As a freelance writer in the blogging/marketing space and as a novelist, I hear a lot about AI.
One minute, I’ll be reading a LinkedIn post from a marketing friend about how they’ve written a month’s worth of content in some improbably short period of time, using advanced AI tools.
The next minute, I’ll be reading a Facebook post from a novelist friend decrying AI and railing against the march of the machines.
What I’ve learned from this (apart from the fact that I should probably spend less time on social media!) is that people’s views on AI often fall toward the extremes.
Some people think generative AI – the kind of AI that can write blog posts, stories, even recipes – is amazing and the only way forward. Others think generative AI is a terrible, disastrous development for writers.
Personally, I usually find that the most realistic outlook on anything falls somewhere in the middle of opposing views. Here’s my take on AI generated content and the importance of human writers.
Head to ChatGPT and type in a prompt, and it seems like the tool is doing something creative: it’s spinning words out of nowhere. On the face of it, this is exactly what I do as a writer.
But dig a little deeper and you’ll realize that generative AI isn’t truly creative. Instead of coming up with original ideas, it’s just pulling from what already exists.
Now, this isn’t always a bad thing. If you want a quick, straightforward piece of text – like something to put on your About page while you draft the real thing, a blog post to publish for link-building purposes, or basic “how to” style instructions – you may not need anything creative.
Here’s an example of what I mean. I asked ChatGPT: Write a paragraph on “how to write a good social media bio”. Make it 100 words max.
This is what ChatGPT came up with:
“Crafting a compelling social media bio requires conciseness and creativity. Start with a brief introduction that captures your essence or professional identity. Incorporate key interests, achievements, or values to showcase personality. Use emojis judiciously for added flair. Keep it concise, focusing on the most impactful details. Include a call-to-action or link for engagement. Regularly update to reflect changes and maintain relevance. Strike a balance between professionalism and authenticity to connect with your audience. A well-crafted bio piques curiosity and invites meaningful connections, making it an essential tool for effective social media presence.”
Nothing here is bad or wrong. The writing style is bland and there aren’t any unusual or unexpected suggestions, but this is perfectly good basic advice.
Where generative AI falls down is in creating something truly new. I asked ChatGPT: Write a 100 opinion column about social media, containing some new or unusual thoughts.
It responded:
“In the ever-expanding cosmos of social media, where selfies reign and hashtags whisper secrets, it’s time to ponder the unconventional facets of our digital dalliance. What if, amidst the curated feeds and carefully chosen filters, we embraced the beauty of imperfection? Imagine a social space where authenticity isn’t a buzzword but a rebellious anthem, challenging the glossy veneer of perfection. Instead of counting likes, let’s measure the depth of conversations sparked and ideas ignited. Social media, often criticized for fostering disconnection, might just be the canvas for a new era of profound connection – a realm where vulnerability is celebrated, and diversity isn’t just a checkbox but a vibrant mosaic. Perhaps, in this quirky virtual world, the most radical act is being unapologetically ourselves, navigating the algorithmic chaos with genuine curiosity and an open heart.”
This doesn’t really feel new at all (and the writing style is a bit overdone – this reads like a high schooler who’s trying to use every big word in the dictionary to impress). Ideas like “be authentic” are hardly unusual!
ChatGPT uses GPT-3.5, an LLM (Large Language Model). This type of AI model is trained with huge amounts of text: imagine a robot reading vast swathes of the internet. When ChatGPT puts together text on a given topic, it draws on its knowledge. That means that, by design, it can’t really come up with anything new … it can only write text based on what already exists in the world.
The same goes for writing style. I find that ChatGPT is pretty bad at getting the idea of style, anyway, but it’s also limited because it can’t come up with a style of its own. Instead, it can offer a mimicry of existing writing styles, or you can prompt it to write in a particular way.
If you think about popular authors and newspaper columnists, some stand out for their unique way of using words: the children’s author Lemony Snicket, for instance, or the English writer P.G. Wodehouse. Others are memorable for their fascinating ideas and ways of seeing the world, like Seth Godin.
ChatGPT can’t provide that essentially human aspect of style and voice. It also can’t come up with any new insights or thoughts.
If you’re a human reading this, not a bot, then this is good news for you. 😉 Readers will always want well-written, engaging content with a strong voice that expresses new ideas … and that’s where you can do far better than any machine.
Of course, you don’t need to ignore AI altogether. Like any tool, it can be helpful when used well.
For instance, I sometimes use AI to help me come up with blog post ideas.(I’m not trying to necessarily write something totally fresh here, but instead to give my own take on topics that are already popular in a particular niche). When I’m outlining posts, I’ll create my own outline to bring in the ideas and thoughts that are unique to me, then I’ll ask ChatGPT for an outline too – that way, I can check whether there are any points I’d not thought of that I’d actually like to include.
If you’re a blogger, marketer, or any kind of writer, I’d encourage you to have fun experimenting with ChatGPT or any other AI tool of your choice. Like me, you’ll probably be blown away at first by what it can seemingly do … but once you start digging in more and trying to create more complex types of text, you’ll realize it’s far from a replacement for a human writer.
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Hi Ali,
Thank you very much for writing this guest blog post. Like you mentioned, there is not any creativity happening over the internet by just publishing contents made with the help of AI tools. I just wonder it is not far when we reach a stage where there will be lot of repeated content like duplicated content all over the internet similar to Youtube contents where the same topic is discussed again and again but through different channels.
Once agan thank you very much for the guest post article.