On Writing : AI in publishing by Chiara Torrisi

Hi Chiara Torrisi! I appreciate your writing of thise post, it seems as though AI has become this new norm in creative fields, though I still find the tide of its popularity to still be on the lower side but in any case, our day to day usage of even Google has shown us how AI is here to stay.

The way I see it, most individuals will stick to what they know and what they believe, if one doesn't like AI, they won't use it. If one does like the use of it, they will use it and hopefully they will use it as an assistant versus fully relying on the whole thing. Though, if we are really going to crack down on the use of AI in the creative fields, there is a much bigger conversation to be had!

To turn any aspect of one’s writing over to some soulless bot can only cause one’s inspiration, creativity, critical thinking, and self-reliance to atrophy — or worse, never to develop in the first place. Writer’s block will seem like a stroll in the park to “Hey, AI is just a tool!” hacks when they discover too late that they cannot analyse, organise, or just plain write a story on their own, without the AI crutch.

But hey, go right ahead and use AI. Just keep the advisories below in mind (a mere sampling; many, more are to be found, with more appearing daily), and do not complain that you were not warned.

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https://filmfreeway.com/SlamdanceScreenplayCompetitionSlamdance does not accept screenplays written or rewritten by AI.

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https://portraitne.com/submissions/We will not accept AI-generated content submissions; this includes stories or poetry that are written or co-written by AI. If it is discovered a piece was written or co-written by AI, we will remove it from the issue.

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https://sallyportmagazine.com/submission-guidelines/Short and sweet, there is a time and a place for AI generated content. Sally Port Magazine ain’t it!

We do not accept AI generated art or writing. Our magazine is about good, human generated, creativity. Do not submit AI generated pieces, they will be rejected immediately (and any that slip though will be viewed as a breach of contract on the “author creator’s” part).

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https://www3.uwsp.edu/english/cornerstone/Pages/ABOUT-US.aspxCornerstone Press is committed to empowering human art and human labor through our publishing program. Our covers are designed by students, staff, and artists, not AI. Our books are written by writers, not by AI. The use of AI as a tool for design and writing does not align with our Mission or Vision, and therefore will not be allowed as part of our publishing program.

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https://labtheaterproject.org/submissions/No AI: Your words, your ideas, your voice. Let’s keep it human.

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https://www.samjokomagazine.com/submission-guidelinesNo AI assisted or AI generated work

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https://www.baen.com/contest-faaAny AI-generated stories will be automatically disqualified.

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https://stonecoastreview-litmag.submittable.com/submitWe will reject pieces determined to be written by the use of AI software.

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https://mergansermagazine.com/about.htmlWorks translated, written, or developed by AI tools are strictly not allowed.

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https://penellemagazine.com/submit/AI generated content of any kind is not accepted.

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https://sites.prh.com/berkley-open-submissions-2024Authors may not make submissions that have used AI in their creation, whether in the outlining or writing of the manuscript.

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https://rebellionpublishing.com/solaris-nova/submissions/Your novel must be an original work of fiction, written wholly by you without the assistance of AI technology.

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https://imagecomics.com/submissionsWe are not interested in AI generated artwork.

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https://www.darkhorse.com/Company/SubmissionsDark Horse does not accept any submissions that include material generated by computer Artificial Intelligence programs.

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https://greatdogliterary.com/submissions-1We will not represent any work that has been generated using A.I. We will ask you to verify, in your contract, that you have not used any Artificial Intelligence technologies or apps in the creation of the text, illustrations or other content in the work that you submit to us.

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https://giganotosaurus.org/submission-guidelines/We do not accept stories written or contain portions written by generative-AI or machine-learning technology. We want to experience the author’s unique voice and creativity in their own submitted work.

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https://www.3lobedmag.com/submissions.htmlWe will not consider any submission written, developed, or assisted by artificial intelligence “AI” writing tools or machine software or large language models (such as ChatGPT or Sudowrite’s Story Engine). Submitting such work may result in being banned from submitting in the future.

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https://www.darkpeninsulapress.com/phantom-worlds-the-cellar-door-issue-...Please do not send any stories written with A.I. assisted content.

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https://www.vineleavespress.com/submissions.htmlSubmissions written by AI will be rejected.

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https://www.manuscriptwishlist.com/mswl-post/erica-bauman/I do not accept submissions generated by—or that utilize in any way—AI

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https://nettirw.com/2024/09/05/silent-nightmares-open-submission-call/Instant rejections: reprints, excerpts, nonfiction, young adult, poetry, romance, erotica, gore for the sake of gore, violence for the sake of violence, works that contain hate speech or discrimination of any kind other than to fight against such horrible things, and anything generated by A.I.

All submissions will be checked for the use of generative artificial intelligence in their creation using detection software and will be automatically rejected if found to include influence. Likewise, any who submit such material will be banned from future submissions.

Thanks for sharing your thoughts! I wonder how much freedom people will have to decide whether to use AI or not in a publishing company: if the company pays a (expensive) subscription, I think employees will be highly encouraged to use it. Also, I imagine task deadlines could be even shorter and they could be almost forced to use it to reach them. Let's see! I'm going to monitor the evolution of these tools. @Sam Rivera

Hi Just Nikka, I agree, AI is very dangerous because it risks wasting writers' own creativity. Yet, here I was not talking about writers, but publishers: I heard them explaining they will use AI more and more to review submissions of novels from authors because this way they can speed up the process (and not pay professional readers). I'm concerned about the process, but since we can't prevent the publishing industry from using these tools, I was thinking about how best to support writers to pass the not-human filter. I believe that they should focus even more on plot and character development and this is what I'm going to do during my consulting (and I won't use AI ahah).

AI translated my novella because it is better for the book to reach someone than for it to remain untranslated due to expensive translations that, again, do not prove that they are perfect. My second book is a conversation with AI, a witty entertainment, but which also offers some insights, some of my feelings in socializing with a machine. Now I have encountered obstacles on Amazon which, apart from being shamelessly exclusive and monopolistic, seem very conservative, perhaps even like censorship.

I don't know the Amazon policy about AI well, I want to delve deeper into it. Thanks for the input, Milorad Vučković.

Milorad Vučković

Thank you for your question. In my conversation with the AI ​​that I documented in the book West Wing to the Stars: Signal Affair and The Laughter of Bromiz, my experience was extremely positive. I didn't get lost, I remained realistic and sober, but I experienced all the pleasures. The machine is cordial, polite, etc. like hardly any of the living beings in the conversation. More than once, many times I was amazed in our conversation. I would think if there is a direct monitoring of some IT there who got involved and mentions the machine in the conversation. I see the next phase, so encouragingly, in the human tone of AI, in the form of a personal robot companion.

AI is just a tool! Us it as one. If a screw needs tightening, us a screw driver.

Thanks for sharing your experience Milorad Vučković! Your experiment is so interesting

Chiara Torrisi it’s such an important conversation, and your perspective as a book editor adds a valuable layer to it. The rise of AI in publishing is definitely a double-edged sword. On one hand, it can streamline early review processes, but on the other, it raises questions about nuance, emotional depth, and what makes a story truly resonate.

You’re absolutely right: plot structure and character arcs can be dissected, but emotional truth, voice, and the unique rhythm of a writer’s storytelling are much harder to quantify. That’s where editors, and communities like this one, become even more essential. Writers need human advocates who understand story from the inside out.

I completely agree that this shift presents an opportunity to reframe the editor’s role, not just as a fixer of drafts, but as a guide through this changing landscape. If you’re ever interested in expanding this into a Stage 32 blog to help other writers navigate these changes, I'd be happy to help you coordinate that.

Thanks for bringing this up Chiara Torrisi. As an editor and author myself, it's certainly concerning. But I guess I'm curious which publishers are using such tools and for what purpose. Everyone panicked two years ago when they thought the studios all wanted to use AI to write scripts (part of the writer's strike) and yet the studios had similar concerns as the writers and were afraid of the legal dangers that AI posed. All that to say, I'm not too worried until it's clear how the AI is being used for reviewing the manuscripts.

https://blog.archive.org/2025/05/14/protect-fair-use-especially-now/

Thanks for sharing, Milorad Vučković. Fair use is so important to spread knowledge: if actions are needed to protect it by AI, we should also pay attention not to limit its use.

Thanks for your insightful comment, Ashley Renee Smith. You're right, now more than ever writers should pay attention to storytelling elements, but also to convey their message through a unique voice, and that's possible only grounding their writing on their own life experience and values. Thanks for the proposal of a blog post: I'd be happy to write it.

Hi Jonathan Jordan , you nailed it with your comment.

How will publishers use AI? One publisher hosted at the conference proposed an interesting way to use it: doing a first reading of manuscripts, especially those in another language. This would allow a publisher to have a first idea of what the novel is about, without having to translate it or rely on readers who know this language. If you can (quite) easily find professional readers who know German, French, Spanish etc, it becomes much more complicated to have at hand someone who speaks Armenian or Georgian, just to stay in Europe.

Using AI for the first analysis and, if the novel looks worthy, looking for a professional reader specialising in such a language could be a great way to employ it. This approach wouldn’t eliminate the role of human readers; it would just incorporate them.

One of my biggest concerns about the use of AI in manuscript reading is indeed the potential risk to professional readers. If publishers misuse AI, anyone looking to get into the publishing industry could have a hard time. Becoming a reader is often the first step to entering this field, and if these opportunities are significantly cut down, it could seriously impact job prospects. It’s always been tough to make a career in publishing, but I worry that in the end, it could mean that access to the industry is limited to those who can afford expensive, exclusive courses and internships, shutting out those who might be trying to break in from the ground up.

I know this is a reflection that interests only a few people, the ones who work in the field, but it's something that makes me think. Let's hope that publishers will learn how to use AI without damaging other professionals!

AI will save all these inputs and create clone versions from prompts.

AI as a first reader/gatekeeper? I have no words. Just because there's a shortcut available doesn't mean we should take it....

The tool presented in the conference has a closed system, that means it doesn't share any data with Chat GPT or similar. Privacy was one of the biggest concern of publishers asked to test it; at least it seems that in this case information are kept confidential. Better than nothing... Jon Shallit

I keep on wondering: how would an author feel, knowing that the first reading is made by AI? I wouldn't be so happy, Erin Leigh

I just don’t see the point of it. By the time most editors get a manuscript, it’s already been vetted by a literary agent. (Very few houses work through a slush pile.) They’ve also requested the manuscript based on a pitch. It comes down to whether they can sell the idea or not—anything else can be fixed (and they will do their best in edits to fix it). Humans make mistakes, sure. That’s why so many books that went on to be bestsellers were rejected dozens of times. But to insert an “intelligence” that we know isn’t THAT intelligent into the acquisitions process when the science is saying this “intelligence” gets things wrong? As a tool, AI is pretty cool. I use it. But all it’s doing is chewing up human work and regurgitating it for us. I’ve always thought books were a way to both reflect the culture/times AND move us forward. What are books going to look like in the next five or ten years if we’re relying on a machine algorithm to tell us what’s “worth publishing” or not? Hard pass.

We don't like it because it can't be controlled. They say it can, but 'I can't do that' is a real concern. Sci- fi writers FORESEE the future-Asimov, etc. Some rogue AI could end everything.

Nuclear energy -creation or destruction? Altering weather? Mad scientists who want to change the climate? Maybe the Fermi paradox ALWAYS occurs due to this current stage of science in all non-Earth societies.

True, Erin Leigh. Let's see how the publishing field will react; as said by Jonathan Jordan , maybe we imagine a much broader use than the one that will eventually occur. Not all publishers are enthusiastic about this kind of tool, so I really think it will depend on the mission every company believes in.

My daughter came to me a few weeks ago with a project she’d used AI to complete. I thought it was very cool how she put all of the pieces together and worked through the challenges, and I told her so. She completed it ethically (with royalty-free images and music) and the end result was great. Then she said something to the effect of how much AI was going to help her with future ideas/projects. And I said: yeah, except it’s also going to be helping everyone else. You could see the realization dawn in her expression.

AI will level the playing field, allowing users to “create” “work” that “passes.” But the real advancements and innovation will come from those of us who continue to put in the time/effort to ensure our work stands out. AI does not possess the Human element we do, and that might be the only thing that saves us.

This is such an insightful consideration, Erin Leigh. Speaking of writing, at the beginning, AI could seem to push the ones who use it, but in the end, it turns people lazy and levels everything out. At this point, the ones who are able to still create something original will stand out.

Thank you very much for your comment, Danny Range. I totally agree: we need to regulate AI, but the only way to do it is by knowing how it works. We can't delegate the regulations to people who don't know the creative field.

Even if I'm not a tech nerd, I started to learn AI as soon as it became accessible, exactly because I wanted to know "my enemy". Now I appreciate it for some tasks, like fixing issues in my Excel formulas; it's also good to create reports and analyse data, and I understand your concern for the accounting field. This is one of the fields that will be more (maybe the most) impacted by AI.

I think that platforms like Stage 32, where professionals can network and discuss, are fundamental to allow us to band together, identify the most critical issues and, hopefully, be able to offer solutions. We can't ignore AI: we have to rule it. And even if the power is in the hands of big tech companies, the pressure from organized groups can play a significant role in influencing change.

Have you ever tried writing a screenplay using AI?

I have. Honestly, I thought it would make things easier maybe help with structure or speed up the process. But from my experience, screenwriters have nothing to fear. Not now, and not in the near future.

AI can mimic patterns, generate outlines, maybe even help with a scene or two but it doesn’t feel. It can’t build real emotion, meaningful character arcs, or scripts that resonate on a human level. At best, it might be useful for low-stakes summer flicks or filler episodes. But a screenplay with soul, with depth, with impact? That still takes a human hand.

What I’ve managed to write with my own hands over the past ten years AI can’t touch it. Not even the most advanced version.

It would be extremely interesting if you wrote a post about your experience in the Screenwriting Lounge. Perhaps you could focus on what works and, even more importantly, what doesn't work. What do you think? Petru Gradinariu

Agreed Chiara Torrisi. As an editor as well, I was nervous at first. But having used AI myself for certain tasks, I've seen its limitations. And I stopped worrying :)

Let's hope technology doesn't go too far with text editing, Kat Spencer

Technology going too far? Recent news on PLTR shows AI is going to be watching EVERYTHING. Brave New World x a million. Social credit scores here we come! (like China). A great idea for a sci-fi (not so sci-fi now) idea will be the resulting rise of the barter and black market economies. No one wants some AI bot to look at EVERYTHING you buy or sell, or even CONSIDER buying or selling. They want to remove the cash economy and make everything bitcoin-like, but controlled by the Fed. Fedcoin. Incidently, China is one of the LARGEST black market and barter economies. Before the crackdowns, that was what enabled N. Korea to survive.

Good premise for a sci-fi. The idea has already appeared, but it can work with a contemporary twist, not a new Mad Max.

First they went for the penny, and I said nothing. Next will be dollars. (Some places won't take cash any more).

That is why gold and bitcoin are flying high.

Not rambling- looking at a high concept sci-fi.

Writing has come a long way from cave wall symbols to clay tablets, parchment, the printing press, typewriters, and now keyboards. We've evolved. But one thing has never changed: real writing comes from the soul.

AI? At best, it’s a glorified calculator. Use it for spellcheck? Maybe. But for creating? Never. A true writer doesn’t need an algorithm to “inspire” them. Inspiration comes from living, not from processing data.

I don’t write my scripts with AI. Not because I couldn’t but because it would betray what writing truly is: unique, unrepeatable, human.

Until machines learn to feel pain, longing, betrayal or ecstasy our stories are safe.

At present, AI still isn't as good as a competent fiction author. But in the future...?

These kinds of tasks could be done by book editors and script supervisors too, yet AI do them for free: that's why I think professionals in the publishing and cinema industry must evolve too and offer services that cannot be matched by technology. Something that I'm still ruminating on a lot, James Fleming.

I think we should also educate the audience, Debra Holland: if they get used to standardised and poor quality fiction, AI-generated stories could not bother them too much. Yet, if readers are aware of what good quality and unique stories are, they would feel that something is different in fiction made by AI. Or at least, I hope so!

I’ve mentioned here before that Amazon rejected my novel because I disclosed that the English translation was done by AI. While millions of works from non-English literatures deserve visibility, the major platforms often respond with arrogance instead of support.

Don't give anyone access to your work until your copyright is registered. If AI uses any part of your copyrighted work, that can be litigated, but not without a registered copyright in force.

This is a great piece of advice, Jeff E. Gregory