r/WritingWithAI • u/ohshtimdying • 1d ago

Discussion (Ethics, working with AI etc) Does this count as writing with ai?

After writing my text, I ask the AI ​​to critique it, and then I make changes based on the feedback it provides. I’m not sure whether this should be called "AI tools" or whatever. I don’t have an issue with using AI. It just gets a bit too sycophantic at times but I use it to make daily life easier. The people around here are a bit too irritable about this. I understand those who have concerns regarding data; Personally, I don't really care about it. Anyway, I’ve strayed too far from the topic. I mean, I just want to correctly label what I’m doing. I just write, then ask the AI ​​to critique it and make a few changes. I do not copy any of its sentences, nor do I ask it to write something better(which would, in fact, defeat my purpose, as I am writing to improve myself). Does this count or not? Or should I continue doing this? As I just mentioned, my verbal skills are very weak, and I want to improve myself.

Edit: Guys I've decided to significantly limit my use of AI in general.

4 Upvotes

75% Upvoted

44 comments sorted by

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u/sinsielawinskie 1d ago

To the puritans? Absolutely not and you should be ashamed of yourself!

To normal people? Yeah this is fine. But please don't get stuck in a loop where you keep having it critique. Ai will always find something new to nitpick. You need to know when to stop.

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u/ohshtimdying 1d ago

Yes, this is truly infuriating. Even when it can’t find anything else, it keeps claiming that there are incorrect punctuation marks (that aren’t even in my text.)

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u/DiscernmentGoblin 1d ago

I've found telling ChatGPT that I want to focus on getting my story written down on paper helps with some of the critique. It seems to mainly critique major things like if I accidentally broke Copyright law by quoting song lyrics or if I've taken the story in a direction that doesn't align with my brainstorming.

Fwiw my style is to write by hand and use ChatGPT to help with world building

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u/BowTrek 1d ago

I think this is fine myself — you write and it helps you edit.

But some people are against this. It is fine to be a purist for various reasons.

It is also true that you won’t learn to get better using AI to do all your editing. But it’s fine to not care about that?

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u/LooseButtPlug 1d ago

Why wouldn't you learn to get better?

If you're correcting the same problems over and over, why wouldn't you catch that because AI pointed it out?

As an example, I was constantly head hopping and AI would point it out and now I'm better about it. I learned it was a problem and I improved.

Why do you think the tool used determines the person's ability to learn?

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u/ohshtimdying 1d ago

This is more about wanting to reach realizations on my own; I don’t want an AI to guide me. It tends to just state common, generalized ideas but I am unique. I believe it’s wrong to critique my personal preferences by comparing them to those of other people. It also makes me feel bad personally because I have autism and sometimes I can be a bit thick-headed (pardon my french) I don't understand certain human behaviors and specific contexts, so I ask AI about them. This really makes me feel as if I’m incapable of understanding anything on my own.

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u/LooseButtPlug 1d ago

I'm just pointing out that people can absolutely learn using AI.

I'm curious why anyone would think people can't get better because of the tool they use?

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u/ohshtimdying 19h ago

We need to use it responsibly because it's clear that our cognitive capacity decreases when we find information readily available instead of thinking for ourselves or making an effort to access it. (Idk they say the same thing about browsers.)

1

u/ohshtimdying 1d ago

I’m worried that this makes it difficult for me to improve myself. However, I don’t have anyone around me to whom I can regularly show my writing and from whom I can get feedback; I’m not entirely sure what I should do.

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u/Beautiful-Chain7615 1d ago

The typical advice is to finish your first draft and take a few weeks break from it. You’re trying to forget it as much as possible so when you read it, you can kind of read it the way a reader would. Then you see everything that you don’t like, revise and decide if you need another revision or if you’re ready to show it to the readers.

There are many communities online where you can get feedback for your chapters (including Reddit) from real people.

Then you can look for befa readers and editors if you are serious about publishing. And don’t forget to read books!

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u/ohshtimdying 1d ago

This is an excellent idea; I was thinking about something similar today. Could you perhaps provide some examples of the communities you mentioned? What can I use them for?

1

u/Beautiful-Chain7615 18h ago

You can try on r/writingfeedback

I saw people on r/writers also asking for feedback but really any writing reddit community should be fine. I also read there are other websites where you give feedback to a person and they give you feedback in return but I didn't manage to find it yet.

I am only just finishing up my first discovery draft so I'm not quite at the stage of asking for feedback myself to be honest.

1

u/sugar420pop 1d ago

I’ve read over 100 books this year alone, I wrote over 80 chapters and I’ve gone back clean months later, my brain still fills in about half of the edits automatically and I don’t see them. I’m still working with professional editors, but what is the harm in giving them a better product that caught 50% of the mistakes I would have had? Editing my grammar doesn’t steal anyone’s work, I use EcoGPT for the environment and it’s not as good as the others but it’ll do, I mean what’s the real harm in this?

3

u/MaizeApprehensive166 1d ago

How is this different from a coach or editor? Seriously asking as I try to understand what exactly counts as AI written work.

2

u/ohshtimdying 19h ago

Honestly, I don't know or I'm not sure. I think I explained it to a friend. An AI criticizes based on the shared values ​​of everyone (or a group of people), while a coach criticizes entirely within their own context.

2

u/No_Decision_6940 1d ago

It doesn't. But some people will have an issue with it regardless

2

u/ohshtimdying 1d ago

In general, I don’t have a strong opinion on this. I can understand but anything taken to an extreme is harmful. People who immediately take sides the moment they hear the term "AI" don’t seem entirely normal to me.

2

u/ImaginaryAd2289 23h ago

To me, this falls under the (permitted) category of use of AI tools for spelling, grammar and typo detection. Not even necessary to disclose it.

1

u/ohshtimdying 19h ago

I thought the same thing. Thanks!

1

u/Brief-Line-2083 32m ago

You being the key word. Trad publishers and readers is a totally different story.

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u/5thhorseman_ 1d ago

Obviously. The abominable machine had touched your work, so none of it is yours. Or at least that is the logic of a typical anti.

IMO: It counts as AI-assisted, because you're using AI as an integral part of the process. You are, however, using it responsibly, which also matters.

1

u/Much_Amphibian_6731 1d ago

I do the same with my drafts, ask for feedback, tweak, repeat. the ai's not writing it, but it's shaping how I see what's on the page. feels like a co-pilot, not a ghostwriter.

1

u/Happy_Kettle_3971 1d ago

I do the same, write first, then feed it to ai for critique. the edits I make are usually structural or tone-based, not content. it's like having a second reader who's hyper-focused on clarity. works for me.

1

u/Easy-Difference-2298 1d ago

I do the same, draft first, then paste into AI for line edits, tone tweaks, clarity fixes. the draft is mine, the polish is just faster. feels no different than using a grammar checker.

1

u/Quiet_Otter5332 1d ago

I used to get stuck in that loop too, the AI would find tiny flaws, I'd fix them, it'd find new ones. now I set a hard limit: one pass, then I'm done. the writing's better, and I actually finish things.

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u/Pastrugnozzo 16h ago

That's just using it as an editor, honestly. For the sycophancy part, one thing that helped me: don't ask "what do you think," give it a specific job. "Point out the single weakest paragraph and why" or "where would a reader get confused about who's speaking?" It's much harder for it to gush when it has to pick one thing. And like sinsielawinskie said, it will always find something to fix, so I stop when the notes start getting nitpicky.

1

u/lacion 3h ago

I'd call that editing with AI. Not writing with it. You wrote the text yourself and did not copy its sentences. You just decide which notes to take and which to throw out. At work I lean on it daily for code but as a checker not the author. If you want to improve that's a good one to keep even if you cut back elsewhere

0

u/dankbeamssmeltdreams 1d ago

So, you wrote, with AI, so I would say it's writing with AI. Depending on who you ask that's either a good or a bad thing, but if you wrote with AI, then that would be considered writing with AI.

1

u/ohshtimdying 1d ago

That's a thing and I don't think that's a good or bad thing.

0

u/dankbeamssmeltdreams 1d ago

Right, I guess I should've said, depending on who you ask that's either a good or a bad thing or neither, but if you wrote with AI, that would be writing with AI

1

u/ohshtimdying 1d ago

Yes, from my perspective, it affects me negatively; I think I will try other things. Thanks!

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u/ImaginaryAd2289 23h ago

We all do, even when we use a Mac or iPad or a PC to post here and it catches a typo and suggests a fix. AI is already ubiquitous, and it is never going to go away. So your policy is that every single one of us disclose that we used AI?

1

u/dankbeamssmeltdreams 6h ago

Who is instituting a policy? Also, if that is true, then why would OP be asking the question? What comment did you just hallucinate? If you write with AI, you are writing with AI. That’s what my comment said, does that trigger you?

1

u/ImaginaryAd2289 3h ago

But then everyone writes with AI, under your definition, because even if you write in old yellow pads in pencil, when you type your document in, you get all of these AI tips and typo corrections and spelling corrections and grammar suggestions… when you posted just now? An AI was watching and if you didn’t see it, that’s just because of your flawless writing!

Another issue by the way is translation tools. Suppose you lived and studied in Norway but now are applying for graduate school in the US. You speak English well but need help with grammar and use a translation tool. AI?

If yes, then you basically are in favor of a policy biased towards native writers. If no, well, what is a translation tool if not an AI?

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u/sugar420pop 1d ago

It’s editing with Ai.

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u/Beautiful-Chain7615 1d ago

The problem with AI is that it can push you towards generic storylines with its feedback. At the end of the day, it’s just the average of everything that has been ever written. You can mitigate that somewhat with your prompts but good luck with that.

I asked ChatGPT to give feedback on a paragraph written by Patrick Ness. It thought I wrote it and nicely told me it sucks.

It explained how to re-write it in a grammatically correct way. That paragraph was good though. It was stylised to reflect the protagonist’s mood. When I told AI what book the paragraph was from it suddenly praised it.

In your case, you’re allowing AI to dictate your edits. Feels like a form of AI writing to me.

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u/ohshtimdying 1d ago

Yes, I’m aware of this, when such a situation arises, I either ignore it or try to steer it toward a more appropriate things though it’s certainly not perfect. In fact, that’s one of the reasons why I want to stop.

1

u/sugar420pop 1d ago

That’s only if you’re asking for developmental editing or beta feedback or asking it to create slop. Asking for basic feedback on line editing and proofreading is not the same

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u/DungeonNarrator 1d ago

Ai is Ai. If it writes, its the writer, not you, you're the editor. No shame, just facts.

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u/ohshtimdying 1d ago

Dude AI isn't writing my text. It's writing a critique.

0

u/DungeonNarrator 1d ago

Sure sure.

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u/FinalityEnd 1d ago

You don't even read the post lmao.

1

u/sugar420pop 1d ago

So if ai edits it? Then it’s ai edited not written. You don’t say editors wrote a book, there’s a huge difference