Minnesota Author Claims Creative Control With Self-Publishing
Kate Laack turns to independent models to avoid AI-related contract terms and maintain oversight of her work.
Updated on Oct. 26, 2026 in Artificial Intelligence
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Minnesota author Kate Laack secured the Minnesota Author Project Award in April 2026 for her third independently published novel. The Pine Island-based writer now manages her own publishing operations to bypass traditional contract clauses involving artificial intelligence.
Why it matters
Laack transitioned to self-publishing to gain complete creative authority after traditional publishers requested significant manuscript changes. She also expressed concerns regarding the absence of safeguards against AI training in standard industry contracts.
Laack manages all publishing tasks independently through IngramSpark, a print-on-demand platform. Her first novel was previously included in a dataset used to train artificial intelligence systems.
The players
Kate Laack
A Pine Island, Minnesota-based author who maintains full creative control over her literary works by managing the publishing process herself.
IngramSpark
A self-publishing platform that provides independent authors with print-on-demand services and global distribution tools.
The details
Laack performs her own developmental and line editing, utilizing friends for proofreading and handling all marketing efforts. She repurchased the rights to her first two novels, originally published by Olive Street Publishing and Black Rose Writing, to consolidate her library.
Timeline
Kate Laack published her first novel in 2022.
The second novel was released in 2025.
Laack published her third novel, By Any Other Name, in April 2026.
The Tech Race
This move aligns with the growing shift among authors who favor direct-to-consumer distribution to bypass traditional publishing constraints. It highlights a departure from legacy contracts that often lack protections for how creative content is utilized by external AI models.
Local readers can find Laack's novels stocked in stores throughout Zumbrota and supported by word-of-mouth networks in Rochester. This shift allows fans to access her work while supporting an independent model that prioritizes human-led creative control.
The takeaway
Authors are increasingly prioritizing creative ownership by opting for independent platforms that offer greater transparency regarding technology usage. This trend highlights the growing importance of contract scrutiny in the age of generative AI.
Further reading
Discover more about the evolving landscape of Artificial Intelligence.
More information
For more information on the author and her work, visit the Kate Laack author website.
Source note: This article includes information reported by Rochester Post Bulletin.
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