The debate over AI and its threat to novelists and other creative individuals has taken a new turn with the announcement by Faber that a stamp bearing the words ‘Human Written’ will feature on the front cover of Helm, the 10th book by Booker Prize-nominated author Sarah Hall, when it is published on 28 August 2025.
Hall has claimed that her published body of work has been used to train large language models without consent or compensation, a practice she described as “creative larceny at scale”. The author is calling for increased regulation to protect writers and their work.
The author said: “Writers are fighting to protect the authenticity of their craft, and this mark is one way of doing that. Helm took me 20 years to write. AI might mimic the words more rapidly, but it hasn’t felt the Helm wind. It hasn’t bled on the page. And it doesn’t have a family to support.”
Faber CEO Mary Cannam said: “At Faber we believe in the unique power of human creativity and imagination, and our job as publisher is to find and amplify the very best that the human mind can create, through the written word. The Faber colophon will always represent this human-written provenance, and we are keen to support Sarah in any way in furthering this vital message.”
The mark will be ‘proof’ that no AI has been used in the creation of the work, rather in the way the FSC mark is proof that certain standards in regard to paper have been adhered to. The Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) is a non-profit organisation, providing trusted solutions to help protect the world’s forests and tackle today’s deforestation, climate, and biodiversity challenges. Its mission is to promote environmentally appropriate, socially beneficial, and economically viable management of the world’s forests. Its “tick-tree” logo is found on millions of products worldwide, verifying responsible sourcing from the forest to shelf.