Since the rise of artificial intelligence (AI) chatbots in 2022, writers and readers have pondered the ethical issues of utilizing AI to edit or generate entirely new text in novels. Some writers shame any usage of AI in the writing process, while others use it to edit their drafts or brainstorm new ideas. Safe to say, the role of AI in the publishing process remains ambiguous. 

However, since generative AI trains its algorithm through online articles, books and texts, writers should not be able to claim a work as their own if they used AI to generate text. 

This isn’t necessarily a common opinion throughout the publishing industry. The rise of AI has brought a fair share of controversy over its use in both traditionally and self-published novels. In one instance, an author accidentally left a conversation with a chatbot in her advanced reader copy, leading to harsh backlash. 

The most recent scandal in the publishing industry occurred a few weeks ago, when Hachette Book Group, one of the “big five” publishing houses, pulled the upcoming release of Mia Ballard’s “Shy Girl” after an AI detection tool noted the high probability of generative AI use. 

The controversy sparked when a YouTube channel, Frankie’s Shelf, posted a video calling the novel’s prose “AI slop.” Currently, the video sits at more than 1.5 million views. 

Though Ballard denied any direct AI usage, her novel was pulled from publication in the U.S. and discontinued in the U.K, where it had been published months earlier. The controversy sheds light on the future of the publishing industry and AI. 

It reflects a greater stress among readers and writers as more scandals reveal that some books advertised as entirely human-made actually contain AI-generated content.

Controversies like Ballard’s reflect the necessity to disclose whether AI was used at any point in point in the writing or publishing process. Disclosing AI usage in writing can also help protect authors who wish to self-publish. 

The recent influx of entirely AI-written stories published independently through Amazon Kindle Direct Publishing (KDP) negatively interferes with self-publishing authors’ ability to utilize this platform. Authors who self-publish their original works are forced to share the space with people who use AI to write several books daily, seeking to maximize their profits. 

KDP has taken a step in the right direction by requiring uploaded books to denote if the work was AI-generated, which it defines as using AI to create the entirety of the content in its content guidelines. However, AI-assisted works, which they define as using the tools to make substantial edits, are not required to be disclosed to consumers. 

This requirement can help shape the culture towards disclosing AI usage in books and reflects a necessity for publishers to know when AI is used, in order to avoid a controversy like “Shy Girl.” 

Ultimately, the scandal surrounding “Shy Girl” reflects greater anxieties amongst readers and writers alike about the influx of AI in the publishing industry.

Learning how to harness the power of AI and other technologies can prove to be incredibly helpful in the editing process. AI can have a beneficial role in the publishing industry, but authors and editors must exercise complete transparency when utilizing the tool. Readers deserve to know if the content they consume has been generated, or even edited, by AI.

Elisa Small is a staff reporter at The Review. Her opinions are her own and do not represent the majority opinion of The Review staff. She may be reached at egsmall@udel.edu.