On AI Reshaping Writing Careers (And Why Basic Skills Won't Save You)
The Red Queen Effect, borrowed from evolutionary biology, describes a simple truth: you have to keep running just to stay in place. It comes from Lewis Carroll's Through the Looking-Glass, where the Red Queen tells Alice: "It takes all the running you can do, to keep in the same place." Today's writers and copywriters are living this reality as AI reshapes what it means to write for a living.
The ground is shifting beneath our feet
A recent Boston Consulting Group study found that the average half-life of skills is now less than five years today, and in some fast-moving tech fields it can be as low as 2.5 years. For writers, this timeline feels even more compressed. Generative AI didn't gradually seep into the industry - it exploded onto the scene, and the reverberations are still being felt.
Consider the story of Benjamin Miller, a managing editor who watched his entire world change in a matter of months. In 2023, Miller oversaw a team of 60 writers and editors creating blogs and articles. Then the company introduced AI content generation to cut costs. Within a few months, the process advanced to full automation of first drafts - the AI would write entire articles, and most of Miller's writing staff were laid off. By early 2024, Miller's entire team was gone - he alone was left to churn through AI-written documents, cleaning up awkward phrasing and formulaic errors. As Miller put it: "It started to feel like I was the robot."
This isn't an isolated incident. A 2023 study of a freelancing platform found that copywriters and graphic designers saw a significant drop in job bookings and even steeper declines in earnings within just a few months after ChatGPT's launch. Tellingly, even highly-rated, experienced copywriters were not spared - being more skilled did not protect them from losing work to AI.
AI skills: the new table stakes
We're rapidly approaching a point where AI literacy is becoming the baseline expectation for writers alike. As one popular maxim puts it, "AI will not replace you, but a person using AI might."
A recent experiment at a consulting firm gave some employees access to GPT-4 and observed the results. Those using AI completed 12% more tasks, 25% faster, with higher quality output on average compared to peers without AI. The productivity gap is real, and it's widening.
But here's the uncomfortable truth many in the industry don't want to acknowledge: once everyone has access to these tools, the competitive advantage disappears.
We're seeing this play out already. As soon as a new AI-driven improvement emerges, it raises the standard for everyone, compelling others to adapt in response. In effect, innovation becomes necessary just to maintain market position.
This is the Red Queen effect at work: when spell-check became standard, good spelling stopped being a differentiator - it became expected. When word processors replaced typewriters, typing speed mattered less than editing skills. Now we're at another inflection point, but this time the stakes are higher because AI can actually write, not just help you write.
The work displacement reality check
Let's not sugarcoat this: displacement is happening, and it's not just affecting "low-skill" writing jobs. A PriceWaterhouseCoopers analysis predicts that by the mid-2030s, up to 30% of jobs could be at risk of automation by AI, with lower-education roles facing even higher risk. For writers, this timeline feels optimistic.
40% of companies surveyed plan to cut staff where tasks can be automated by AI. We're already seeing this in action. Routine content production - the bread and butter of many writing careers - is increasingly automated. Product descriptions, social media posts, email campaigns, basic blog articles: all can now be generated in seconds rather than hours.
The writers who remain are often relegated to what one BBC report called "a hidden army of editors" - people tasked with making AI output sound human. It's a soul-crushing shift. As one commentator noted, if AI takes over tasks that people found meaningful, workers can experience a loss of purpose. Work is about more than a paycheck; it often provides identity and satisfaction.
The AI upskill fatigue and burnout trap
Here's where the Red Queen Effect becomes particularly cruel for writers. Many are finding themselves in Miller's position: their creative work has been reduced to fixing AI mistakes. They're caught in a trap where they're neither fully human writers nor AI operators - they're something uncomfortable in between.
The psychological toll of feeling "never good enough" or constantly needing to chase the next skill can be significant. The pressure to always 'upskill' or fear of being replaced by a machine can lead to anxiety. Continuous learning is positive, but the accelerating pace leaves little time to consolidate one's expertise before moving to the next thing.
This isn't sustainable. When your job becomes eliciting and editing AI output all day, checking for the same repetitive errors, adding "human touches" to formulaic content (notably, replacing em-dashes with en-dashes or hyphens), you're not writing - you're performing quality control. It's no wonder burnout rates are climbing among content professionals who've made this transition.
We're approaching the point where basic AI usage becomes so universal that it stops being a differentiator. Just like spell-check, just like Google search, just like social media marketing or Grammarly, AI will become table stakes.
Routine writing tasks (legal boilerplate, formulaic marketing emails, generic product descriptions, simple press releases) are increasingly automated. Relying solely on being able to churn out high volumes of average content is a diminishing strategy - AI can do that at superhuman speed and low cost.
When everyone can prompt ChatGPT or Claude to write decent copy, what is valuable? Well, the same things that have always been valuable in writing, but now amplified and elevated to a new baseline expectation: expert intuition, original thinking, unique personal perspective, strategic insight, and the ability to create something truly compelling.
The skills that will actually matter
Human creativity, especially the ability to generate original ideas, stories, and campaigns, remains inimitable. But creativity alone isn't enough anymore. The writers who thrive will be those who can:
- Master AI collaboration, not just AI usage. There's a difference between typing prompts into ChatGPT and truly understanding how to work with AI as a creative partner. Savvy writers are learning to "write with AI" - using tools as collaborators. This means knowing how to craft effective prompts, how to guide an AI to adopt a certain tone or style, and how to spot and correct AI weaknesses.
- Develop domain expertise that AI can't replicate. Write from your personal experience to offer a unique human voice AI couldn't replicate. By doubling down on authenticity and personal perspective, you can become relatable and relevant for the readers.
- Expand beyond pure writing. Copywriters are evolving into content strategists, marketing consultants, or multimedia storytellers. The idea is to provide value in ways AI cannot: understanding client needs, brainstorming campaign concepts, connecting the dots between content and business strategy.
The uncomfortable truth about the future
Here's the part that might make you uncomfortable: the future of writing careers isn't about competing with AI or even working alongside AI. It's about becoming the kind of professional who can direct AI, curate its output, and add the strategic and creative elements that only humans can provide.
Yes, AI will potentially take your job but at the end of the day it means we can shift into higher value work. This is comforting, but the key word is "can." It's not automatic or guaranteed. The transition requires intentional skill development, specialization and strategic positioning.
The writers who thrive will be those who treat learning as an ongoing part of their career. This might mean routinely exploring new tools, staying updated on industry trends, and being ready to pivot to new content forms, while strategically using AI to deliver quality content faster.
Those who understand this and adapt now will find opportunities. Those who don't may find themselves in Miller's position: the last human in the room, editing AI output and wondering how they got there.
