Could the next great author be a robot? We asked the (human) writers.

At the PEN America Literary Awards, David Sedaris, Judith Thurman and others discussed the role of A.I. could star in literature.
On Thursday evening, more than 1,000 writers, presenters and guests gathered for the PEN America Literary Awards at City Hall near Times Square. Just before 6 p.m., the staff set up a little red carpet for what was called the Oscars for Books.
Slowly, luminaries from the world of literature and entertainment — Susan Choi, Jennifer Finney Boylan, Lorne Michaels, Diane Sawyer — arrived. Attendees posed for photos and spoke to the press before slipping away to sip drinks and mingle. At the ceremony, hosted by actor Kal Penn, the literary and free speech organization PEN America honored the best writing of the previous year and awarded more than $350,000 in prizes.

Percival Everett won the prestigious PEN/Jean Stein Award for his novel "Dr. No," and Erika Dickerson-Daspenza and Vinod Kumar Shukla received Professional Achievement Awards. Tina Fey received the PEN/Mike Nichols Writing for Performance Award.
The crowd wore Barbie neon pink, flowers on the lapels, feathers in their hair, at the minus a gold bolo tie and lots of velvet, sequins and sparkles. They accessorized with buttons that said "Free the Books".
ImageComedienne Tina Fey outside the 2023 PEN America Literary Awards where she received the PEN/Mike Nichols Writing for Performance Award. Credit...Rebecca Smeyne for The New York Times
Amid the buzz around the awards and questions about what they're currently reading, we asked attendees about the future of literature, especially the potential role that artificial intelligence could play.
Recently, the editors of three science fiction magazines have said they were inundated with AI-generated fiction submissions. Students use ChatGPT to write term papers and some teachers use it as a learning tool. People use A.I. to flirt on dating apps and write their wedding vows. A few years ago, at least one novelist started using "home-made software" as a tool in his writing process. (One of the PEN Awards presenters, MSNBC's Ari Melber, even said he used ChatGPT to write part of his speech.)
ImageGeena Rocero, presenter at the 2023 PEN America Literary Awards. Credit...Rebecca Smeyne for The New York Times

Fashion Mar 5, 2023 0 20 Add to Reading List

Could the next great author be a robot? We asked the (human) writers.

At the PEN America Literary Awards, David Sedaris, Judith Thurman and others discussed the role of A.I. could star in literature.

On Thursday evening, more than 1,000 writers, presenters and guests gathered for the PEN America Literary Awards at City Hall near Times Square. Just before 6 p.m., the staff set up a little red carpet for what was called the Oscars for Books.

Slowly, luminaries from the world of literature and entertainment — Susan Choi, Jennifer Finney Boylan, Lorne Michaels, Diane Sawyer — arrived. Attendees posed for photos and spoke to the press before slipping away to sip drinks and mingle. At the ceremony, hosted by actor Kal Penn, the literary and free speech organization PEN America honored the best writing of the previous year and awarded more than $350,000 in prizes.

Percival Everett won the prestigious PEN/Jean Stein Award for his novel "Dr. No," and Erika Dickerson-Daspenza and Vinod Kumar Shukla received Professional Achievement Awards. Tina Fey received the PEN/Mike Nichols Writing for Performance Award.

The crowd wore Barbie neon pink, flowers on the lapels, feathers in their hair, at the minus a gold bolo tie and lots of velvet, sequins and sparkles. They accessorized with buttons that said "Free the Books".

ImageComedienne Tina Fey outside the 2023 PEN America Literary Awards where she received the PEN/Mike Nichols Writing for Performance Award. Credit...Rebecca Smeyne for The New York Times

Amid the buzz around the awards and questions about what they're currently reading, we asked attendees about the future of literature, especially the potential role that artificial intelligence could play.

Recently, the editors of three science fiction magazines have said they were inundated with AI-generated fiction submissions. Students use ChatGPT to write term papers and some teachers use it as a learning tool. People use A.I. to flirt on dating apps and write their wedding vows. A few years ago, at least one novelist started using "home-made software" as a tool in his writing process. (One of the PEN Awards presenters, MSNBC's Ari Melber, even said he used ChatGPT to write part of his speech.)

ImageGeena Rocero, presenter at the 2023 PEN America Literary Awards. Credit...Rebecca Smeyne for The New York Times