Why AI Writing Sounds Like AI (and What to Cut First)
The tells are real, but swapping synonyms will not save the draft. Three patterns that give AI prose away, and the editing pass that removes the cause instead.
November 13, 2026 · 8 min read
Writing notes
How the forms actually work, and how to brief a generator so the first draft is worth editing. No listicles about productivity.
How to Get Unstuck on Plot Without Handing Over the Book
A stuck plot is not a talent problem. How to brief an AI for eight options instead of one answer, the constraint that does the real work, and what to keep for yourself.
November 13, 2026 · 8 min read
Chat, Notes, Agent: The Three Stages of Using AI to Write
Most writers jump straight to agents and skip the middle stage, which is why the drafts feel generic. A plain guide to chat, a queryable story bible, and automated runs.
November 13, 2026 · 8 min read
The Best AI Model for Creative Writing Is Not the Lever
Everyone keeps switching models and getting the same flat draft. The model sets your ceiling; your ability to reject a bad paragraph sets how close you land.
November 13, 2026 · 7 min read
Writing Horror That Lands: The Measurable Wrong
Horror comes from a detail that is off by one degree, not from blood. How to build dread, refuse to explain the threat, and end without a rescue.
November 12, 2026 · 8 min read
A Best Man Speech That Works in Four Minutes
The first thirty seconds decide the room. A three-part structure for a best man speech, and how to cut every line that sounds like a greeting card.
November 12, 2026 · 7 min read
How to Write a Sonnet in Iambic Pentameter
Five beats a line, ten syllables, and a turn at line nine. How to scan a sonnet, where the volta belongs, and why rhyme cannot force word order.
November 12, 2026 · 8 min read
Why Your Limerick Scans Wrong (It’s Not the Syllables)
A limerick is three beats, not seventeen syllables. How the anapest works, where the rhythm slips, and why a perfect count still sounds off.
November 12, 2026 · 7 min read
How to Write a Haiku That Isn’t Just Three Lines
Why 5-7-5 breaks in English, how syllable counting sneaks up on you, and how one cut between two images turns three short lines into a real haiku.
November 12, 2026 · 7 min read
How Long Should a Eulogy Be? Let the Clock Decide
At 130 words a minute, five minutes is 650 words. Here is a working structure for a eulogy, and how to turn a resume into a scene people can see.
November 12, 2026 · 8 min read
What Recruiters Read in a Cover Letter in 30 Seconds
A recruiter gives your letter half a minute. What they actually read, why retelling your resume fails, and how one specific episode maps to the job.
November 12, 2026 · 7 min read
How Country Lyrics Are Built: One Object, Three Verses
A country song is one object holding all the feeling, a three-verse time jump, and a chorus a room can sing. How to write one that does not explain itself.
November 12, 2026 · 7 min read
Keeping an AI Story Continuation in the Same Voice
Language models have no memory of your draft. How to hold voice steady across a long continuation, and when to stop instead of adding one more paragraph.
November 12, 2026 · 8 min read
Acrostic Poems for Names: When the Constraint Helps
A name spelled down the margin forces specificity. How to write an acrostic where every line is a real sentence, and what to do with repeated letters.
November 12, 2026 · 7 min read