Dear Vocal Curation Team

Dear Vocal Curation Team,

I have noticed that the challenges specify that AI-generated-content is not acceptable for the challenge submissions. Thank you for requiring this rule. My honest question now is this: If AI-generated-content is not acceptable for challenge submissions, then why is it permissible for just regular submissions on Vocal that are non-challenges?

I am not trying to come across as a punk but I really am curious about the your company's thought process on this matter. True writers love to write. Writing and words just simply flow through our veins. I can see why many people succumb to AI-usage. The obvious reason is that it's easy to use. Humans are prone to anything that leads to the pathway of least resistance.

AI does not have a true soul though. People do, however. When I say soul, I mean that humans possess an ebbing and flowing, mind, will and wide set of emotions. We experience conflict in our soul sometimes. Sometimes there is a civil war of sorts raging day in and day out between our logical mind and our fluctuating emotions. AI doesn't have an internal conflict, thereby, the writing that is generated by it merely mimics human emotion. This leads me to reflect on many things. Is AI becoming more and more humanized over time? Or, are humans becoming more and more artificialized? Or, is it a bit of both. AI will never be human though.

Why do I feel like I'm competing with AI then? Well, to answer my own question, I am and I'm not, too. I am competing with AI if it comes down to views. Undoubtedly, AI-generated content gleans millions of views. Why? Because AI can study what the general public consumes. I'm not competing with AI-generated content in the sense that what I write is put out there in a free-spirited fashion. I write about how I think and feel, and this individualism is unique in it's own right.

Dear Other Vocal Writers,

Write from your heart. Thank you to those who do. Keep up all your hard work and ideas! You have a soul which comes alive when you publish your content on Vocal. Each day, as we publish new work in any of the communities, we are allowing other people to step into our psyche. Doing such an intimate thing takes boldness and continual courage. I feel proud of writers who write straight from their hearts. Your soul shines forth! Some of us write when we can't sleep. Some of us might even write while we're sleeping. Instead of sleepwalking, we sleep-write... Just kidding!

I find the themes that emerge over the years from our writing especially fascinating. Have you noticed any common themes in your writing? Any gravitation characteristics in your characters that you develop? Do you find yourself writing about the same times of things depending on the time of year? I welcome your comments about these particular questions below. I know for me I tend to choose character names that have deep symbolic meaning for their role in the story. In a lot of my poetry, I tend to focus on time, the sun, the ocean, and underlying internal struggles symbolized by elements of nature.

Personally, I don't think Vocal should accept any AI-generated content at all. I think that the curation team should flag all AI content and kindly send it sailing, complete with a sassy smile. I think that AI-content should be used for other things, predominately for research purposes, not for creative writing purposes and not for this website. AI writing tools are really making people lazy and that's just not good.