[People Met Through Books] Emergence of AI Authors Brings Major Changes to Publishing Industry... Human Roles Will Not Be Reduced

Great Interest, Reprints and Media Interviews Flood In
ChatGPT Author Publication...New Attempts Raise Misinformation Concerns
May Offer More Advantages Like Broad Idea Generation

"Life is a journey full of twists and turns without a clear destination. (...) The good news is that there are many paths to discover the purpose of life, and it is never too late to start." - Prologue written by ChatGPT

"I hope this book helps you find and achieve your life's purpose (...) By staying true to your values and goals, you can create a meaningful, fulfilling life that aligns with your true self." - Epilogue written by ChatGPT

These are excerpts from the book written by ChatGPT titled 45 Ways to Find Life’s Purpose. The AI (artificial intelligence) author opens the book to human readers and talks about life, and more broadly, the purpose of life. The advice spans as many as 45 different ways, as the title suggests.

This life story is conveyed by an AI that, unless access is blocked, lives eternally and encompasses various lives, to humans who live short but unique lives. Who made this unusual idea a reality? It is none other than Seo Jin, CEO of Snowfox Books. Snowfox Books is the Korean affiliate of Snowfox Group, led by Korean-American Chairman Kim Seung-ho (author of the book The Nature of Money). Seo Jin, who started as a marketer, worked as an editor, ran an unprecedented review-based marketing company with a readership base of 25,000, and has been in the publishing industry for 18 years as CEO of Snowfox Books, said he planned ChatGPT’s book out of pure curiosity. Questions like "Can information be gathered to naturally persuade people?", "Can it write better than an expert author?", and "Can it even design the cover by itself?" motivated him to take on the challenge.

Based on the English proposal Seo provided, the AI wrote the text, performed proofreading and editing, and chose the cover. The human planner only made very limited corrections, such as unifying colloquial expressions into formal writing. The final manuscript was completed in 38 hours, and physical book sales preparation was finished in 7 days. Two days after distribution to bookstores, on the 24th, Seo Jin was asked about the book authored by ChatGPT.

Seo-jin, CEO of Snowfox Books.

- The book attracted great attention even before publication. It was released on the 22nd; how has the response been?

▲Over 50 media outlets covered it in articles, and multiple terrestrial broadcasters have requested interviews. The book was published on the 22nd, and pre-orders from distributors exceeded the first print run. Currently, a second print of 4,000 copies (as of the afternoon of the 24th) is underway. Several agencies in China have also inquired about the publishing rights. However, since it was originally intended for industry insiders and related professionals, no separate marketing campaign is planned.

- You published a book with ChatGPT as the author. I heard this is a globally new attempt for a standalone book.

▲I strongly felt that "we have to try it." Also, with AI coming so close to us, I personally needed answers about what skills will be required in the future world. I wanted to clearly see how various newly emerging AIs will be used in our daily lives. I took on the role of project leader to test whether a work traditionally done by specialized professionals in book publishing could be replaced by AI, and if so, to what level of quality. When we started, ChatGPT’s participation was only confirmed as a co-author of academic papers, but after publishing, I found a few cases overseas where it was registered as a sole author. However, this book is the only case where all workers except one human planner were replaced by AI.

- I heard you presented your original plan to ChatGPT to guide the writing. Can you tell us about the production process?

▲I provided a self-development plan that was not just based on simple information or data but aimed to see if it could move people emotionally and foster empathy. To help ChatGPT understand the table of contents well, I made slight modifications and translated it using an AI translator. A human checked the accuracy of the translation, and the English questions were then input into ChatGPT. I told ChatGPT that it was writing a book titled 45 Ways to Find Life’s Purpose, revealed the theme of each chapter, and requested a preface. The main text was also created by inputting the chapter themes and table of contents text. To get good writing, I did not repeatedly question ChatGPT. The planner only participated in proofreading to check for mistranslations or content straying from the theme. No corrections or deletions were made.

- You expected about 5,000 characters per chapter but only got 3,000, and that was in English; the Korean result was only about 1,000 characters?

▲For a paper book, a persuasive argument within one section usually requires about 3,000 to 5,000 characters. However, ChatGPT generated only about 3,000 characters per chapter in this project. It was insufficient for deep reading as it did not produce the desired length.

- AI handled writing, cover design, proofreading, and editing. It took 30 hours, and the physical book was produced in just 7 days?

▲The manuscript was generated over two days, the 14th and 15th, and proofreading for mistranslations or errors was done on the 16th. Printing started on the 17th, and the books arrived at our logistics center on the 21st. Distribution began on the 22nd, and as of the morning of the 23rd, the second print run is underway.

- There are concerns about misinformation and copyright infringement.

▲Our society is facing the current situation of AI-generated writing for the first time. Ten years ago, individual awareness of copyright was very low, but now it has improved and is well established. Similarly, standards, laws, social awareness, and principles regarding copyright will be set through legal provisions and various elements from interest groups and authoritative organizations. It will take time for individuals using AI to adopt attitudes that do not hide sources or claim AI-generated content as their own, but rather disclose citations and usage scope.

- How do you predict the changes ChatGPT authorship will bring to the publishing industry?

▲Overall, I think the advantages will outweigh the disadvantages. It can provide authors with a wide range of ideas and clearly raise the quality and direction of writing. For one-person publishing companies lacking manpower, it can also handle planning and simple translation tasks. People who have considered typo checking or simple proofreading as the editor’s domain will eventually have to give way to AI in the long term. However, books planned relying heavily on ChatGPT or those listing ChatGPT as the primary or sole author will likely not sustain continuous reader interest.

- Will the roles of human authors and editors gradually diminish?

▲I do not think the role of human authors will diminish. Although there may be a mixed market for a while, the unique domain of authors will rather develop further and produce more solid results. As publishers become more selective in manuscript choices, only authors with clear messages to convey to the public will survive. As more carefully selected books are published, the necessity of books for readers will increase.

- Are you considering follow-up works by ChatGPT as an author?

▲Whether as a sole author or co-author, I am not thinking about other books written by ChatGPT. I plan to accelerate new and better projects.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.