Client Spotlight: N. Chloé Nwangwu founded NobiWorks, where she partners with underrecognized brands, leveraging science to ensure they are impossible to ignore. A graduate of Pathway to Publication, she wrote “Why We Should Stop Saying 'Underrepresented’" for Harvard Business Review.

Good morning, ,

Over the last month, I've applied to be a speaker at two conferences in October. In both cases, the event organizers made it clear that they were looking for proposals that incorporate best practices for using AI.

AI is a hot topic.

Last week, I hosted a pop-up conversation for my Writing Practice community to talk about how members are using AI. We also explored the legal, ethical, and moral issues that should be considered when using generative AI. Erin Austin often writes about the legal and ethical risks associated with generative AI, and she encourages all of us to adopt an AI usage policy.

In a similar vein, I have noticed that more and more publications are requiring writers to disclose how they use AI in their work. Ethically, this is the right thing to do because when you are building your reputation, trust and transparency are important. Legally, disclosing how you use AI helps you protect your intellectual property because it makes it clear what was generated by AI, and what was created by you. Finally, while these disclosures are not yet required by law, I suspect they will be in the next five years or so.

I'm putting together a resource that will help you develop an AI disclosure statement, and I'll share that with you when it's ready. What I've appreciated about this process is that it requires me to identify every AI tool I use, and it has allowed me to think through how I use those tools and what guidelines I want to put in place to govern that usage.

For example, I sometimes use Claude to analyze my articles, identify areas of weakness, and poke holes in my arguments. But generative AI is an electricity hog, and using it conflicts with my personal values. To alleviate the resulting cognitive dissonance, I decided to do three things:

1. I made a list of all the ways I will permit myself to use Claude.
2. I decided not to purchase a paid subscription for generative AI.
3. I committed to making a $10 donation to the Natural Resources Defense Council for every session I have with Claude.

This feels like a good balance for me because I know how easy it is for me to use Claude to follow my curiosity. On more than one occasion, I've ended up with 50 pages of notes in response to a simple inquiry.

Every one of us will have a different set of guidelines and will use these tools in different ways. I hope that by sharing my process and decisions, you will have an easier time developing guidelines that work for you.

Because there is always more than one way forward.

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"By 2026, the electricity consumption of data centers is expected to approach 1,050 terawatts (which would bump data centers up to fifth place on the global list, between Japan and Russia)."

~ Adam Zewe, MIT News, "Explained: Generative AI's environmental impact"

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Join the Conversation

Are Pay-to-Play Opportunities Legitimate?

Some are legitimate. Some are thinly disguised money grabs. Some are simply fraudulent. In this LinkedIn post, I identify three types of pay-to-play opportunities and offer a few tips to help you separate the good from the bad and the ugly. Join the conversation.

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Recommended Resource

Intellectual Property Inventory

I developed this intellectual property inventory spreadsheet as a way to help my clients create a cohesive body of work. I recently updated it to include a place to capture notes about whether and how you used AI. Get your copy.

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Featured Appearance

Podcast: Hourly to Exit

I joined Erin Austin in 2023 to talk about building authority by writing articles for high-visibility publications. Erin is an intellectual property attorney, and she is my primary source of information about the legal and ethical implications of AI. Take a listen!

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Upcoming Events

Pitched to Published™

Interested in learning how to write, pitch, and publish articles for high-visibility publications? Join me on Wednesday, June 11, at 11:55 AM Eastern for a mini-training on how to pitch your article or column. The mini-training will be followed by a Q+A. There is no cost to attend this monthly event. Register here.

Master Class: How to Write for High-Visibility Publications

In this 60-minute master class, I will share the SILVA Method™ and walk you step-by-step through the process I use to help my clients secure bylines in publications like Harvard Business Review, Inc., and TD Magazine. Join me at 2 PM Eastern on Wednesday, June 11. Free. Register here.

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That's it for today!

If you have any questions or would like to explore working together, please book a call. I'd love to learn more about your business goals and how I might be of service.

Take good care,

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AI Disclosure Statement: No AI tools were used to write this email newsletter.