In this episode of Ink Over AI, Terry reflects on a small but unsettling moment: asking AI to polish an email, only to realize the result, while technically “better," no longer sounded like him.
That experience opens a deeper conversation about what AI is quietly teaching us about writing, authority, and voice. This isn’t about plagiarism or obvious errors. It’s about sanitization, and what we lose when efficiency replaces humanity.
(00:00) AI Rewriting Words and Why It Matters
How a seemingly harmless rewrite reveals a deeper problem with voice and ownership.
(3:08) Why It Matters for the Future of Writers
Why AI output quickly becomes “the right way” to write, especially for insecure or developing writers.
(5:47) AI Sanitization
The rise of polite, vague, interchangeable language across emails, classrooms, and culture.
(7:09) Combating AI Sanitization: How and Why
Why AI should act like a tutor, not a ghostwriter, and what better design could look like.
(9:38) How AI Sanitization Impacts the Art of Writing
Voice as trust, ethics, and accountability, and what’s at stake if we lose it.
Final question:
If good writing sounds like AI, what parts of your voice would you even notice disappearing?
