Publishing in the age of AI

In this era of artificial intelligence and new media, the publishing industry is confronted with unprecedented difficulties and challenges. This plight set the stage for reflection when authors, editors, publishers, and bookshop owners gathered recently at a publishing festival in Aranya, a cultural and art community on the coast in Qinhuangdao, Hebei province.

With the slogan "Protecting a World of Integrity", the Xinshixiang Publishing Friends' Festival — launched last year by Xinshixiang, a public account on WeChat — tries to build a community for authors, readers and publishers to champion what is often fragmented in the fast-paced digital age: the integrity of narratives, the depth of genuine understanding, and the richness of human connection forged through literature.

At the forums, authors, editors, readers and bookshop owners explore topics that point to a vital question: what is the essence of physical books, and thus what are the essences of creating, editing and publishing, in addition to drawing inspiration from peers' insights and optimism?

For Ma Ka-fai, a writer and cultural critic from Hong Kong, "publishing is truly a mysterious endeavor".

Despite its economic challenges and seeming fragility, the publishing industry continues to attract talented individuals who find joy in their involvement, he said at the festival's awards ceremony.

As he sat there pondering this enigma, he realized that this mysterious aspect might be connected to integrity, linking it with the festival's slogan.

A book represents a complete world, encompassing the efforts of the author, editors, the team, and marketers.

"When we open a book and begin reading, we feel a sense of completeness within ourselves. Each book serves as a fundamental unit of a complete world. From this perspective, our effort to protect integrity is crucial," he says.

Part of the fragility of today's publishing industry results from the emergence of new media forms that have disrupted existing mainstream media, often leading to pessimistic predictions about the obsolescence of older forms, experts shared at a forum about the present and the future of the publishing industry.

For example, it was once thought that radio would replace books, and that television would herald the end of cinema. However, these older media forms adapted by finding their true essence. For instance, cinema shifted away from newsreels to focus on storytelling and emotional expression. Similarly, in today's digital age, the publishing industry must differentiate physical books from digital content.

Experts said that we need to ask: What are the differences? In this era, what is a book? Can its essence and truth be revealed under pressure?

The pressure comes from the declining time and attention people give to books in this era of an "attention" economy, where short videos, social media and video games are competing for people's limited time and money.

This pressure is clearly reflected in the market data. According to Centrin Ecloud, a publishing database, in the first half of 2025, the total retail sales of books nationwide decreased by 9.64 percent year-on-year. In terms of specific genres, the publishing industry consulting company Beijing OpenBook says that literature saw the biggest drop in sales, although lifestyle and psychology books experienced a sharp increase.

Statistics from Beijing OpenBook show that for the first half of 2025, the biggest growth in the book retail market came from lifestyle, computer and self-help/psychology titles, with increases of 39 percent, 38.4 percent and 22.8 percent, respectively. Computer books rose in sales thanks to the popularity of the artificial intelligence model DeepSeek.

The sales of self-help/psychology books have been rising in recent years as young people in particular seek to resolve the increasing pressures and challenges of modern life, according to a news report by the Yangtse Evening Post.

That explains why the comic book Daike De Muli Shi Daren De Xinzang (An Oyster With a Shell Is the Heart of an Adult) by Wang Manni, published in 2022, has sold over 1 million copies, making it a bestseller in recent years. On Douban, a review platform in China, more than 33,000 users rated the book 8.2 points out of 10, praising its heartwarming and humorous style.

The great success, however, has actually increased the author's anxiety, forcing her to reconsider her life and creativity.

"I used to live as if just to create, constantly looking for inspiration. But this led to anxiety because inspiration isn't always there. On days I didn't create, I felt like the day was wasted," she said at a festival forum about comic books.

Unlike the first book, Wang's second, Xiangzai Tianqi Haoshi Qu Haibian (I Want to Go to the Beach When the Weather Is Nice), is a long-form comic. It requires more time to develop and refine ideas, making the creative process longer and less predictable.

"You have to return to a very calm, creative state. You can't rush to constantly produce," she says.

"Instead, you need to find yourself through activities like walking, hiking, or sleeping. Once you rediscover who you are, you can better perceive life, your surroundings, and find inspiration," she says.

Through writing these two books, Wang says that she has learned to appreciate herself more as a person, not just as a tool.

"It's about living life fully as a human and letting go of some of the constraints that hold me back," she says.

This quest for meaning in creation resonates with other authors. For Chinese writer Guo Yujie, writing is about retrieving and reconstructing the past, and creating a continuous and complete narrative, which is especially important in a world flooded with fragmented information.

She quotes South Korean-born German philosopher Byung-Chul Han, saying that "we are now living in a world created by the internet, where we only have the present moment and information. This constant stream of information bombards us with fragments, and the present moment quickly passes, leading to the next".

"Han suggests that we have information but lack narrative. What is narrative? It is the process of connecting with the past to form a continuous story or logic, helping us understand how we arrived at the present," she says.

The power of narrative to connect and endure is also evident in another story from the festival. Wang's teacher at the China Academy of Art, Ruan Junting, published her fifth book, Chun Hui (Spring Sunshine), earlier this year, an autobiographical picture book about a female artist teaching at an art college.

In the story, the teacher repeatedly confronts and responds to the questions within her: What does it truly mean to be a teacher? What is genuine love? How do we, step by step, grow into the adults we have become?

The book won the "A Voice" award at the publishing festival.

Ruan's love of books began as a child more than 30 years ago. Her parents took her to meet a family friend, who was a painter, and she was given a book as a gift. When she opened it, she saw the words "The life of Jiang Zhong", Jiang Zhong being the painter's name.

"I realized that books could be as precious and enduring as a person's life. At that moment, I decided I wanted to create something like that too — something that would last longer than my own life," she says.

While creators explore essence and legacy, the practical realities of publishing are crucial. Liu Suli, who has run Wansheng Bookstore in Beijing for 32 years, says that while book publishing and sales reflect the mood of society, a book is first and foremost a commodity.

If a publishing company wants to survive, it must build its own system and tradition that will last for decades and won't be easily crushed by market forces, he says.

"What is a system? At its core, it's about continually questioning what you're doing. This prevents pessimism and provides the strength to get through the toughest times, even when every day feels like the hardest," he adds.

Liu says that his team has never stopped discussing what an independent bookstore truly is. It is a question, he says, that concerns the very survival of their business.

His philosophy is rooted in market realities.

"Based on my many years of experience in selling books, I still firmly believe that books with good content are likely to attract buyers. The ones that don't sell are usually those that look flashy or have eye-catching titles but don't deliver on substance," he says.

Amid the challenges facing the publishing industry, there remains a persistent sense of optimism. Chen Xiying, the founder of the publishing brand Lucida, which has released many best-sellers since its inception in 2020, embodies this hopeful outlook.

Chen compares books to simple yet irreplaceable inventions like spoons and umbrellas, saying, "Books are among these perfect forms, giving hope for their future". Despite predictions that e-books would overtake print, she notes, "Physical books remain important. Many, including myself and my colleagues, still prefer them."

She acknowledges the industry's difficulties, saying, "Even if publishing shrinks and print runs decrease, we will continue to produce books for those who consider them essential."

Chen emphasizes that even if physical books were to disappear, the essence of their content would endure.

"If physical books vanish, the role of editors will persist in some form, possibly through new formats like VR reading," she says.

Chen's confidence in the future of publishing is bolstered by her perspective on the crucial role editors play in the industry. She notes that readers frequently remain unaware of their needs until editors present them with timely and relevant books. "It's the editor's job to anticipate and meet these needs," Chen says.

"Publishing, at its core, is about deep, sustained thinking — a key strength of editors. Whether through print, e-books or audio, content can always find a way to reach the world."