If you go onto Google right now and research the number of books being published in a year, you may find the same article I found by Publisher’s Weekly, containing data results confirming that in 2025 there were 4.2 million books published—in the U.S alone!
While self-publishing does take up quite a bit of that number, it is still astonishing and concerning. On one hand, I can’t help but wonder about the amount of diverse stories going unpublished when there are millions of books being produced. On the other hand, I worry about the quantity of products and resources we are utilizing and wasting. The publishing industry has been known to overproduce in the production and distribution of books, leading to unsold inventory and returns being dumped in landfills, massive deforestation due to the cost of paper, and the wasteful use of toxic ink and other materials. The demand for books is raising the industry’s production and continuing to damage our environment. This demand also pressures authors to release new books at a quicker rate. And, of course, you’d think the creation of more stories would increase the number of diverse and unique stories being produced, but it doesn’t. In fact, the trending genre, romantasy, continues to produce similar concepts and stories, but that is to be discussed in more detail in a later section.
For the past year, artificial intelligence (AI) software has become a crucial part of many people’s day-to-day lives, whether it be crafting an email, editing an essay for school, or even being used to manufacture scenes in fanfiction (fanfiction!!!).
Earlier this year, a woman named Cora Hart decided to share her experiment with The New York Times. The article follows the journey of her usage of AI in romance novels, and features her writing courses as an educator, inspiring writers to embrace the assistive technology and teach them how to write with AI to increase the speed of the writing process. Hart was able to quickly write and publish around 200 romance novels and sold around 50,000 copies while utilizing a program called Claude AI. This program is known for being a “complex writing assistant,” made to provide intense writing assistance, including emotional depth, that other artificial programs are known to lack. With the current rise in AI and the ideology that writers should embrace the assistance, we as readers are more likely to come across more AI-written works in bookstores, since the concept of multiple, quickly written stories falls right into the capitalistic agenda over reading. The act of writing with AI assistance is not only damaging to our environment, but it destroys the entire concept of storytelling as an art. We as readers are no longer admiring the craft of artists. We as writers are no longer artists; we are vessels, becoming the voices of machines. This not only weakens our society’s writing abilities, but also strengthens our dependence on technology. This is creativity and art under a capitalistic ideology.
Trends are a huge factor in production sales, especially for the publishing industry. Since 2020, romantasy has been the most trendy genre that readers have gone absolutely crazy for, and have reread multiple times. As someone who enjoys reading and writing romance and fantasy, I do not say this with a bias; it is simply a shared observation in the community. I’ve seen multiple comments, whether it be on TikTok or Reddit, of people expressing the same grievances repeatedly. The overproduction of the genre leads to the repetition of tropes, plot twists, settings, character dynamics, and love stories. Some readers have expressed that every man in straight romantasy books possesses the exact same personality and demeanor. Many readers complain that stories sound way too similar and there are no unique ideas. One specific example that comes to mind is Powerless by Lauren Roberts; her trilogy was originally published in 2023, ending in 2025. This book sparked much controversy when readers realized its similarities to Red Queen by Victoria Aveyard, which was released in 2015. In fact, so many readers attacked Aveyard, claiming her work was plagiarized from Powerless—the audacity!!!
The book also contained direct quotes and identical scenes to the Shatter Me series by Tahereh Mafi. Now, I am not saying the solution is to stop writing romantasy, but rather that publishers, readers, and writers embrace other genres and unique ideas. For example, there is a severe lack of supernatural romantasy novels featuring werewolves, and with vampires recently making a comeback and Ali Hazelwood’s successful release of Bride, it would be a great time to sprinkle in more stories. Siren stories, retellings of folklore from diverse cultures, adventures in medieval settings, quest stories, or pirates! Just food for thought…
It is impossible to produce a genuine masterpiece of literature that can truly be appreciated in such a speedy time. To pressure an author into using generative AI to write their novels, or even to pressure an author into producing stories on such a short deadline, will only promise human slop. The quality of the piece will not be memorable, just as some of the novels being published today within the romantasy genre. Writing is a craft; therefore, it is the work of an artist, a creative work that cannot be forced. Susan Collins published The Hunger Games in 2008, ending the trilogy in 2010, then published the prequel ten years later, and most recently, Sunrise on the Reaping in 2025. The series contains a unique concept that has led to its worldwide popularity and success. The Game of Thrones series by George R. R. Martin began in 1996, the most recent release being in 2011, and two anticipated sequels that have yet to release a publication date. The series features unique world-building, complex characters, and political drama, and with its hit TV series adaption, it houses an enormous fandom. The point is, you can’t rush art. It’s better to take years writing a novel that’s carefully crafted into a masterpiece, than speedrun to fit high demand.
Ultimately, writing is undeveloped, creativity isn’t harnessed, and we are losing the art of storytelling. Hopefully this gives a fresh perspective and helps you engage with a new mode of thinking regarding storytelling.
Anasofia Alejandro, Pine Reads Review Writer