Finding Balance in Business

As I build and grow Frazier-Rath Editing, I’ve struggled with how I can balance my need for an income and my desire to value my own time and skills in ways that companies and colleges I’ve worked for have not,…

…with my deeply-held belief that the amount of money you have access to should never determine how you’re treated, nor the quality and care you should expect.

I’m very uncomfortable with the world of transactions, especially monetary ones, considering the devastating consequences of capitalism. (That’s a topic for our book discussion in April, to which all are welcome.)

I much prefer operating on the principles of collaboration, community, as well as mutual support and respect.

So, I’ve decided that although I set my rates in accordance with the guidelines put forth by the Editorial Freelancers Association, I will always offer a “pay-what-you-can” option, accompanied by the trust in my clients that they will pay what they can, and the promise that I will never ask questions, nor pass judgment.

And I really, truly mean it.

This will allow me to do what I really love doing, while supporting anyone who is trying to get their ideas out there, no matter how much they can pay.

(I also decided that I’m ok with the idea that there will be people who find this naive, stupid, or bad business. I don’t really care. I live very seriously by the idea that you should live the way you want the world to be.)

So, if you think you can’t afford someone to…

• help you fix your resume;

• support you as you write that article or book you weren’t sure you could write;

• perfect that last draft;

• strengthen that proposal;

…

think again.

Generative AI Will Never Produce Good Writing

I worked in generative AI for as long as I could take it, and I just think it's very empty, ultimately.

It doesn't do empathy. There are no feelings there.
It doesn't exist in the real world. There are no experiences there.
It doesn't have relationships. There are no connections there.
It doesn't have subjectivity. It isn't "subjected" to subjecthood--it doesn't live (period.) under a government (it's not interpellated), in the world (it doesn't experience weather, climate, the rotation of the Earth, the revolution of the Earth around the sun), or among people, animals, nor plants.
It doesn't emote.
It doesn't get tired.
It doesn't get hungry or thirsty.
It doesn't crave.
It doesn't remember, memorialize, get nostalgic, recall, nor does it forget.
It doesn't laugh, cry, yawn, stare, blink, get sick.
It doesn't get violent, it's can't be cruel.
It doesn't get angry, nor does it seek revenge.
It doesn't touch, see, smell, taste, or hear.
It doesn't read. It doesn't think. It doesn't listen. It doesn't "do."
It doesn't play.
It doesn't (despite what certain people invested in generative AI might think or want others to think) do art. It can't do art.

My adult life has been devoted to the humanities, and I think what keeps drawing me in is that the core questions we continuously explore within the frameworks and through the lenses of the humanities are ultimately unanswerable.

What's so addicting about it, though, is that in every conversation, in every reading of some work, in every viewing of a film or a painting, in every interaction between a human and anything, in every moment---there is something new, something expansive, and something that adds to our overall understanding of humanity.

Generative AI produces boring stuff. Sure, when it's correct, it could be informative, but it won't explore with you...

it won't go on tangents, or go down rabbit holes, or make random associations.

If you want an empty essay, a polished article with no soul, a seminar paper that proposes nothing new, a resume that doesn't speak to humans (idk--I don't want to work somewhere that will only consider my resume if it has certain keywords that feed the bots), then generative AI is fine. It's a tool, but it's not your friend, your confidant, your collaborator, your conspirator.

If you want to write something that's intense, deep, thought-provoking, powerful, persuasive, and emotional, then find a human editor with whom you can...
collaborate
experiment and test out ideas
articulate and rearticulate to get to what you mean to say
learn
relate
connect
share
build trust.

For another take, see Joanna Bryson’s work, including this recent post on their blog, which includes further resources.