Erik Hanberg Came to Visit

 

Erik Hanberg’s talk with our class offered a glimpse into the current landscape of self-publishing in the Amazon-dominated book market. He discussed the many advantages of self-publishing for authors seeking autonomy and creative control, yet warned that this landscape is rapidly changing due to the oversaturation of AI-written books. Erik noted the current lack of a reliable system to filter between AI-generated and human-authored books, potentially undermining the authenticity that readers expect from self-published works and making it harder for genuine voices to stand out.

I asked Erik whether AI could be seen more as a tool than a threat to authorship. He believes that in its current state, AI lacks the “soul” that human writers infuse into their work. However, he acknowledged that AI’s rapid advancements could eventually blur this line and make it difficult to tell where human authorship ends and AI creation begins. For now, Erik sees effective prompting as crucial for those using AI in a supportive role. A skilled operator can use AI to enhance and complement their work, as long as the author maintains creative control. But as AI continues to evolve, the publishing world and readers may need new ways to evaluate authenticity and preserve the human connection in storytelling.