Two years since ChatGPT first made a splash, the ripples are still rocking the writing world. Both fascinating and frightening, generative AI seemingly threatens to replace us all with blander more predictable versions of ourselves. But after recovering from their dismay, many writers are beginning to find the programs helpful. Some poets have even used it to engineer surprising art. In this talk, Laird Harrison will outline the real risks that AI poses to our profession while offering practical tips for using AI in research, ideation, formatting, translation and other writing tasks. And he’ll give examples of intriguing human-machine collaborations.

 A genre-nonconforming writer, Laird Harrison has published essays in Salon and The Nation, poetry in Catamaran and Passager, and journalism in Time and Reuters. WUNC and KQED have broadcast his radio scripts. In 2012, Verdant Books published his novel, Fallen Lake, the story of two couples who fall in love with each other. Laird has taught writing at San Francisco State University, UC Berkeley Extension, and the Writers Grotto, including a course on AI for writers.

UPCOMING MEETINGS

April 19 - TBD