Alliance of Independent Authors: AI Policy

The Alliance of Independent Authors (ALLi) recognizes that AI tools offer functionality that can be useful to authors in their creative writing and publishing business practices and also that there are significant ethical issues around the use of generative AI tools and the training of AI models–particularly, from our perspective as a professional association for self-publishing authors, in relation to the rights of human creators.

ALLi’s AI policy (see below) distinguishes between the responsibilities of AI developers and authors. Our concern throughout is to ensure that human authorship and creativity are respected and remain central.

ALLi promotes six guiding principles for ethical and effective engagement with AI:

• Clarity – transparency in both development and use

• Consent – respect for creators’ rights

• Compensation – fair value for creative contribution

• Curiosity – informed and critical engagement

• Creativity – human-led originality and expression

• Accountability – individual, organisational, and corporate responsibility for their use of AI

Together, these principles support a publishing environment that is ethical, honest, and cogniscent of its debt to generative AI and human creativity.

ALLi AI Policy: Guiding Principles

AI Developer Responsibilities

Clarity

AI developers must provide transparency about how their models are trained, including what data sources are used and under what terms. This openness allows creators and users to make informed decisions about the technologies they engage with. ALLi continues to lobby for greater clarity and accountability from AI companies and to support industry-wide efforts promoting transparency. (While ALLi emphasizes clarity as an AI developer responsibility, authors also have a duty to be clear with their readers and collaborators about if and how they use AI in their publishing work.)

Consent

Developers must establish clear and accessible systems for obtaining creators’ consent before using their work in AI training datasets. This includes providing meaningful opt-in or opt-out mechanisms and respecting creators’ choices.

Compensation

Developers must put in place fair, standardized processes to compensate creators whose work contributes to AI training or whose intellectual property informs AI-generated outputs.

Author Considerations

Curiosity 

Even if you feel uncertain or cautious about AI in the creative space, we encourage indie authors to approach it with curiosity; not to adopt it uncritically, but to understand how it works, what it offers, and where its limits lie, so you can make informed choices that align with your own values and practice.

Creativity 

Authors should approach AI as a tool that supports rather than replaces their unique creative vision and voice. Ethical and imaginative use of AI can open new avenues for innovation while preserving the integrity and originality of human authorship.

 Accountability for All

Accountability

Individuals and organisations are responsible for the content they publish, regardless of the tools used in its creation, and should ensure that any AI-assisted material is accurate, appropriate, and aligned with their creative intent.

ALLi’s Actions

ALLi has a broad membership with vastly different opinions and approaches to AI. We encourage our members to have an AI policy on their websites, which readers who are interested can consult.

To support authors in navigating the AI landscape, ALLi commits to the following:

• Provide the latest news and information to its author members and followers of The Self-Publishing Advice Center, to enable them to make informed decisions and to ensure they are not left behind in the use of beneficial tools.
• Raise issues concerning, and advocate against, unethical use of AI.
• Campaign for proactive and positive legal and ethical frameworks to be put in place.
• Support other writing organizations advocating  ethical and legal steps for our industry and the indie author community.
• Revisit our guidelines and policies on this topic frequently and update them as needed.

For more information about ALLi’s practical and ethical perspectives on these topics:

• AI for Authors: Ethical & Practical Guidelines – This pillar post provides ALLi’s position and recommendations on AI. 
• AI-related blog posts – Check our most recent blog posts for snapshot-in-time content related to AI.
• Guidelines for Authors to Create Their Own AI Policy – A Member resource to guide authors through the process of creating a policy based on their own stance on AI. 

ALLi Team Use of AI

ALLi Team members make use of AI tools for their ALLi work for these purposes:

• Editing and correction of errors
• First draft short documents, e.g. emails, press releases, event descriptions, podcast blurbs
• Ideation, discussion and further development 
• AI functionality built into tools used by the AI team (e.g., Canva’s Magic Studio, ProWritingAid, and Grammarly for editing, etc.