A Survival Guide for Writers in the Age of AI

Writing used to be a nice thing to make a living, but then three years ago, everything changed. You can probably recall that moment when everybody started talking about ChatGPT. Most of my fellow writers started panicking as soon as they figured out what was going on. I didn't because, at the time, I was already training another AI and spending more time on it than on writing books and articles. Then that particular LLM became useless. It produced lower-quality output and was pricier than ChatGPT, which was instantly free, and you can't beat free. It was not a nice competition at all.

The Two Phases of AI Disruption

One day, it started happening. I was getting questions like "Are you sure this wasn't written by AI?" and hearing statements like "This tool shows [whatever percent] of AI text." I got upset a couple of times. I continued working with long-term clients, but I stopped searching for new projects.

The next thing I did was to stop offering writing services and focus on proofreading, editing, and training the enemy. It worked for me, but there is a problem: I am a writer, and I want to keep doing my thing.

Meanwhile, everyone noticed that LLM writing can be spotted very easily by anyone who reads a lot, particularly anyone in the editorial or content business. You just see the same patterns appearing and reappearing countless times. It becomes obvious from the first sentence that AI wrote something. It all became boring, and clients started looking for human writers again.

But nothing was as it used to be, and I noticed the second phase of disruption. My first two new writing jobs started off lovely, but turned out to be major disappointments. Those clients failed to provide useful briefs, changed requirements after the job was done, and I knew that's all because of AI. They got used to writing with AI, and they expected me to act like one.

AI lets you change your mind as many times as you like. One prompt doesn't give you the results you want? No problem! Try a new prompt. But you can't work like that with people on a fixed price. I am not an AI, and neither are you.

Is AI Really an Enemy?

I don't think so. You can see it as one, but that's not going to help you.

AI is useful for many things. Sometimes clients don't need human-written content. I remember working for a client who produced content for affiliate websites, so I wrote about random Amazon items - including skiing equipment, cutlery, gun cleaning kits - and I am so grateful no human needs to write about those again.

Also, at some point, you notice you can do some things better than AI. Even better, there are clients who want that authenticity and are ready to pay for it.

Despite all the noise, now it is a good time to start your blog and start sharing your thoughts and opinions with the world. Authentic writers are becoming an extinct species. There is an audience out there that can appreciate that - and there are many commercial clients and companies that can't afford their SEO effort and entire internet presence being ruined with AI slop. They need you.

AI Disruption Might Be Good for Writers

Just like people started noticing AI patterns, algorithms began recognizing them, too. At some point, search engines began penalizing such content. Some writers say they were penalized for no reason, but that's mainly because they used predictive patterns. And those patterns were exactly what made LLM adoption possible in the first place.

Let's be honest: it all began before AI. For years, I've been seeing content based on templates everywhere. Websites were full of recycled, regurgitated writing. Genre books on Amazon were all the same. LinkedIn influencers all had the same voice. Most used ghostwriters, many of whom were just rewriters. They used their skills to take a book or piece that the "author" likes, and then spin it. AI didn't change that part. It only made it more obvious to everyone. And it made a new quest begin: a quest for a human writer who doesn't fit the AI templates and has something to say.

I'm not trying to romanticize writing. It is a pure fact that we humans have abilities that AI lacks. For instance, we can think, while AI can only pretend. So why do we then outsource structuring our thoughts to AI?

It is also a fact that most people will eventually stop trying to write altogether. Also, a new generation of writing professionals already depends on AI for efficiency. That's what I talk about when I say we are extinct. People are losing the ability to express facts, thoughts, opinions, emotions, or whatever in writing - and the world still needs humans with that ability.

Making a Living Writing

You'll say, "That's all nice, but how can I make money writing when competition is that powerful?" There are ways, and I'll list those that I tried and that worked for me.

Write About Things AI Doesn't Know Yet

There's something I noticed when I started learning about blockchain technology and web3. Most people talking about it don't understand it. As a consequence, AI doesn't have sufficient material to explain it. Most of the content you can find on these topics, even after a couple of years, doesn't serve the purpose, yet AI is trained on such content. A writer who understands the basics, uses their brain, and knows how to structure an article gets noticed in a heartbeat. There are more areas like that - just find one that you can master and get yourself a niche.

Share Subjective Experiences

When you ask AI how something looks in practice, the responses are somewhat useful, but lack a subjective dimension that helps users imagine themselves in the same situation. That's why so many people google "keyword + Reddit." Content on Reddit is far from high quality, but it includes tons of lived experience. People need that, especially now that many live isolated and have no one to talk to about topics that are intimately important to them.

Write on Content Platforms That Pay

In addition to freelance writing, try content creation, but don't do it like anyone else. Right now, anything that isn't LLM output gets noticed easily. People are fed with slop and need refreshment.

X offers nice incentives for writers. Medium used to do the same. There must be a few more I haven't discovered yet. Do your research and try them out.

Be an Empathetic Ghostwriter

Sometimes people don't want to write their stories themselves, not even to prompt AI. Sometimes, all they want is a listener - and their own life story wrapped up in a nicely written book. Be that nice person, and help them. You know how to do it.

Edit AI Content

Everyone wants to use AI, but no one wants it to be obvious. Now we have a whole market for AI humanization. Naturally, someone who can't write without AI isn't likely to do a good job editing its outputs, and they need you.

I just wouldn't recommend working with those who do one lazy prompt, copy and paste the response as is, then use AI detectors and want you to reduce the percentage or eliminate it completely. Those detectors are unreliable, can flag wrong segments, and can make you stuck in a never-ending loop.

Another thing I wouldn't recommend is to avoid AI humanization opportunities altogether. People use AI as assistants for all kinds of stuff, and sometimes they are happy to use AI to show you what they want, and they need you to do an improved version. In such cases, just think of their AI content as a more developed brief. The key is to choose who you work with. If the communication is good, everything else should be good, as long as you meet their expectations.

Train the Thing

There's a ton of work for English writers who can help LLMs improve. Sign up for data labeling projects on platforms such as Outlier, Alignerr, micro1, OneForma, CrowdGen, Welo Data, and look for data annotation jobs on freelancing platforms such as Upwork. Not every opportunity is great, but some definitely are.

And no worries, AI still won't replace you. Even better, you'll get to realize that it can't improve without an army of humans, and that it sometimes stagnates despite that. Any such army includes tons of impostors that use less-advanced AI to give input. Funny, but true.

Get Certified

I mentioned that many of us can easily spot AI writing at no time. There are even more of those who think they can spot AI, but they can't.

The OurWork platform arrived just in time to protect us from the "you used an em dash, so it's AI" people. Now that I'm writing on this platform, I'm pretty amused by the fact that I can publish something with today's date and show proof that it hasn't been touched by AI. Pretty sure I'll be using this possibility a lot in the future. You might want to as well.