I am using AI to help me promote my work

I think I have some type of confession. I don’t even know if I should even start like this. I used AI to generate graphic design, and I kind of like it, but I feel bad. Let me start with when I felt this way, I was cleaning out my home office because my house is a mess, actually, it looks like an abandoned refugee camp.

It’s not because I’m a slob, but because I have a four-year-old who doesn’t know the meaning of the word "cleanup," and my husband, who grew up with maids and took care of his messes. Let me make one thing clear, I am no maid. Anyway, while cleaning, I came across my frame of Associate of Science degrees. What were they for? I majored in Graphic Design, Multimedia, and Digital graphics production, and I got a Bachelor of Science Degree in Digital Film making and Video Production.

In case you didn’t know, there is a major difference between an Associate of Arts (AA) and an Associate of Science (AS) degree: even though they have two-year, 60-credit undergraduate programs. Each degree focuses on key differences: AA degrees emphasize liberal arts, humanities, and social sciences for transfer to BA programs, while AS degrees concentrate on STEM, technical, and math-heavy fields for transfer to BS programs or technical careers. The same goes for a bachelor’s degree. (Just an FYI the BS stands for Bachelors’ of Science, not Bull-Sh*t). Anyway, let’s get back to my blog.

I looked at them. I remembered 14 years of struggling to finish, but the real struggle was finding a job in that field. FYI, I graduated from a community college in 2014, and to this day, I still can’t find a job in that career. I would apply, and within a month, I was let go, then I got Creativity block, it’s like writer’s block, but with your imagination. However, about two years ago, AI was introduced. It makes things a lot easier, and I’ll admit it. I’ve actually used some of those AI apps instead of doing the graphics myself. I sort of feel like I lost my talent over the years because I found a true passion: something I enjoy doing every day, more than graphic design or film, and that’s writing. I can’t think of anything more relaxing than just writing. I enjoy writing blogs. I am. I enjoy writing short stories like fandom. My most recent true love is Sonadow, a fanfiction pairing Sonic the Hedgehog and Shadow the Hedgehog as a romantic couple. The two hedgehogs have not been confirmed as their sexualities, mostly because they were created in the 90s, and the idea of gay or bisexual at that time was considered taboo. Now, it is seen as something normal.

I don’t use AI for writing unless it’s for grammar, because I still have issues with it, but I feel really guilty about using AI when I spent years, both financially and mentally, learning programs such as Adobe Creative Cloud and other graphic design programs. I sort of feel like I’m at a fork in the road. Should I continue practicing my graphic design, or give it up and use AI? I have a very vivid imagination, creating strange creatures and strange worlds. True, AI has not reached the capacity to create exactly what’s in your mind; it still gets a lot of glitches, like feet disappearing, arms bending the wrong way. Or putting the wrong clothing on a trademark character, but it’s getting close. Then there are the AI-generated avatar actors. They look so real and can say whatever you want in any voice you choose, and they are more affordable than hiring real actors. Yes, AI does make work a lot easier, but it is also replacing jobs for those who have studied for years.