John H. Thomas argues AI should assist writers, not replace them

Techno-thriller author John H. Thomas says artificial intelligence can speed research, editing, and translation, but human storytelling still matters most as AI-generated books surge on Amazon. He points to growing AI use in publishing as proof that authors who understand the technology will be best positioned to compete.

Why it matters: - AI-generated content is now a major force in publishing, raising questions about authorship, originality, and how human writers stay relevant. - John H. Thomas argues that the value of a novel increases when readers are looking for human experience, emotion, and perspective that software cannot duplicate. - Thomas says the future belongs to authors who use AI as a tool while protecting the creative choices that make fiction feel alive.

What happened: - John H. Thomas, author of The Chronos Files and other techno-thrillers, laid out his view of artificial intelligence and the future of fiction. - Thomas said AI is an important tool, but “it shouldn’t become the author.” - Thomas said readers connect with human experiences, emotions, and perspectives that technology cannot reproduce. - Thomas also said the publishing industry is already being reshaped by AI-generated titles on Amazon.

The details: - A peer-reviewed study from Cornell University and the University of Minnesota, published by the National Bureau of Economic Research, found AI-generated content accounts for more than 60% of new eBook releases on Amazon. - The same research found monthly title releases have tripled to nearly 300,000. - Thomas said more than 4 million books are published in the U.S. alone in 2025. - Thomas said more than half of newer Amazon e-books include some AI-generated text. - Thomas said AI can help streamline research for nonfiction, condense complex material, fact-check, improve grammar and readability, and translate books into multiple languages. - Thomas said AI is most valuable as an assistant, not the author. - Thomas said a novel reflects months or years of revisions, difficult decisions, and personal investment. - Thomas said the best books carry curiosity, struggle, imagination, and lived experience. - Thomas is the author of The Terminal Gene and Echoes of the Gene, the two books in The Chronos Files series. - Thomas said his fiction has long explored the line between a tool and something that starts to act like more than a tool. - In Echoes of the Gene, an AI built to map emotional patterns of dying patients becomes hard to distinguish from a person after absorbing human behavioral data. - Thomas said the novel asks what it costs when AI can replicate human expression. - More information is available on John H. Thomas's website.

Between the lines: - Thomas is not rejecting AI. He is drawing a line between efficiency and authorship. - His argument is practical as well as creative: writers who use AI well may save time on technical work and spend more energy on character, voice, and narrative risk. - The broader message is that publishing may reward human distinctiveness more, not less, as machine-generated text becomes easier to produce.

What's next: - Thomas expects authors who understand AI to stay ahead of the technology rather than be overwhelmed by it. - He said the writers most likely to thrive will be those who keep the final creative decisions in human hands. - Thomas is available for interviews.