Writing that sounds like you

01What this is about

AI can write a whole letter in seconds. The trouble is, it often sounds like AI. It's smooth, a bit grand, and nothing like you. People notice, and it can cost you their trust.

The fix is to use AI as your editor, not your author. You write, even roughly, and the AI helps you make it better, in your voice.

02AI as editor, not author

• You bring the content. What you want to say, the facts, and how you feel about it. Even bullet points or a voice note will do.
• The AI tidies it. It can fix the order, cut the waffle, catch mistakes, and suggest clearer words.
• You have the last word. Read it aloud. If a sentence doesn't sound like you, change it back.

03Signs of AI writing

Wikipedia's volunteers keep a guide to the signs. These are a few of the common ones:

• making things sound more important than they are, as if every small thing were part of a bigger story
• lists of three, used again and again
• vague claims like "experts say", with no expert named
• "It's not just X, it's Y", when nobody said it was just X
• a tidy summary at the end that repeats what you just read

Wikipedia points out these are warning signs, not proof. People write like this too. But if your writing is full of them, readers will wonder.

04Text to copy

Give the AI a sample of your writing first. Add this to your project's Reference file:

My writing style:
[paste two or three short things you've written, like emails or posts]

To edit your draft without taking over:

Edit my draft below. Keep my words and my voice wherever you can.
Fix mistakes, cut repetition, and make the order clearer.
Don't add ideas I didn't write, and don't make it sound grander.
Show me what you changed.

[paste your draft]

To check for AI-sounding writing:

Read this and point out anything that sounds like AI wrote it: grand claims, lists of three, vague "experts say", or a summary that repeats itself.
Don't rewrite it. Just list the lines.

06Keeping it current

• Update your style sample now and then, with recent writing you're happy with.
• Add a line to your Instructions for any habit you keep seeing, like "Don't use the word 'delighted'."