On Writing with A.I.: Getting it to write better (Patreon)

Yesterday showed what the A.I. can generate when given free reign and little guidance.  It was readable - but not exactly great literature.  How to make it write better?

One trick I've found is to put a little extra effort into the Outline.  The AI tool I'm using provides a 1700-words space for the whole story outline, and a 2000-words space for each individial stort outline.  The character box allows for 700 words.  Generally, I've found that the more you put in there, the better the output.  Without specific guidance, the AI won't come near those limits.  You can force it to (using a rewrite function and instructing it to write more) but this is one of those places where a human hand definitely produces better results.

So I've gone back in and reworked the Chapter 1 Outline to better match what I want to achieve, aligning it with the genre and guiding the A.I. through something a bit more structured.  I've also included a number of specific instructions to the A.I. in brackets - these won't appear in the prose (at least they shouldn't) but--in theory, anyways--should help guide it towards the desired outcome.

(A lot of this is pretty iffy.  Reading through online forums, there's a lot of sharing of good practice but very little clarity as to what's actually going on under the hood/bonnet of the A.I.  I suspect nobody actually really knows.)

So, what do there more detailed instructions look like?  Have a look below--this is a partial sample of the refined chapter outline the A.I. will use to generate   the new chapter 1.  Tomorrow I'll post what that output looks like.

***

[Chapter 1 is a sequence flashback.  It begins with Alex Thompson's current situation, then shows the first part of how he ended up there.]

[Alex is crossdressing.  He is embarrassed and ashamed of what he is doing.  Alex is awkward and very new at this.  It becomes clear that he is doing this against his will.  He is being coerced into doing it by Cassandra.  Do not reveal how she is blackmailing him in this chapter.]

[The setting is her flat.  She lives off campus, in a small, well-appointed apartment that indicates her wealth and status.]

[Alex lives in residence at the University of Ottawa.  He lives in a small residence room on a floor with many others students.]

[Alex's crossdressing is interleaved with flashbacks into his life before meeting Cassandra and being blackmailed.  This chapter builds sympathy for Alex and shows him to be an affable and kind young man, twenty years old and suffering from crippling social anxiety.  He is also burdened by responsibilities at home, but this is not yet revealed in the chapter.]

[Alex is twenty, about 170cm tall, and slim.  This is due as much from a lack of exercise as it is to a lack of food.  He is at university on a scholarship and has no spare funds.  He eats as little as possible.  His clothes are second hand and looking worse for wear.  His hair is long and disheveled as he doesn't want to pay for a haircut.  Potentially good-looking but at the moment quite scruffy-looking.  All his attention is focused on studying.]

1. [Show, don't tell] [Third person limited, from Alex's point of view.] [Write in present tense.] [Begin the chapter by focusing on Alex's leg.]  Describe Alex's leg, starting with the foot and up to the thigh.  Describe it so it appears to the reader to be a woman's leg.  Then show Alex in a bathtub in Cassandra's apartment.  Alex is shaving his legs.  Show the frilly feminine undergarments waiting for him on a chair in the bathroom.  Show him eying the garments with trepidation.  He knows Cassandra expects him to wear them.  He's never worn anything like that before.  He's never shaved his legs before, either. (Driver: Alex's guilt and shame.) (Driver: Alex's confusion over what he's doing.)

2. Introduce Alex Thompson as a 20-year-old student at the University of Ottawa, majoring in history and English literature.  He knows it's his fault this is happening, and the prospect of crossdressing is terrifying for him.  Show him in the bathtub, shaving his legs, and thinking about when things were simpler a short month ago. (Driver: He's being blackmailed.) (Guardrail: don't reveal he's being blackmailed.)  (Guardrail: don't reveal he plagiarised an essay and got caught by Cassandra.)

3. [Show, don't tell] [Third person limited, from Alex's point of view.] [Write in past tense.] [This scene is a flashback, showing Alex in the past.] [This flashback scene expands on Alex's background.] Describe Alex's personality as introverted and shy, and explain that he spends most of his time in the library studying to avoid social interaction. Explain that Alex's past experiences of bullying and rejection have left him with low self-esteem and a lack of confidence, which contributes to his shyness. (Driver: Alex's lack of confidence and shyness)

4. Show how Alex's shyness affects his interactions with others, such as avoiding eye contact and speaking softly. Show him interacting with another person who lives on his floor. Use dialogue.  Show that Alex is seen as a bit of a weird recluse on his floor. (Driver: Alex's lack of confidence and shyness) (Driver: Alex's social life before meeting Cassandra.)

... and on it goes, through the dozen or so "beats" of the chapter.