Sharjah24: Artificial intelligence and ChatGPT cannot replace human creativity and emotions, underscored popular new-age poets Shelby Leigh from USA and Hoshang Osi from Syria at a discussion on “Verses in the Digital Age” at the 42nd Sharjah International Book Fair (SIBF) themed ‘We Speak Books’.

Moderated by Emirati TV presenter Alya Al Mansoori, the session discussed new trends in poetry on social media platforms and explored why people are increasingly drawn to reading and connecting with poets online.

Hoshang Osi, a Syrian-Kurdish poet and novelist who writes in his native Kurdish language as well as Arabic, opined that “AI is like beauty laboratories in cosmetics and creates a reality that is artificial. It could become sophisticated in the future” but he did not want to predict the nature of something in 2050.

The Kurdish writer, whose novel The Blow of Certainty won the Kataria Prize for Arabic fiction in 2017, compared poetry to a river that flows freely on social media. “It is an open space that evolves depending on the situation or place the poet is in. Unlike prose and drama, it is difficult to define poetry as it is an eternal creation of its own existence.”

Regarding the language in his works, Osi stated that his literature reflected linguistic qualities of the particular language he wrote in. “When I write in Arabic, the feelings differ from what I would write in Kurdish. The aim of my text is to reach the reader in an easy and authentic way.”

Shelby Leigh, poet and mental health advocate who has been writing on the Internet for over seven years, said she had started by writing about mental health issues like anxiety from her own experiences and emotions. Initially, she wrote anonymously as she was doubtful about her work.

Leigh, who hosts a virtual poetic community and helps people who want to get their works published, said: “AI cannot feel for me. It is only a supportive tool and cannot replace my creativity and content.” She said she had no expectations from her followers on social media but she was happy to be connected with so many people.

Both poets read a few stanzas from their poems much to the delight of poetry lovers gathered for the session.