Write a story with AI as your editor, not your ghostwriter
Use AI to brainstorm, question your characters and spot what isn’t working, while every sentence stays yours. Here’s how to keep your voice, your privacy and your publishing options.
In 30 seconds
- Write the draft yourself, then ask AI for comments, questions and options, not rewrites.
- Use it to brainstorm, interview your characters and check pacing, dialogue and continuity.
- Check the rules before you publish or enter a competition: some require disclosure, and some ban AI help.
Ask an AI to “write me a story about a lighthouse keeper” and you’ll get something smooth, competent and forgettable, because it leans towards the most familiar plots and phrases. Ask it the questions a good editor would, though, and it can help you write a better story that’s still unmistakably yours.
There are two ways to work. As a Jargon busterGhostwriter: Someone who writes a book, speech or article that’s published under another person’s name., AI writes and you tidy up. As an editor, you write, and it asks questions and points out problems. The second takes longer, but the voice, the choices and the credit stay yours.
Editor, not ghostwriter
| Ghostwriter prompts | Editor prompts |
|---|---|
| “Write chapter three” | “What could happen in chapter three? Give me options” |
| “Make this paragraph better” | “Where does this paragraph drag? Don’t rewrite it” |
| “Make the dialogue funnier” | “Which lines sound alike? Tell me why” |
| Accept the whole rewrite | Approve each suggested edit, one at a time |
Rewrites are tempting, but after a few rounds your sentences start to sound like the AI’s. Comments and questions leave the writing to you. So write the draft yourself, however rough, and bring the AI in to react to it.
Before the draft: ideas, outlines and characters
AI makes a tireless brainstorming partner. Ask for twenty “what if” twists and you’ll reject most of them, which is useful: it shows you what you don’t want. It can also suggest structures for a plot you’ve sketched, or spot where the middle sags.
You: You’re Maggie, 68, the lighthouse keeper in my story. Stay in character. What did you do the night the boat went down?
AI: Kept the lamp lit, same as every night for thirty years. Your notes don’t say whether I saw the boat. Did I?
You are [character’s name], [age and one line about them], from my story. Here are my notes on them: [paste notes]. I’m going to interview you to understand you better. Answer in their voice, briefly. Stay consistent with my notes, and when they don’t cover something, ask me rather than inventing it. Start by telling me what you want most, and what you’re afraid of.
After the draft: feedback you control
Once a chapter exists, AI can read it like a patient first reader. Ask specific questions, and ask for comments rather than changes. Assistants tend to praise whatever you show them, a habit called Jargon busterSycophancy: When an AI tells you what you want to hear, agreeing with you instead of giving an honest view., so ask plainly for problems.
Here’s a chapter of my [genre] novel: [paste chapter]. Act as a demanding editor. Don’t rewrite anything. Tell me: 1) where the pacing drags or rushes, quoting the lines; 2) any dialogue where the characters sound alike; 3) anything that contradicts my notes: [paste notes]; 4) the three changes that would help most. I want problems, not praise.
What to ask for
- PacingWhere does it drag or rush? Ask it to quote the exact paragraphs, so you can judge for yourself.
- DialogueWhich characters sound alike? Which lines explain what the reader already knows?
- ContinuityAsk it to list every fact about a character, such as age and eye colour, then check them against your notes.
- Line editsAsk for Jargon busterLine edit: Editing sentence by sentence for rhythm, clarity and word choice, rather than changing the plot or structure. as suggestions, a sentence at a time, and accept or reject each one yourself.
On a long book, an assistant may not hold the whole manuscript at once, because its Jargon busterContext window: How much text an AI can take into account at once, including your conversation so far. has a limit. Keep a short story bible of characters, places and dates, and paste it in with each chapter you check.
Privacy and publishing
Until you publish, your work is private, so keep it that way. Some assistants can use your chats to train future models unless you switch that off, so check the privacy or data settings before you paste in your novel.
When you publish, read the platform’s rules. Amazon’s Kindle Direct Publishing, for example, asks you to declare AI-generated text, images or translations, even if you edited them heavily. Work you wrote yourself and refined with AI counts as AI-assisted, and doesn’t need declaring.
Competitions and magazines set their own rules. Some reject AI-written entries, and some don’t allow AI help with any part of an entry, editing included. Read the rules every time, and ask if you’re unsure. For who owns what you write with AI, see AI and copyright.
Check yourself
3 quick questions nothing is savedTools in this guide
Spotted a mistake? Tell us and an editor will check it.
