Me, myself and AI: Writing and being ‘profoundly human’ in a time of artificial intelligence

Carmel Rickard· Jun 4, 2026 · 12:26 PM UTC ·10 min read · 0 reactions · 0 comments · 42 views

#writing #artificial intelligence #creativity #Carmel Rickard #Pope Leo XIV #Jamir Nazir #African Methodist Episcopal Church #South Africa

TL;DR · WeSearch summary

A writer reflects on the implications of using AI in their work, emphasizing the importance of remaining 'profoundly human.' They explore the balance between seeking AI's assistance and maintaining authenticity in storytelling. The article highlights the need for critical engagement with AI tools while navigating creative processes.

Key facts

▪The writer examines their relationship with AI and its impact on their creative work.
▪Pope Leo XIV's encyclical discusses the moral challenges posed by AI and the need to safeguard human dignity.
▪The writer shares personal experiences of using AI for research in historical fiction writing.

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Daily Maverick publishes from South Africa and files mainly under world. We currently carry 178 of its stories.

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Daily Maverick · Carmel Rickard

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Record

Original publisher	Daily Maverick
Canonical URL	https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/opinionista/2026-06-04-me-myself-and-ai-writing-and-being-profoundly-human-in-a-time-of-artificial-intelligence/
Publication time	Thu, 04 Jun 2026 12:26:54 GMT
Retrieval time	2026-06-04T11:01:50.269Z
Last seen	2026-06-04T11:01:50.269Z
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Excerpt method	First ~120 words (~800 chars) of extracted publisher body, fair-use limited.
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Ranking reason	Story pages are not engagement-ranked. Hub feeds use recency, with optional source-diversified chronological ordering (cap consecutive stories per source). No personalized ranking.
Publisher visit	Yes — open original
Substitutes article?	No — link-out required for full text

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Basis: Derived from the published RSS/Atom feed. Contact: [email protected]. Reviewed: 2026-07-24.

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Opening excerpt (first ~120 words) tap to expand

Me, myself and AI: Writing and being ‘profoundly human’ in a time of artificial intelligence A writer has a critical look at the dangers of using AI, and realises that being ‘profoundly human’ could mean the honesty to say you need AI’s ‘help’, but also seeing value in the creative reframing of a story to show that some questions might never be answered, even with that help. By Carmel Rickard 4 Jun 2026 Carmel Rickard is a legal columnist and Editor in Chief of the Newsletter of the Judicial Institute for Africa at UCT. Dive Deeper Speed Read Listen Dive Deeper Maybe it was the pope. Maybe an article in the most recent Nieman Storyboard. Or perhaps my recent experience trying to find a missing doctor.

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