AI: Its Use by Editors

September 21, 2026

A writer makes use of the supporting tools AI provides, but she is proud to say that she
never uses Artificial Intelligence to compose her stories. Everything she writes is her own. She
finishes her latest manuscript then submits it to her agent. She is happy and content.

But her concerns about AI have not ended. What happens, she wonders, in the future
editing process? How can she be sure an editor doesn’t use AI in any of his or her edit
suggestions.

It’s a constant concern, starting with her own writing and continuing through the
complete editing process. How can she be certain that someone in the editing chain does not use
AI, which could taint her entire work and label her a plagiarist?

What can she do to guarantee that editors use only their own human talents and skills
when they work? How can she protect against robotic edits? Should she include in any contract a
provision that prohibits the use of AI in edits? And what is her recourse if she discovers that an
editor has violated that provision?

These are questions that didn’t haunt authors in the past, but they are very real today.
Time will provide answers to questions we are grappling with now. In the meantime, we’ll keep
searching for ways through the AI maze.