AI Prompts for Writers, Authors, and Editors

"Take the following 200-word paragraph and cut it down to 160 words or fewer without losing any meaning, nuance, or voice. Then explain what you removed and why. Sample paragraph: 'The old house that stood at the very end of the long, winding street had been completely abandoned for what seemed like many, many years. Its windows, which were once bright and clean, were now covered in a thick layer of grime and dust that had accumulated over the course of time. The garden, which had at one point in the past been carefully and lovingly maintained by the previous owners, had now grown wild and untamed, with weeds sprouting up in every possible direction. Despite all of this neglect and decay, there was still something about the place that seemed to draw people in and make them curious about what stories the walls might tell if they could speak.' After tightening, list the 5 most common types of wordiness you found (e.g., redundant modifiers, unnecessary qualifiers, passive constructions)."

"Take this neutral paragraph and rewrite it in 4 different tones: (1) intimate and literary, (2) formal and academic, (3) cinematic and visual, (4) darkly humorous. Original: 'She walked into the office on Monday morning and found that her desk had been cleared. Her nameplate was gone. A security guard was waiting by the elevator. She had been at the company for twelve years.' For each rewrite, keep the same core information but transform the voice entirely. After all 4 versions, explain the specific techniques used in each (sentence structure, word choice, imagery, rhythm) so the writer can apply them independently."

"Perform a clarity audit on the following passage. For each sentence: (1) rate its clarity on a scale of 1-5, (2) identify the specific problem if clarity is below 4 (ambiguous pronoun, buried subject, double negative, jargon, run-on, garden path sentence), and (3) provide a rewritten version. Sample passage: 'The policy which was implemented by the board that had been recently appointed by the shareholders who had expressed concerns about the direction of the company was not without its critics among those who felt that the changes, while well-intentioned, failed to address the underlying issues that had prompted the review in the first place, which many argued should have been conducted years earlier.' Then provide 5 general rules for writing clearer sentences."

"Identify and rewrite all passive voice constructions in the following passage, converting each to active voice while maintaining the original meaning and tone. Sample: 'The letter was written by Sarah on Tuesday. It was decided by the committee that the project would be postponed. The results were analyzed by the research team and a report was prepared. Mistakes were made, and the consequences were felt by everyone in the department. The building had been designed by a famous architect and was considered to be a masterpiece by critics.' For each change, show the before and after, explain why active voice is stronger in that instance, and flag any cases where passive voice might actually be the better choice (e.g., when the actor is unknown or deliberately de-emphasized)."

"Create a show-don't-tell workshop with 10 common emotions: anger, grief, anxiety, joy, jealousy, guilt, loneliness, fear, love, and shame. For each emotion: (1) provide a weak 'telling' sentence (e.g., 'She was angry'), (2) rewrite it 3 ways using different techniques — physical sensation/body language, action/behavior, and environmental/sensory detail. (3) Explain when each technique works best depending on POV, pacing, and genre. End with a general principle: how to self-diagnose 'telling' in your own drafts (look for emotion words, 'felt,' 'was,' and abstract nouns)."

"Create a detailed character profile for the protagonist of a literary thriller. She is a 42-year-old forensic accountant who discovers financial fraud at her own firm. Include: backstory (childhood, education, the formative experience that made her obsessive about truth), personality using the Big Five model with specific behavioral examples, her core internal conflict (loyalty vs. integrity), external goals versus internal needs, speech patterns and verbal tics with dialogue samples, three key relationships that define her (mentor, antagonist, love interest), a character arc outline showing her transformation, and the single object she always carries and what it symbolizes."

"Draft a query letter to a literary agent for a completed 85,000-word literary thriller titled The Ledger. The story follows a forensic accountant who uncovers a money laundering operation at her own firm and must decide between protecting her career or exposing the truth, knowing her mentor is involved. Include: a hook that grabs attention in the first sentence, a compelling plot summary that conveys voice and stakes without spoiling the ending, 2 comparable titles published in the last 3 years with brief explanation of how your book is similar but different, a brief author bio (relevant credentials only), and word count/genre. Keep it under 350 words. Follow standard query formatting."

"Write a dialogue craft workshop covering 6 key techniques: subtext (characters saying one thing and meaning another), distinct character voices (making dialogue identifiable without tags), using dialogue to reveal backstory without info-dumping, tension through interruption and silence, dialect and speech patterns without stereotyping, and dialogue tags versus action beats. For each technique, provide a 'before' example of weak dialogue and an 'after' rewrite. Use a single continuous scene between two siblings arguing about selling their deceased mother's house — each technique should improve a different part of the same scene."

"Create a comprehensive 3-pass self-editing checklist for revising a novel manuscript. Pass 1 (Big Picture): story structure against a 3-act framework, plot holes, character arc consistency, pacing graph, theme clarity, and stakes escalation. Pass 2 (Scene Level): does every scene have a purpose and turning point, dialogue effectiveness, show vs tell ratio, POV consistency, transition quality between scenes. Pass 3 (Line Level): weak verb audit, adverb count, cliche detection, repetitive word finder, sentence length variety check, filter word removal (felt, saw, heard, noticed). Include 3 specific before/after examples for each pass showing common problems and fixes."

"Create a world-building document for a science fiction novel set 200 years in the future on a terraformed Mars colony of 2 million people. Cover: political structure (how the colony is governed, tensions with Earth, internal factions), economy (exports, imports, currency, class structure), daily life for ordinary citizens (housing, food, entertainment, communication), technology level (what is advanced and what is surprisingly primitive due to supply constraints), physical environment (weather patterns, geography, living spaces, the sky), social hierarchies and how they differ from Earth, and one unique cultural tradition that emerged from the colonization experience. Everything must be internally consistent."

"Create a detailed beta reader questionnaire with 25 targeted questions organized by category: Overall Impression (5 questions about engagement, pacing feel, and emotional response), Plot and Pacing (5 questions about confusion points, sagging middle, and stakes), Characters (5 questions about likability, motivation clarity, and distinct voices), Dialogue and Voice (5 questions about authenticity and readability), and Specific Concerns (5 questions the author can customize per manuscript). Questions should be open-ended enough to elicit useful feedback but specific enough to be actionable. Include instructions for beta readers on how to provide feedback constructively and a note about what stage the manuscript is in."

"Create a detailed outline for a nonfiction book proposal on the topic of how remote work is reshaping small-town America. Include all standard sections: title page with subtitle options, overview (the book's thesis, why it matters now, and the author's unique angle), target audience analysis with demographic specifics, competitive title analysis (compare to 5 similar books published in the last 3 years and explain the gap your book fills), marketing and platform section (social media, speaking, media appearances), chapter-by-chapter outline (12 chapters with 3-sentence summaries each showing narrative arc), author bio emphasizing relevant expertise, and a sample chapter outline with scene-by-scene breakdown."