Hello Friends!
As many of you know by now, I am writing a high fantasy novel (read the blurb here) and am currently in the line-editing phase. In this phase, I go through each paragraph, line-by-line, and make edits for smoother flows, replace words to convey the best message and imagery, and check that the sentences are varied. After all, no one would want to read 300+ pages of a book where all sentences are the same length and start with “She <insert a verb> …“
English being my 3rd language, the line-editing phase is the most challenging one for me and for the length of my book (~150k words), it costs a few grands to professionally line-edit my work. So working with ChatGPT generative AI tool has been a tremendous help for me to improve the quality of my work.
Many people have controversial thoughts when it comes to using generative AI for creative writing. And it really depends on your use-case. If you’re asked to write an essay on oranges for a school assignment and instructed to not use AI/online tools, then using ChatGPT to write the whole thing for you is violation of the homework policy.
If someone asks ChatGPT to write a book for them. Well… the tool is not quite there yet to write a quality fiction book for you. And if someone publishes that book without a TREMENDOUS amount of editing, then I don’t think it’d become a best seller anytime soon.
However, it can be used as an editing companion, and it doesn’t always magically spit out the best version of a sentence/paragraph you want in the first go. And here’s a glimpse at my conversation with ChatGPT to come up with just the right words for 1 of the paragraphs I was editing this week.
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Me: You are an experienced litrary editor for fantasy novels. Moving forward, anything I type here, you will line edit it, but won't use gradioise words or explain the meaning of a character's actions. Let the context convey the emotions behind without telling the reader. Also, add 1-2 sentences/phrases where necessary for a smoother flow.
“It’s okay, Eir,” he said in a gentle tone. “I won’t hurt you, no matter how angry I get. I’d like you to remember that.”
She nodded, hating how vulnerable she might be appearing. It took her a moment to compose herself, but when she did, she said, “And if you did, I’ll make you regret it. I’d like you to remember that.”
ChatGPT:
“It’s okay, Eir,” he said in a gentle tone. “I won’t hurt you, no matter how angry I get. I'd never want to cause you any harm.”
She nodded, appreciating his reassurance, but determined to assert herself. It took her a moment to compose herself, but when she did, she looked him in the eye and said, “And if you did, I'd make sure you regret it. I'm not someone you can push around anymore. I’d like you to remember that.”
Me:
She nodded, hating how vulnerable she must be appearing.
ChatGPT:
She nodded, hating how vulnerable she must be appearing. But she knew it was necessary to show her emotions, her fears, and her boundaries to Abaddon. It was the only way to establish the trust and understanding they needed in their complicated relationship.
Me:
can you give me 5 variations of: She nodded, hating how vulnerable she must be appearing.
ChatGPT:
- She nodded, concealing her vulnerability behind a stoic facade.
- Her nod was accompanied by a slight frown, a sign of her discomfort with displaying vulnerability.
- Hating to show any sign of weakness, she gave a subtle nod.
- Despite her inner struggle, she managed a nod, determined not to reveal her vulnerability.
- Her nod was barely perceptible, a silent admission of the vulnerability she wished to hide.
Me:
no keep the meaning of her hating herself for showing vulnerability
ChatGPT:
She nodded, berating herself for letting her vulnerability show.
Me:
give me 3 variations
ChatGPT:
She nodded, cursing herself for revealing her vulnerability.
She nodded, wishing she could hide her vulnerability better.
She nodded, despising the fact that her vulnerability was on display.
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So here’s the final version I was happy with:
ORIGINAL VERSION: She nodded, hating how vulnerable she might be appearing. It took her a moment to compose herself, but when she did, she said, “And if you did, I’ll make you regret it. I’d like you to remember that.”
FINAL VERSION: She nodded, cursing herself for revealing her vulnerability. It took her a moment to compose herself, but when she did, she lifted her chin. “And if you did, I’d make you regret it,” she said. “I’d like you to remember that.”
Let me know your thoughts on using ChatGPT in your writing process.
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