Ransom artworks) are the work of Grace Bourget, jointly associated with @Stella Maris Designs. Otherwise, I use stock photos or public domain pieces (there are so many beautiful images!)

The only AI thing I can think of affecting my work here on Substack, is occasionally using the Apple Intelligence proofreader to help me catch any grammar and spelling mistakes. I’m not sure if that counts, but I’ll put that out there! My eyes skip over a lot of errors after a point, so it’s definitely a help (…when it works.)

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Rune Moen Holmen's avatar

I sometimes use AI to help me understand or learn things (like political concepts or things i dont know about our history), or to help me translate words I don't know in English. My native language is Norwegian, and as a 50 year old man I still stumble with words. I never use it to translate sentences to include, or to write me paragraphs, though I do need examples on how to spell things correctly.

I don't use AI images anymore. I have tried it earlier, but I don't like it - and not my readers either.

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Nikki Root's avatar

Thank you, A.C. You are amazing to maintain these lists! I am "dhw" but I use AI images in some marketing.

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Ross Conner's avatar

Definitely all human written. Thanks!

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Robert C. Worstell's avatar

All my writing is AI free. Thanks.

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Paul Aaron Roman's avatar

Thank you kindly for the mention

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A.C. Cargill, All-Human Author's avatar

You’re welcome. Do you use AI for text, images, etc.?

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Paul Aaron Roman's avatar

I only use it to create images for chapters in my book blogs #WonderApp and #DreamWombai

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Thomas Bubb's avatar

Yep don’t even know how to start using it !

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A.C. Cargill, All-Human Author's avatar

Me neither and glorying in my ignorance. Welcome to the AI Free Zone.

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Weapons of Legend's avatar

All of my writing is 100% my own. The only thing I use AI for is comic-style pictures of character for references and feedback of readers. For covers, I hire artists.

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