Writers Reject Being Asked About AI

In a personal essay published June 29, 2026 on his own site, writer Benjamin Hollon says that for roughly three years, being asked "So, what do you think about AI?" by nearly every new acquaintance has been "severely harming" his motivation to write. His stated boilerplate answer is: "I have serious technical, professional, and ethical concerns with the development and use of AI." Hollon writes that current AI systems are "nowhere near the quality of writing serious authors reach," describes "systemic harm" the technology has caused to his craft, and says he is exhausted by repeating the same conversation with people who, he writes, often pivot to seeking validation for their own AI use. He argues AI "can't replace human art," predicts that if companies fire writers over AI, displaced writers will keep publishing outside commercial systems, and cites the NaNoWriMo organization's backlash and eventual shutdown - after it called AI criticism "classist and ableist" - as his motivation for starting a separate community project, Writing Month. The essay was reposted to the community discussion site Tildes, where it had drawn 7 votes and no comments as of this writing.

Companies building AI writing tools operate inside this same recurring social dynamic: one-on-one requests for validation from AI users tend to harden, rather than soften, skepticism among the creators whose work trained or competes with those tools. Essays like this one function as an informal signal for toolmakers and researchers about attribution, consent, and compensation concerns that are otherwise easy to miss in aggregate adoption metrics.

This is a single writer's opinion essay, not a survey or study; treat the sentiment as illustrative of one strand of creator opinion rather than representative data. Relevant indicators to watch for going forward include creator-organizing efforts such as Hollon's own Writing Month project, platform policy changes on AI attribution or licensing, and whether AI toolmakers begin directly engaging working writers on design and compensation.