I am an active member of the Authors Guild and I follow its best practices in regard to the use of AI as a creative tool.
My Authors Guild Profile: https://go.authorsguild.org/members/10772
Authors Guild and AI: https://authorsguild.org/resource/ai-best-practices-for-authors/
I use AI tools as assistants for story bibles, brainstorming, editing, and refining ideas rather than a primary source of work, with the goal of maintaining the unique spirit that defines human creativity. I use AI tools to create temporary graphics that I then take into Adobe Photoshop and edit to my own liking. These are temporary graphics, as I am not an illustrator, and I will hire professional illustrators for finalized products. I use AI tools to support, not replace, my own creative processes.
Below are our suggestions for using generative AI ethically:
- Use AI as an assistant for brainstorming, editing, and refining ideas rather than a primary source of work, with the goal of maintaining the unique spirit that defines human creativity. Use AI to support, not replace, this process.
- To the extent you use AI to generate text, be sure to rewrite it in your own voice before adopting it. If you are claiming authorship, then you should be the author of your work.
- If an appreciable amount of AI-generated text, characters, or plot are incorporated in your manuscript, you must disclose it to your publisher and should also disclose it to the reader. We don’t think it is necessary for authors to disclose generative AI use when it is employed merely as a tool for brainstorming, idea generation, or for copyediting.
- Respect the rights of other writers when using generative AI technologies, including copyrights, trademarks, and other rights, and do not use generative AI to copy or mimic the unique styles, voices, or other distinctive attributes of other writers’ works in ways that harm the works. (Note: doing so could also be subject to claims of unfair competition).
- Thoroughly review and fact-check all content generated by AI systems. As of now, you cannot trust the accuracy of any factual information provided by generative AI. All Chatbots now available make information up. They are text-completion tools, not information tools. Also, be aware and check for potential biases in the AI output, be they gender, racial, socioeconomic, or other biases that could perpetuate harmful stereotypes or misinformation.
- Show solidarity with and support professional creators in other fields, including voice actors and narrators, translators, illustrators, etc., as they also need to protect their professions from generative AI uses.