Large language models like ChatGPT and Gemini seem to craft thoughts and sentences out of thin air.
鈥淚f you've ever used one of these tools, it feels like magic,鈥� said Matt Weinkam, executive director of Literary Cleveland, a nonprofit that helps develop writers and amplify voices in the community.
But the term 鈥渁rtificial intelligence鈥� is misleading, Weinkam said, because it gives the impression that these large language models actually have intelligence.
They aren鈥檛 responding to prompts with original thoughts. AI compiles responses based on writing that already exists somewhere online.
In order to train LMMs, AI companies like Meta and OpenAI have without permission or compensation, of fair use.
The harm from this has already affected Cleveland authors.
Thrity Umrigar, Dan Chaon, Paula McClain, Claire McMillan, Connie Schultz and are just a few names on a growing list of local writers who鈥檝e had their work used by AI companies without permission, Weinkam said.
鈥淣ot only does that mean that you could prompt (AI) to write a Dan Chaon novel for you, which raises all sorts of ethical concerns, but also it means that their work was used without pay,鈥� Weinkam said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 a way of extracting value that would have stayed in Cleveland.鈥�
Northeast Ohio writers and educators are contending with both the challenges and possibilities with AI as well as what this changing landscape may look like for the next generation of creative minds.
An author's view
Dan Chaon is the best-selling author of novels such as 鈥淎mong the Missing鈥� and 鈥淚ll Will.鈥�
Out of curiosity one day, he asked AI to write a story 鈥渋n the style of Dan Chaon.鈥�
鈥淎nd it did. And I was extremely insulted,鈥� Chaon said. 鈥淚t was like if someone had rendered a very stereotyped and cartoonish version of the kinds of things I write about 鈥� I mean, it had all my books that it could put in a blender. And that鈥檚 exactly what it did.鈥�
Chaon is one of many writers who are part of a lawsuit filed in late 2024 against the AI company Anthropic. The lawsuit alleged Anthropic pirated copies of published books 鈥� including six by Chaon 鈥� and used the text to train its AI chatbot, Claude.
鈥淔rom an author's perspective, there's an element of, 鈥楬ere is this theft that happened and somebody's making a lot of money off of stealing from artists,鈥� which is not cool,鈥� Chaon said.
In Sept. 2025, Anthropic . That amounts to about $3,000 each for an estimated 500,000 books included in the settlement.
Beyond plagiarism and compensation for work, Chaon said he is concerned AI will drastically change a reader鈥檚 relationship with an author as a person.
鈥淚 think most people turn to novels and turn to art for, you know, spiritual sustenance and to learn about the world and learn about other people. And that's something that AI just can't do,鈥� he said.
In the classroom
Mary Biddinger, a poet and flash fiction writer in Akron, agrees.
鈥淚 can't imagine there being good novels or good poetry written by AI. The whole point is that there's a person's own vulnerability behind it,鈥� she said.
She too discovered her work in online databases that were used to train AI chatbots.
鈥淭he sort of mystery of texts being taken where they don't belong has been an ongoing thing,鈥� she said. 鈥淚 feel it's very unethical, but also there's nothing I can do about it. I think that the best thing I can do is make people appreciate books.鈥�
Biddinger is chair of the English department at the University of Akron and professor of fiction and poetry writing. She鈥檚 also the program director for the Northeast Ohio Master of Fine Arts in Creative Writing program.
Biddinger developed an AI policy for her classes around ethics and why a student might decide to use it. If students choose to engage with AI beyond basic background research for a story, such as using it to generate words, there must be acknowledgement.
So far, Biddinger said her students have interest in writing about technology and how it can be good or bad, but they want to write with their own original words. Many even prefer writing the old-fashioned way 鈥� with ink and paper.
鈥淭he students have a lot to say, and they want to say it. And I'm so grateful for that,鈥� she said.
Writing is community
At Literary Cleveland, Matt Weinkam sees the organization鈥檚 role as helping to educate writers about AI and possible implications around using it.
鈥淎nd the hard part, I think, is how do we help call people in instead of call them out?鈥� he said.
Weinkam is working with instructors to develop classes that will examine what AI is, how it works, what the harms are and how to engage with it responsibly.
The classes are for both people who are skeptical and who might be interested in using AI, so the writing community can navigate an uncertain future together.
鈥淚f ChatGPT gives you feedback on your writing, they're not going to show up to your launch party when that book comes out,鈥� Weinkam said. 鈥淏ut when you write in a community of people and get that feedback with other human people, they become part of your larger network. And they inspire you and challenge you in ways that these tools never can.鈥�
