The technological revolution is advancing at an unprecedented pace. In the midst of this digital maelstrom, however, there is one habit that seems to resist the passage of time: reading. In an almost romantic and deeply analog ritual, the vertical and infinite scroll imposed by social media is replaced by words we read horizontally, capable of creating worlds and stories without limits. In turn, the production of books seems not to have changed much: with an almost artisanal process that preserves the essence established by Gutenberg's printing press more than five centuries ago. A stability that, however, has been shaking in recent times. And it is that, in addition to audiobooks and ebooks, in recent years artificial intelligence and social media are transforming the way books are written, produced, acquired, recommended, and consumed. In a world saturated with stimuli, moreover, books must compete with content designed to be consumed quickly.
These are changes that impact a traditional and cautious sector when it comes to adopting technological innovations. "The publishing industry is a traditional sector: books are understood as artistic works that must be cared for in an almost artisanal way. The maxim is respect for authors and intellectual property, and for this reason, technological changes must be introduced very carefully," assures Eva Güell, professor of the Master's in Publishing at the Universitat Oberta de Catalunya (UOC) and the University of Alcalá, and an editorial consultant specializing in digital strategy. "The publishing industry, in general, has a rather reactive attitude, almost of rejection and resilience to technological changes," adds Daniel Benchimol, founder and director of Proyecto451, a company from which he advises and offers digital strategy services to more than 200 publishers in Latin America and Spain.
"Just fifteen years ago, with the appearance of the digital book, it was asserted that the paper book was doomed to disappear and even that bookstores would be swallowed by online shopping. Today, that debate no longer makes sense: paper continues to predominate in the market," remarks the editorial consultant. This is confirmed, in fact, by the figures: according to the latest report on Reading Habits and Book Purchases —prepared by the Generalitat de Catalunya—, 67.6% of readers read on paper, compared to 32.4% who use digital formats, from mobile phones to computers or an ebook.
Thus, although the presence of the digital book continues to rise, the paper book remains the preferred format among readers. A trend also corroborated by libraries: "the paper book is an element very linked to the human experience, due to the experience it offers with the hands but also because of how it awakens thought; and currently it is being lent more than ever," confirms Ferran Burguillos, manager of the Consorci de Biblioteques de Barcelona ---in a record year for the libraries of the Barcelona Provincial Council network: with more than 12.7 million loans—. Even so, digital lending has also grown considerably, especially since the pandemic, through the platform shared by all libraries in Catalonia: Biblio Digital, which adds to the offer of well-known paid platforms, such as Kindle (Amazon) —the most used among digital readers—, Storytel, Apple Books or Casa del Libro.
A book for every person; a format for every reader
In addition to digital books, new reading formats have also proliferated in recent years: from Webtoon —a digital comic format that allows panel-by-panel reading— to transmedia or interactive readings, and audiobooks. Although audiobooks emerged at the end of the 20th century, it has not been until recent years that they have become popular, coinciding with the rise of podcasts. In fact, the best-known audiobook platform, Audible (Amazon), has just celebrated five years since its launch in Spain and is reaching record figures. According to the latest report from the company together with NielsenIQ, more than 9.7 million Spaniards have listened to at least one audiobook in the last 12 months, 4% more than just a year ago.
However, all these formats —which at one point were predicted to end the paper book— have shown that they complement and even feed back into the analog format. In fact, according to the Reading Habits and Book Purchase report, 28.3% of the population combines reading in digital and paper formats. All in all, Güell states that these different tools "have democratized reading, facilitating access to it, and allow the reader to choose, according to their economic capacity or even the moment they want to read, the format they prefer."
Thus, for example, there are even readers who consume the same book in different formats: listening to its audiobook while doing household chores or reading it on ebook during public transport or on vacation, while reserving the paper text for when they are relaxed at home. According to the Audible with NielsenIQ report, in fact, the majority of the population (64%) listens to audiobooks while performing other tasks.
And, especially among the youngest, there are signs of a promising future for the paper book: new generations tend to value the analog format and even want to collect books for their design, cover or for being a special edition. "As analog as it may seem to us today, there are more and more young people who read black and white comics, when a few years ago it seemed a format condemned to disappear," acknowledges Óscar Valiente, director of Norma Editorial. Also because reading on paper allows them to disconnect from screens and notifications: "the book manages to capture a higher degree of attention than any other cultural format, such as television, cinema or theater," emphasizes Benchimol.
Thus, the paper book has not disappeared, but has even strengthened. And libraries and bookstores have also consolidated, continuing to be the preferred purchase channel for readers. According to the Reading Habits and Book Purchase report, 74.7% state that they usually buy in bookstores, while 44.1% do so online.
More books and formats in an oversaturated market
Technological changes are therefore revolutionizing the format in which authors' texts are consumed and distributed, even transforming the consumption model: platforms no longer only offer the purchase of individual titles, but also monthly, quarterly or annual subscriptions to access unlimited content. And not only that: they are also expanding dissemination possibilities, with authors, publishers and bookstores using social networks to popularize their creations.
There are even influencers who dedicate themselves solely to creating content about literature and recommending literary works, such as booktokers (literary content creators on TikTok) or booktubers (on YouTube). "Although at first there was a lot of reluctance from publishers, as they considered that they already had their own distribution channels, in recent years they have realized the advantages of collaborating with content creators on social media, as they mobilize a very loyal community of readers," acknowledges Marta Sangrà, who confesses that she began to feel a passion for reading thanks to Harry Potter.
Sangrà regrets that social media is imposing a certain type of genre and novels: "TikTok's algorithm makes it seem like everyone is reading and sharing the same books," but she celebrates that there are still profiles on social media that choose to share and comment on different books, that go beyond the romantasy phenomenon or commercial readings. She now shares this passion with almost 20,000 followers on her Instagram (@mardellibres) —after deciding five years ago to open a YouTube channel focused on books, with content entirely in Catalan—, in addition to dedicating herself professionally to this passion she has nurtured since childhood, coordinating reading clubs, literature classes, and advising publishers.
Likewise, social networks focused on writing have also emerged, such as Wattpad or, in recent months, Substack, and some creators on these networks have subsequently become established writers in the publishing market. And, in addition, social networks also facilitate self-publishing. Years ago, authors who wanted to publish had a very difficult time: printing was expensive, short runs did not exist, and getting known among readers was laborious if they did not have the commitment of a publisher behind them. Now, however, in addition to having new platforms to publish —although Amazon is still the most used, due to the possibility of printing books every time someone buys them (print on demand)—, the Internet has also facilitated channels for publicizing creations.
All this in a market that, as the sector warns, is already oversaturated. Güell recalls, however, that self-publishing also functions as an ally of the sector, as it is a breeding ground for discovering new voices: authors like Joana Marcús or Rebecca Yarros began by self-publishing. It is true, however, that "the editor has it harder than ever to be able to discern among all the content generated on social media and that which reaches publishing houses, which are the quality texts and which are worth betting on," emphasizes the editorial consultant.
Smart stories
In the last year, however, a new technological tool is dominating the world and raising alarm in the publishing sector: generative artificial intelligence (AI). A technology that, from publishing houses, they warn could impact all elements of the literary production chain: from the writing process to translation, cover design, or access to these texts. Thus, for the first time, the fear is not that technology will affect the consumption or distribution of literature, but even the creative process itself.
"61% of writers already use AI tools and writers who integrate it generate 64% more income"
"The publishing industry has managed to survive and overcome the great technological changes that seemed destined to end its centuries-old dynamics and artisanal process. This resilience has generated a false sense of immutability. But generative artificial intelligence has arrived to revolutionize and generate a profound change in all layers of our daily lives, including publishing," warns Benchimol.
For the editorial consultant, it makes no sense to discuss whether the publishing industry should adopt AI or not, because he states that it is already a reality. 61% of writers already use AI tools and writers who integrate it generate 64% more income, as these technological tools increase productivity and streamline processes. These are the conclusive results of the Gotham Ghostwriters study, focused on the adoption of this technology in the United States. The impact is such that, for the first time, artificial intelligence has occupied a space at the Guadalajara International Book Fair (FIL), the great literary event held this week in Guadalajara (Mexico) and in which Barcelona is a guest city, with the AI Forum focused on professionals.
In Catalonia, for now, however, publishers are applying artificial intelligence mainly to optimize processes and improve the production and distribution chain. For Benchimol, AI can especially help small publishers compete with large groups —such as Penguin Random House or Grupo Planeta in the Catalan case—, as "it can streamline manual processes or those that require a lot of time." Or it even opens the door for texts to be translated into a great many languages with a few clicks or even generate the audiobook version quickly. But the professional, who advises publishers on digitalization issues, also assures that in Catalonia there are groups that already use this technology to correct texts or design covers.
And even, authors who integrate it into their writing process or who elaborate texts collaboratively with AI assistants. In fact, if we do the exercise of asking, for example, ChatGPT how many authors use artificial intelligence in their works, it will answer that, although it cannot give concrete details, there are thousands of authors from all over the world writing literary projects with its help, and even professionals in the sector and published writers.
Artificial Authors
As an experiment, and with a certain skepticism, that's how journalist Amèlia López began to write her first text collaboratively with artificial intelligence. López, who admits that she has always been fascinated by literature but felt she didn't have stories good enough to tell the world or time to dedicate to it, began to explore the possibilities of this technology. That's how, in less than 16 days, she wrote her first story: Seven Summers in Paris —in addition to an epilogue explaining the process of this experiment with artificial intelligence—, which has now become the beginning of a collection of four books, the result of experimenting with AI.
A collection in which, in each book —which takes place in different cities (Paris, London, Rome, and New York) and with new characters—, the author increases the level to understand the limits of this tool. Thus, in the second book she introduced humor —"a register that artificial intelligence finds very difficult," López admits—, in the third a very complex lexicon, with technical and medical language; and in the fourth "she touches the AI where it hurts most: memory, remembering previous conversations, because all the characters from previous stories cross paths," in addition to adding episodes of unreality.
In this process, Amèlia acknowledges having gone "from fascination upon discovering all the possibilities it offered to naturalness," and even to detecting its errors and limitations. She also states that writing a book with AI is like being a director, "because you have to constantly refine the instructions or the level of demand with the machine," in addition to continuously rewriting texts to find and express the voice of each writer. "I have the impression that I am teaching my AI to think like me and even to feel like me," López admits. Even so, she assures that the "result has not been magic, but method" and that, although AI helps to be more guided and accompanied in the writing process, it also requires dedication and perseverance, but she encourages writers to try it for the ideas and possibilities that AI can awaken in each one.
Amèlia has opted to self-edit and self-publish this first book, as publishers are reluctant to publish books written with the collaboration of artificial intelligence—or, at least, by writers who openly indicate it. Above all, due to the ethical debate it generates about the quality of texts written by AI, in addition to the possible conflicts over authorship and copyright that it entails. Who is the author of a book written with artificial intelligence? To what extent should it be indicated if this technology has intervened in any of the production processes?
And even more, these tools generate another controversy: the technology has fed on the large number of texts published for free, without having paid for their copyrights and using them to perfect a system that now endangers the work of many of these professionals, from translators to writers themselves. "The publishing industry is based on respect for intellectual property, and these tools even jeopardize the basic foundations of the sector," warns editorial consultant Eva Güell.
"Respect for intellectual property is non-negotiable because it is the raw material of the sector," warns Eva Güell
Spanish intellectual property law, for now, only recognizes ownership when it has been created by a natural person, but not for works produced by computer tools. A legal vacuum that writers' associations and institutions are fighting to solve in order to protect authors. "Respect for intellectual property is non-negotiable because it is the raw material of the sector, and legislation must advance to ensure that if technology feeds on published texts, it at least does so by recognizing and compensating its authors," concludes Güell.
Additionally, if any artificial intelligence assistant can write stories, and even texts that manage to move and excite the reader, what differentiates machines from humans? For Benchimol, biography and one's own experiences are experiences that make each human being unique, in addition to their own authorship, the signatures of writers and editorial groups that enjoy a prestige that, for now, AI does not possess. Furthermore, there are genres such as the essay in which technology is not a reliable source, since, for now, it does not have the analytical and critical capacity of humans, and in many cases incorporates erroneous or unproven information into texts.
For Güell, beyond the ethical and legal debates about AI, the fear is that these tools will also directly destroy the work of thousands of independent professionals "essential for the industry, such as proofreaders, translators or designers, in a sector that, in itself, is already precarious." For the independent consultant, it is necessary for publishers and associations to define clear usage policies and limitations for AI.
However, Güell reminds us that, despite the technological changes that are transforming daily life and the literary industry, the task of publishers and authors must continue to be the same: to write and publish quality stories that manage to leave their mark on the reader. "Technological changes force us to professionalize as a sector and to train ourselves to be alert to the latest developments, but the work of editors cannot vary: a task that is summarized in discovering new voices and authors, always guaranteeing the best literary quality; this has been the case since the first editorial groups emerged and so it must continue," emphasizes the consultant. Only then will reading continue to resist as a genuinely romantic and analog act, which opens the door to new ideas and worlds that no algorithm or technological tool can dominate.