Skip the Robot, Invest in the Human

Fix an AI-written manuscript… this is the new service that ghostwriters are being asked to provide. I say fix because the work that needs to be done is different than just editing. 

We’re being asked to make manuscripts sound more human. Be more cohesive. Be more polished in a human way and not an AI way. That’s more than changing around some word choices. It’s not just book ghostwriters being asked to do this, either. Content ghostwriters are receiving the same request. 

I posted about this recently, and it got a fair amount of engagement, so I wanted to dig in deeper with a blog. 

Ghostwriting is far more than just writing. It’s why I’ve believed, and continue to believe, that I won’t be replaced by AI. It’s why I challenge aspiring authors to be intentional about their goals when choosing how they want their book to come to life. 

Let’s talk about just a few of the ways that working with a ghostwriter will differ from leveraging AI.

Story Weaving

I recently had a client tell me I was a “master story weaver”. It’s not a label I’d ever considered for myself, but one that I graciously received. Around this time, I also started to hear how someone else who had used AI to write their manuscript was struggling for it all to be tied together. 

When you hire a human ghostwriter, we really take the time to get to know you. This happens organically throughout the process of working together. We’re creating a container for you to teach us, to share stories, and add insights in a way that feels good for you. Through the intentional creation of this space, I find authors are willing to share beyond the black and white that is the manuscript, like details of their lives that they don’t feel make sense for the book but that have impacted them in some way. This is where the magic happens. This is where I can story weave for the book to truly become the author’s. 

As ghostwriters, we can use our human experience (what a concept) to tie your stories, teachings, and insights together in a seamless way. In a way that honors you as the author. 

I believe this is more difficult for AI to accomplish, especially from what I’ve heard anecdotally. Am I saying it’s impossible? Probably not. But I do believe it takes significant time and patience to train the AI and work through this. 

Voice

There are two potential voice issues that can happen when using AI to draft your manuscript. The first is the risk that it doesn’t sound human. By now, I think we’re all starting to recognize this. AI writing sounds too polished and too uniform. It’s often not how we would talk or how we would write. 

The second obstacle is that AI doesn’t default to your voice. There are idiosyncrasies in how each of us talk and write. There are certain words and phrases that we use frequently, and certain ones that we stay away from. Some of us talk in shorter staccato sentences, and some of us use long, flowy sentences. 

A ghostwriter pays attention to all of this. Our job is to write in your voice. Not a generic tone, but your specific voice. To do this, we work with you to iterate the manuscript. You get to review a preview for us to adjust. You get to review and make changes in a first draft to adjust. We get to have a real conversation about this feedback, rather than you thinking up some rules to give to your AI. 

Of course, AI can be trained to your voice. This comes down again to the patience and time you have to train it. To truly get it to sound like you, there is immense nuance that you need to train. Word choices. Sentence structure. Which grammar rules you want to follow and which you want to break. 

Words are powerful.

Polite Pushback

AI will often tell you what you want to hear. Unless you train it otherwise, it’s trained to make you happy.

As a ghostwriter, I want to provide you with the best value and end product. Of course, I want you to be happy with it. To get there, though, I might challenge you a bit along the way so you get a fantastic end product that brings your vision to life. 

I’ll ask things like “Can you tell me why you want to include that?” or “Can you further explain how that relates to the theme?”. I’ll challenge you to dig deeper into topics if the reader requires more context. I’ll even provide pushback and tell you when I’m not sure something is the best decision. 

Ultimately, it’s your book as the author, but as a ghostwriter, I use my expertise and experiences to guide you to a high-quality end product.

If you want to skip the feeling of a robotic-sounding manuscript and go straight to the human, let’s chat. Request a book consult using the button below!