Is Online Writing Dead?
That’s what my friend told me ten years ago
A friend of mine used to work for a content mill, churning out SEO web copy. He had done it since university and, for a while, along with blogging and the occasional feature article, made a living from it.
Then they cut the rates.
For his latest 800-word piece, he was paid £6, whereas before he could earn between £15 and £25. Not a lot, but as he could easily bang out four or five pieces a day, it was (almost) worth it.
But six quid was taking the piss. This is when he said to me, “Online writing is dead.”
Fast forward ten years, and my friend now runs a B&B with his wife in Wales, and writes poetry for a local arts magazine. He says he’s happier this way and actually enjoys writing again.
A few weeks ago, he asked how my writing was going. I said that online writing is dead.
He laughed. “Ha, I told you that ten years ago.”
Topics such as finance, law, medicine, gaming, tech, personal development and politics still attract vast numbers of readers. Specialised niche topics that require a human level of expertise are still sought after. And still pay.
Other popular subjects, such as travel, movies, and music, are still viable, but to do well, the focus must be on niche content. Posting holiday snaps doesn’t work anymore.
SEO content, once written by my friend, has now been replaced by AI. Even if some pieces may require that human touch to brighten them up.
WOW!
It took me 333 words to mention the word AI.
But it’s a given, isn’t it? It’s no longer the elephant in the room. The beast has been heard and is now rampaging across the room.
Sam Altman said in a recent YouTube presentation that ChatGPT 5 (the latest upgrade), “Can write an entire computer program from scratch.”
On writing, he said:
“The model produces content that is more nuanced and engaging, with fewer errors and less repetition. This makes it a valuable tool for marketers and content creators aiming for professional-grade output.”
I don’t need to explain what this means. You already know.
Already in the US, 71% of marketing and advertising teams use AI to generate content. And in truth, that’s probably an underestimate. I’m thinking more like 100%.
According to a report in the Guardian this week, the heads of 29 AI startups are already billionaires. Tech company Palantir has five billionaire executives alone, and has generated over a billion dollars in its last quarter.
That’s $33 million a day.
Big figures, hey?
Money is being poured into AI, and the main reason for investment is simple. AI software is sold to companies and governments, and it has one goal in mind: to save them money.
And what are the biggest costs in any business? Humans. Why pay someone when a machine can do it? This is why every business from McDonald's to Netflix is buying into AI. If it can save them money, they will pay big bucks to the companies that make it.
Bad news for writers. Bad news for everyone.
AI is going to create chaos in the years to come, if it isn’t already. The idea that AI will create more jobs than it burns is absurd.
These folk aren’t interested in maintaining a population's workforce. These folk are in for money; hard returns. Hard returns that won’t just focus on cutting back on staples and ballpoint pens.
Am I scaremongering?
Writers will always write, and there will always be some money in it, especially in fiction and hard facts. But the days of earning money from personal blogs, musings, thoughts, and observations are dead.
Many might think, Thank God! Finally, the market has corrected itself and saved us from the random thoughts of some groundsman in France (that’s me).
I half agree. People can only read so many childhood memoirs or anecdotes on trips to the cow market. But how about all the other great stuff people write about?
How about them?
People will always write, but how quickly will they burn out if they aren’t getting paid? It’s hard sometimes to keep going, to tell the truth. You want a bit of remuneration in your pocket.
Unfortunately, this isn’t happening anymore. The platforms and blogs that used to support us are so full of AI-written content now that there’s not enough dough to go around. The tourniquet has been tightened. The blood flow shut off. You can probably feel its icy grip throttling your latest piece’s earnings right now as we speak.
So what do we do?
Nothing. There’s nothing we can do except keep on writing. Keep writing, stay clever, be smart, and hope for the best. Or failing that, open a B&B in Wales, and write poetry.
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Good one Philip. I think AI is a tragedy for humanity, despite all the hype. It will steal the jobs from millions of people, cause huge environmental damage, and further concentrate wealth in the hands of a tiny elite. Apart from that, it's all good! 😀