Support for Indie Authors discussion

Hey all, just wanted to ask how you all feel about AI at this time!
I personally feel like Pandora's Box has been opened, and so I've decided to just jump in feet first, and see where it takes me.
Since then, I've added it to my work flow, using it to help me brainstorm and edit my works, and I find it extremely liberating and freeing.
While I still have to look over anything, and make sure it actually stays true to what I want, I find that for building outlines, character maps, and other pieces of writing I used to find tedious, it is amazing.
And using tools like NotebookLM has helped me to map out marketing strategies and consider things I normally wouldn't have approached. While I don't have a big success story to share, I do find that it offers amazing suggestions if you ask the right questions.
It's also a fantastic for trying to developmental, proofread, and line edit. So, how do you feel about AI? Are we all doomed to be relegated to the backburner by AI? Or is it a powerful creative tool that we should learn to embrace? I look forward to hearing your opinions!

I see the lurkers lurking! Don't be afraid to speak up, remember one of the best ways to get eyes on your books is to talk, and the only way to move a narrative is to include your own thoughts!

AI is a wonderful tool. It can broaden the scope of one's writing. For instance, if one's writing about an adventure at sea, it brings to mind the smell of the ocean, the taste of salt in the air, or a sea eagle soaring. The writer, though, has to ensure that the improvement AI is suggesting fits for the character the writer is developing or for the chapter scene. AI can help in reducing verb tags, creating stronger verbs and improving grammatical structure.
It is here to stay,

I'm with ya Tony, I believe it's empowering, and I know my writing has been greatly improved because of it! Thank you for sharing!

Given how many screenshots of extremely dumb mistakes and nonsense spouted by AI I've seen, I'm not afraid, and I'm not ready to trust it yet. I can imagine it could be helpful for editing, especially when it comes to grammar and punctuation, but I'm not sure I believe it might be foolproof enough.

It might be good for analyzing data - if I were far enough to consider spending money on marketing, maybe that's somewhere it could help, analyzing the results.

I can understand that. I mean if something has an error rate of 10%, it's not exactly glowing. At the same time, I have to admit I found it very useful from top to bottom. Especially when it comes to marketing, one of the main things I use it for is generating images, cuz of course I'm too poor to pay an actual artist. Appreciate it Tomas, thank you for commenting!

Surprised there haven't been more responses here, but for those curious, I did write a couple posts you might find interesting, though I admit one is like half an ad for a service I have started, it still shows you can use AI for things outside the box to help you refine your work.
This is the one I show how you can use AI to analyze your work and help you improve it:
https://sumosizedginger.com/2025/09/2...

This one gives practical advice on getting started with AI:
https://sumosizedginger.com/2025/08/2...

I hope you all enjoy!

So far my experience with using AI has been mostly positive. I started using image generators a few years back to bring my fantasy characters to life. I'd previously made cartoons of them but being able to make realistic images of them added a whole new dimension. I still had to do a fair amount of editing to the images, adding details like tattoos and correcting the dreaded AI distorted hands and feet. I use these images in my promotional material.

I also use GPT for research purposes. Most of that isn't related to my writing. It tends to be for more generalised things which I need to research. I've used it on a few occasions for writing research and found it helpful.

Awesome! Thank you for sharing Xanxa, and I feel you with correcting the images. 6 fingered hands are all well and good, if they're supposed to be that way! Appreciate you, hope you have a great evening!

Image generation for character art is something I was thinking about, but for the reasons mentioned, with weird distortions and glitches, I've been wary of that.

They are MUCH better now, the images in my post were generated using Perplexity, but ChatGPT and Gemini have fantastic image generation models as well. Do I wish I could afford a real artist? Yes. In a heartbeat I would choose a human artist over an AI one. But since I can't, these things have been absolutely amazing. I plan on dropping a link to a GEM for image generation soon, just trying to make sure I have it fully zeroed in for the best generations.

Great question. I'm a first-time author, and I did not dare use AI in any way in writing, editing, or improving my book. I did use it to help me with research - finding me full-text peer-reviewed articles. I also use it to make my social media and blog posts more concise.

I'm not sure if I'm being too cautious. I do like have AI as a trusty sidekick.

I really enjoyed reading about the themes you explore in your book. The mix of history and suspense feels very engaging.

I think it's a tool that can be very helpful, if used correctly. The thing that does worry me is there are people out there who will use it to create full novels and further saturate the market, making it that much harder for the good books to be found.

I have used AI to find out basic info and generally have been pleased with it. I wouldn’t fully trust it to help me with my own writing and still double check the facts I’m given!

Yes.

I think people use AI the wrong way.

Yes it can run a scan of the internet to see what works, study it and then create its own.

However, just because it can create one, doesn't mean it would be good. Sure, you can prompt the hell out of it, but it will still be full of nonsense or soulless as some people point out.

I like to think of it as Anvil.

You need to give it the right material, then mold it properly. People do it to edit, enhance their own prose and whatnot.

So, its a bit of a double edge sword, but as OP pointed out, Pandora's Box has been opened, all we can do now is adapt and survive.

I believe AI takes the spirit and soul out of novels. It’s a quick and lazy way to complete a work. It’s one thing to use it for blurbs and research, but to write the entire book seems unfair to those of us who put in the work. One day every painting, book, and song will be the creation of computer programs that use algorithms and key words to impress us. Dark times are approaching.

I have to agree with Tony's comment back in September. It's a great tool when used correctly. I currently make videos, music, and pictures with AI. For my story it helped me with research on minute and very niche details.
For example I wanted to know how the Seminole lived in the Everglades 200 years ago, while it was infested with all kinds of insects. It gave me a list of poultices, smoke baths, and wild herbs they would eat. Complete with sources!
I would have spent hours on google researching what chatgpt did in 3 minutes.
On the other hand, I can tell when someone has copy and pasted AI text. It does not write dialogue well, nor does it write coherent stories, people, etc. There is still a lot of work to be done from the writer's side. AI just adds some new dimensions.
What it does well is research and descriptives to help immerse your readers.

When it comes to videos and imagery, it tends to work better if you have artwork to program it to a certain style. Some of the top AI content creators themselves are artists.

It's a shame it's such a decisive word.

I've browsed many of the top book cover websites, many of them use AI. I don't understand the hate, it won't stop the terminator apocalypse.