Where Does Human Creativity Need To Go That AI Can't Follow?

In the age of AI-generated slop, zine culture feels like a welcome splash of cold water. These hand-stapled, deeply personal publications resist the ruthless algorithmic efficiency that defines our times—they’re messy, intimate, impractical, and idiosyncratic, published in small batches and created with purpose. Which makes zinesters the perfect people to ask: Where does human creativity need to go that AI can't follow?

We put that question to four zine-makers in Western North Carolina. Jenny Fares of Faresworks runs Sound Mind Design from Asheville's River Arts District, where she's spent 25 years cutting intricate designs in paper, wood, and metal. Karine Rupp-Stanko is a literary translator and illustrator whose zines connect hyper-local and global communities. Talia Scarpelli juggles her roles as a high school librarian, art educator, and zinester when she's not searching for "lil critters" in the Asheville wilderness. Jessica C. White founded Asheville Zine Fest and Over Yonder Press, printing work inspired by the ancient landscapes of Appalachia.

Below, their answers reveal what machines can't, or shouldn’t, replicate, and what we stand to lose if we stop asking.

Jenny Fares

Where there is no logical reason, except delight, AI will follow humans. Humans lead with unbridled imagination and an amazing ability to tie everything together in a cohesive, creative direction and get people to follow. AI will never make something for the JOY of making it or make me do it; I will make AI do it if I choose and finish it whenever I feel like it. The detachment from approval or data confirmation is for me to generate and seek. The mastery of an artistic act and wanderlust for JOY is a wilderness only a human can go.

The experience of two people spending time together with a zine lovingly made, like the Sew Sorry: Relationship Mending Kit. Then repairing their relationship through forgiveness, by sewing sorry together over peppermint tea. We both could imagine where the zine may go, but only we can care for people and heal ourselves through art. It’s a human’s idea to do that.

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Karine Rupp-Stanko

AI can fake my handwriting, my drawing style, my voice… but unlike me, it cannot go on in-person zine delivery walks. Nor can it have an interaction with the zine recipient/buyer/trader and their neighborhood, an interaction that I would use as material for a future zine.

Thus, a clear path forward for me is to keep creating multi-layered zines/experiences that center human interaction and encourage connection. AI cannot replace community, and I believe art can be the medium through which community happens and thrives. And on a side note, AI cannot reproduce the delightful flaws and randomness of artisanal group zines. So… gather, and make together!

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Talia Scarpelli

I think it's important to remember that these generative AI tools can only synthesize things that already exist on the internet. While the internet is expansive and diverse, it is also monitored, biased, and increasingly shaped by those with extreme wealth. The world is SO much larger than the internet, and I think artists and creatives will need to disengage from the attention economy of social media and invest in the real-world resources around them. Zines are so relevant to this cause, as they are often hand-made, self-published, exclusive to a small community, and easily accessible to anyone! Sure, AI can write words on a page, but only a human can make a zine.

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Jessica C. White

I'm probably not the first one to try this, but the first thing I wanted to do was to ask AI. I'm just curious, what does AI think the answer is? So I asked your question, "Where Does Human Creativity Need To Go That AI Can’t Follow?" to ChatGPT and got this surprisingly thorough and in-depth answer.

It touched on a lot of similar thoughts I've been having, and I would largely agree with these recommendations. One thing I would add is vulnerability. A lot of my zines are stories about my life, some recent and some from the past, and I find myself in a vulnerable place when I share something so intimate. Unlike blogs or social media, zines are an outlet that I think is better suited for this type of vulnerability; these are not usually stories I want to shout out into the world, waiting for likes or comments. They are meant for a quiet, personal time where the reader and I are alone, together, and sharing a moment. In a zine, I can share with all my heart and ask for nothing in return.

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Answers have been edited for length and clarity. All images published with permission of the artist(s); featured photo: Karine Rupp-Stanko.