The primary focus of this podcast episode is the nuanced role of artificial intelligence in the writing process, particularly in its capacity to function as a supportive copilot rather than a ghostwriter. We explore the common misconceptions that surround the integration of AI into creative endeavors, addressing the fears that many writers harbor regarding the potential loss of authenticity and originality in their work. Our distinguished guest, Dr. Rhonda Lawson, brings over three decades of experience in writing and coaching, offering invaluable insights into how AI can enhance rather than diminish a writer's unique voice. We delve into practical strategies for utilizing AI effectively, emphasizing the importance of maintaining one's personal style while leveraging technology as a tool for organization and inspiration. Join us as we navigate the intersections of human creativity and machine assistance, reaffirming that the essence of storytelling remains firmly in the hands of the author.

The discourse presented in this episode eloquently navigates the intricacies of utilizing artificial intelligence (AI) in the literary domain, particularly focusing on the role of AI as a supportive tool rather than a substitute for the authorial voice. The conversation begins with a poignant inquiry that resonates with many aspiring writers: the apprehension surrounding the use of AI in the book-writing process. The host, Avik, alongside his distinguished guest, Dr. Rhonda Lawson, delves into the misconception that AI can wholly replace human creativity. They emphasize that while AI can assist in generating ideas and organizing thoughts, it is crucial for writers to maintain their unique voice and style throughout the creative process. Dr. Lawson shares her extensive experience in the literary field, underscoring the importance of personal investment in writing and the dangers of over-reliance on technology. As the discussion unfolds, listeners are encouraged to explore AI as a co-pilot, providing support during moments of creative blockage, rather than as a ghostwriter that takes over the narrative entirely. This nuanced understanding enables writers to harness AI's capabilities while ensuring that their authentic voice remains at the forefront of their literary endeavors. Dr. Lawson's insights serve as a guiding light for those navigating the evolving landscape of writing in the digital age, advocating for a balanced partnership between human creativity and technological innovation.

Takeaways:

• Utilizing AI in the writing process can enhance creativity by acting as an assistant rather than a replacement.
• Writers must maintain their unique voice and style when integrating AI into their creative process.
• It is crucial to be specific in prompts given to AI in order to achieve desired results.
• The distinction between AI as a tool and as a ghostwriter is vital for preserving authorship integrity.
• AI can help organize thoughts and streamline the writing process, making it more efficient.
• Writers should remain vigilant and critical when using AI to ensure quality and originality in their work.

Links referenced in this episode:

• www.mtwimagesolutions.com
• medium.com

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So here's a question I'd love to start with that keeps a lot of writers up at night.

Like can you use AI to help write your book without it sounding like, well, artificial intelligence?

Right.

So today we are going to find out how AI can be your copilot and not your ghostwriter.

And why that distinction matters more than you might think.

So, hey, Dear listeners, welcome back to another powerful episode of Minds meets Machine, the podcast where we explore how AI and human creativity can work together without one overpowering the other.

I'm your host, Avik, and today I'm joined by a lovely guest.

Please welcome Dr. Rhonda and Lawson.

So welcome to the show.

Amazing Dr. Rhonda.

So thank you so much for joining us today.

And before we delve deeper discussion, dear listeners, before we get into our discussion, I'll quickly love to introduce you with Dr. Rhonda.

So Dr. Rhonda is a retired U.S. army master surgeon turned award winning author, book coach and literacy strategist with over 30 years of writing and editing experience.

Yes.

So she has written and contributed to over 24 books, posed nearly thousand plus authors, and founded the Black History Month Literary weekend.

Yes, yes.

So she knows what it takes to finish a book and more importantly, what it takes to make it matter.

Right.

And today we are talking about something a lot of writers are quietly experimenting with, like using AI in the writing process.

Not to replace your voice, but to support it.

Right.

And thank you so much, Rhonda, for being here.

So I'll not take much of your time.

Dear listeners, let's get started.

Welcome to the show again.

Well, thank you for having me here.

I'm excited to talk about this subject.

It's something that's very close to my heart.

Exactly, exactly.

So before we get into the AI side of things, I'm really curious, like you have been into the storytelling world of decades now, from journalism to fiction to coaching.

What is the, I mean, what first drew you to writing?

And I mean, what keeps you coming back to it after all these years?

I like that question.

Well, I've always been into reading.

I grew up being a reader and eventually I wanted to create my own stories.

So at a very young age, at about 12 years old, I started to create my own stories and actually writing them down.

And my mother recognized that passion for writing very early and she poured into it and encouraged me.

And it's something that stuck with me throughout the years I went.

When I went to college, I majored in England.

When I joined the Army, I was an army journalist.

Which is basically a writer.

And I still do public affairs, which is, you know, writing press releases, working with the media.

And so I wanted to take my passion for writing, but I still also had a passion for fiction and for helping authors because I knew what it was like when I decided that I wanted to be a published author.

I knew the struggles that I had and so I wanted to help to ease that burden for other up and coming writers.

So I took my passion for writing and my passion for fiction and I just brought those two things together and that's how I created Meet the World image solutions.

That's amazing.

It's really amazing.

And like, I love that because it sounds like the storytelling has been your anchor through a lot of transitions from the army to authorship to now helping others find their voice.

And that's actually the perfect lens for what we are going to talk about today.

Like obviously, like Tiffany Tales love to start with the common misconception, which is one thing which I definitely focus on.

Like because when we're talking about it on any of the subject or the topic, I believe in a world full of brains, full of options, there definitely there are some misconceptions.

Right.

So because a lot of writers, they hear that AI and immediately think it's either going to write the whole book for them or it destroys everything, which is very authentic about their work for sure.

So what is the biggest misconception according to you, you have seen using about using AI in the writing process?

Well, I'll say this.

Never assume that the computer is smarter than you are.

And I think that's what happens is I remember having an assistant.

This was probably a couple years ago, not my current assistants, but I had an assistant that I asked to write a press release for me.

And the press release was not well written to begin with.

And then she said, well, I ran it through ChatGPT, so it's okay.

She thought that because she ran it through ChatGPT that it was perfectly written and it was not perfectly written.

It still needed to be fixed.

And so I think what happens is that as writers we sometimes think the computer is smarter than we are and that if the computer spits out a certain output, the then we must accept it because it's a computer and it must know more than we do.

So it's gotta be perfectly written.

There can't be any mistakes in it.

Yeah, the words might be spelled correctly, but it doesn't mean that the facts are all there.

It doesn't mean that the flow is all there.

So this is why it's important to use it as an assistant and not a replacement.

And I'm not going to say that there aren't people out there who are using AI as a replacement.

There are probably people out there writing, writing books, writing entire books.

They have no idea what's in that doggone book because they let AI write the whole thing for them.

And I tried that once when I was writing my last book.

I was running into some writer's block.

I said, I wonder if I just told AI to just get it started for me.

And I told ChatGPT to write the first two chapters of the book, and it did.

And I read it and I said, this sucks.

This is not going to be my book.

And then I also noticed that people like to play with ChatGPT and they like to post their results.

They might ask ChatGPT, for instance, people have been saying, do you know me?

Tell me who you think I am.

And then ChatGPT will say, well, you are so and so, and you're this, you're this, you're that.

And I noticed that people were posting those, and their output was almost the exact same as what chatgpt was telling me.

So now think about it.

If somebody is using that same thought process to write a book, and they say, write this book for me, they're all gonna have the same thing.

And I put it to you.

I put it to practice, because when I asked ChatGPT to write that chapter for me, it basically was my character staring out of the window, contemplating while drinking coffee.

And then I went on medium.com and there was another author who said that he tried the same thing.

You know, he said he wanted ChatGPT to write a chapter for.

And I noticed that his chapter started off the same way.

His character contemplating, staring out of the window, depressed, drinking a cup of coffee.

So basically, ChatGPT is giving everybody the same trope over and over and over again.

And so what happens is, if you're using AI to write your book for you, everything is the same.

There's no originality into it.

There's no human in it.

And I'm sorry, I love the craft of writing too much to let a computer replace me.

So that doesn't mean that I won't use it as an assistant.

If I run into writer's block, I might say, okay, well, what do you think would happen if so and so happened, or if this happened or that happened?

And I might give it some scenarios, and what that'll do is help my thought process, or maybe I want to organize my thoughts, and so I'll type something in there and I'll have chatgpt kind of organize everything for me.

And so it helps my flow.

And then I write, or I've even had it write an article or start an article for me, and then I go through and put my own touch to it.

So now I'm using it as an assistant, just like you would use it, use a human assistant.

If you say, I need you to get this started for me, and then I'll go ahead and finish it.

I'm a speech writer for the president of an organization or the chair of an organization, and often I will write her speech for her and then she goes through and puts her own touch to it.

That's the same thought process when you're using AI.

So I might ask AI to start something for me, but I've got to put my human touch on it.

I've got to put my style on it because I have earned my readership because of my style of writing.

I have earned my readership because of my talent.

And if I decide that I'm going to be lazy and let a computer do all of the work for me and expect my readership to still support my work, I'm not doing them any favors, and I'm not doing myself any favors.

So it's very important that you continue to put your own style, your own creativity into anything that you put forward.

Fine.

Use AI as much as you want.

There are going to be people who say you're not a real writer.

If you're using AI for any help at all, you can listen to them.

If you want to use AI, use the technology around you.

It is a blessing because a lot of the things I've been able to accomplish, I would not have been able to accomplish without my AI assistant.

But notice my assistant, not my replacement, not my ghostwriter.

And when you start to use it as an assistant and when you approach it as an assistant, you can get so much more done, you can have so much more creativity, and you're giving yourself back your life.

Very, very true.

Very true.

And I mean, it's such a. I'd say it's such an important distinction because, like, when someone does the approach AI with that mindset, that thinking it's a kind of shortcut or a replacement, what do you think?

I mean, what typically happens to their work?

What typically happens to their book work, basically?

Well, the problem is, is you don't know where it's pulling from.

It's like the Example, I told you, if everybody gives the same prompt to ChatGPT, everybody's going to get the same results.

Yeah.

So you're basically degrading your book, you're degrading your talent.

And so I, I personally think that I'm worth more than that.

Exactly.

I still want to put my own, my own style into it.

Definitely.

It's, it's like, I mean, obviously like AI doesn't replace the writer for sure.

It can assist the process, but if we hand over the creative decisions, then definitely you're gonna lose everything.

Everything that makes the story ours.

Right.

So that's a very critical thing to think about.

But yes, definitely, thank you so much for sharing that.

And also, like, about where the resistance to AI comes from, a lot of writers.

Right.

So it is kind of fear of being replaced or maybe losing that authenticity or something deeper happening when we talk about machines and creativity.

So what's your take?

I think that people are afraid of AI because they're afraid of being replaced.

But I don't believe that AI is going to replace people.

I believe that people who know how to use AI are going to replace people.

Yeah.

Right.

Now, in my current day job, I use.

Use AI quite a bit.

And it's, it helps me because sometimes it would take me all day to write a press release, but I can feed the information that I want into AI and then say I want it to.

I'll give it an example.

Basically, I'm teaching it how I want it to look, how I want the format to be, and then it spits out the output that's almost there.

But then I still go through and I edit it.

I still make sure that the facts are presented correctly.

I take out what needs to be taken out, add what I need to add.

And now my press release is done in less than an hour, when it could have taken me two, three or four hours before.

Probably just last year.

It would have taken me that long.

Exactly, exactly.

I mean, that, that makes a lot of sense because like, as, as you're about to mention, like, AI is there to help us make the repetitive work kind of smoother just to save the time.

But yes, again, it's a very good practice.

Like you mentioned, like whenever we are getting something like the repetitive work and it is giving us that output.

But yes, it is a very good check and very good habit to read everything what AI is giving us.

And because it is our brain which we can understand, we can change things, we can make things how we want rather than what AI is pushing us to believe.

So rather than let's read, let's finalize, and then you utilize it.

So that's a great habit.

I'll give you another example.

Right now, January and February are my busiest times.

As you mentioned before, my Black History Month literary weekend, I'm working on.

I'm working on that right now.

But I want to start writing my next book next month.

So what I've been doing with AI is I've been putting my thoughts for the book into.

I'm basically having a conversation with ChatGPT.

I'm saying, okay, this is what I want.

I want to talk about this, this, this, and this.

And some of the examples that I want to cite are this, this, this, and this.

And what it's doing right now is it's organizing everything for me.

I've asked it to pre write some things for me.

So once I'm ready to start, I already have a formula, I already have an outline.

And it's going to make the writing process so much faster.

So when I'm ready to start writing, it's not going to take me months or years to get that book done.

It's still going to be my thoughts.

Everything in the book is my thoughts, but everything is in certain order.

I'm not.

They say AI is stealing, but I'm not stealing from anybody because it's my work.

I'm putting my thoughts into it.

The book that I'm writing is based on something that I've already previously written.

So I've kind of taught it that.

And it's organizing my thoughts, what I want my chapters to be.

So like I said, when I'm ready to start writing, I can just start writing.

I'm not starting from scratch and I'm doing this as I'm thinking about it.

So when I'm on the commuter bus heading to work, I'm typing my thoughts into the.

Into when I'm driving, I'll turn the voice function on and I just talk it and then it organizes everything for me.

So now when I start writing, I can kind of organize everything and look at the chapters.

Okay, okay.

Chapter one is going to be about this.

I can start writing from here now.

Chapter two is going to be about this.

I can start writing from there now.

And it makes things much easier.

I use the same process, but when I wrote my last book, surprise swipe right.

I just put my thoughts in.

I asked it to organize.

How did I want chapter one to look?

How did I want chapter two to look?

Now, did it look exactly like that when I actually started the writing process.

No, it didn't.

But it helped me to think.

And I was able to get my book done in a few weeks instead of it taking months.

And some people can get a book done in a few days.

I still have a day job.

I have a business.

I have a family.

I don't always have time to sit down and write straight through.

I write when I can.

So it takes me a little longer to write books.

But because I use my AI assistant to organize my thoughts, once I'm ready to start writing, I can get so much more done.

I can get 10, 10 pages written in a day because I organized my thoughts before I started my writing process.

And this is something that I teach my clients in coaching.

I have people who come to me and say, I want to write a book.

I don't know where to start.

And I always tell them to organize their thoughts, think about what their message is.

What do they want people to know?

What are some of the things that go along with that message?

I take them back to elementary school when we used to write the circle on the paper, and you wrote your main topic in that circle, and then you would take a line and you had different lines jutting out from that circle and write down other ideas that are related to that idea that's in the circle.

That's basically what you're doing with AI except you're just not doing it by hand.

You're organizing your thoughts, putting things the way they should, they should go.

You're bouncing your ideas off of your writing assistant.

And then once, once you're able to start writing, everything flows.

And so I practice what I preach.

If I'm gonna.

This is what I'm gonna teach my clients to do.

This is what I'm gonna do as well.

And it just helps the writing process.

But never once will I tell any of my clients to let AI do all the work for you.

Very, very true.

And.

And definitely, I think that's such a grounded way to look at it, because AI is not the author.

Right.

You are the author.

And it's just a tool.

It's just a tool or in service of your vision.

And that reframe seeing, it's a kind of support rather than substitution.

So probably changes everything about how you use it.

Right?

So that's really great.

And also, like, let's say someone is sitting down to write and they want to experiment with AI for the first time.

They are nervous and they don't want to mess up their voice as well, right?

So what is the one practical, or maybe the low stakes that they can start using it and that won't feel overwhelming or risky as well?

I'd say be specific.

When I first started using AI, I would say something like, create a caption for this picture.

Okay?

It would give me something very general, very vanilla.

But as I got more comfortable with AI, as I started to get more experienced with it, I don't say just create a caption anymore.

I might say create a caption with SEO value that appeals to a specific audience that's going to create one version for TikTok, one version for Instagram.

You know, I'm going to put a whole lot more detail and specificity in, and by doing that, I get a much more quality result.

So I think that's the first thing is just kind of play around with it.

Think about how specific you want to be.

And then sometimes you just brain dump it.

Turn the speak function on instead of typing it and just brain dump.

You know, even if you put ums and ahs and everything else in it, just throw it all in there and let ChatGPT work it out and then work from there.

And then don't take the first output that it gives you.

It's okay to push back if it's not exactly what you're looking for.

Like I said at the beginning, never assume that AI is smarter than you are.

It can make mistakes.

Maybe you gave it some faulty information, so it gave you some faulty information.

Maybe it was too general.

So.

But when you go back and forth, back and forth and actually have a conversation with it, then you're going to start getting more quality results.

And I do want to put this one caveat in.

As much as I talk to AI, as much as I work on it, I'm not giving it any personal information.

I'm not putting any account numbers in there.

I'm not putting Social Security numbers in there, because even though I have a business account, so it's not sharing what I'm putting in there with the world.

It's my deal.

I'm still cognizant of the fact that it's a computer and computers can be faulty.

I'm not, like I said, I'm not going to put a bunch of personal information in there.

I'm not going to put medical information in there.

I'm not going to put anything in that I don't want shared with the world.

I think that's something that people just need to be cognizant of.

Exactly.

Exactly.

True.

So, okay.

And you know, like I love, I mean, starting small and staying in control.

So from there, obviously like setbacks and the change.

Right.

What happens when a writer tries to use AI and it just kind of doesn't click right?

Maybe the output feels sterile or they feel more stuck than before.

So how do you help someone course correct when AI is not serving them the way they hope?

I would say that maybe you might want to start over again and like I said earlier, maybe be a bit more specific about what it is that you're looking for, because if you're being very general, it's not going to give you specific results.

So you want to be more specific about what it is that you're looking for, who you're trying to reach, what you're trying to do, what your outcome.

But you, what you're the outcoming, the outcome that you're hoping for is what I'm trying to say.

Look for all of that.

And then from there, like I said, go back and forth with it.

If you're not getting what you want, ask it more questions, but don't try to purposely take anybody else's work because believe it or not, the ChatGPT won't let you purposely take copyrighted information.

And it will say, this appears to be copyrighted.

I cannot do this.

So I believe it does actually have limits.

Right.

And also, like for the writers who find, who do find the freedom with AI and who start to see it's a kind of helpful partner, so how do they sustain that relationship long term without becoming dependent on it?

You still want to do your own writing.

You don't want to depend so much on ChatGPT that you can't make a move without ChatGPT.

Teach it your style so you can make it easier to adapt.

For instance, I know the way I write press releases, so I've kind of taught my chatgpt how I want my press releases to be written.

So if I say write a press release on this, I want you to focus on that.

Blah, blah, blah.

I give it all of those details and I give it as many details as possible.

Pull from here, pull from there.

Here's the website, here's the.

Here are the dates.

I put all of that in.

So it gives me almost close to perfect, but I still have to go through and read over it.

So check everything.

Got it, Got it.

So, and also for the writers who's been starting at a blank page for the months, maybe years, also someone who's overwhelmed with the idea of finishing a book and now feels even More overwhelmed by the idea of learning AI.

What would you say to them?

I'm sorry, I didn't understand that question.

Okay, so I mean, suppose someone has just started a book, right?

Maybe it take months or years.

So someone who has the idea of finishing a book and now they even feel like more overwhelmed by the idea of learning AI So what would you say to them?

I can understand being a bit overwhelmed by learning AI.

There are some people who refuse to touch AI So I do understand that.

I would say do some small tasks until you get comfortable with it, and then once you're more comfortable with it, move to some bigger tasks and then some bigger tasks.

I will not have AI edit an entire book.

But I have used it as an editing assistant before, just, you know, to help me to find typos that I may have overlooked because I got tired of reading a document.

I mean, it has helped me with that.

I have asked it to help me to find a better way to write a sentence, because sometimes sentences just look weird and you're not sure how to fix them.

So I've had it.

Help me with that.

I've had it.

Help me to give.

Give me some ideas.

So you do small things like that and until you get more comfortable and then maybe do some bigger tasks from there.

Yeah, yeah, yeah.

That's beautiful.

I mean, I think that's the reminder that we all need AI or no AI.

The story starts with you, for sure.

So, yeah.

So, Rhonda, like, for the listeners who want to connect with you, work with you, or learn more about your coaching, your writing, where can they find you?

Well, I would love to talk with anybody who would like assistance with writing their book and getting their book out there.

That's.

That's totally what I do.

I value the written word and I like to work with clients who share that value.

So you can reach me on my website@www.mtwimagesolutions.com.

You can also find me on Instagram, etheworld, imagesolutions, Facebook, or you can just look for my name or you can find me on LinkedIn.

I'm also on X and I'm on TikTok.

And I like.

I like TikTok.

I'm trying to do it a little bit more.

Eventually I'm going to get on Pinterest.

I'm working on it, but it's not quite there yet.

Amazing.

Yeah, yeah.

Great.

Today, listeners, what I'll do is I'll put all the links and the details into the show.

Notes for you, easy reference and with this Hope.

This is your host, Avik.

And this is Mind Meets Machine.

I hope you will sit with it.

Whether it's just a curiosity, courage, or just a little bit of clarity.

Right?

Maybe even open up that document that you have been avoiding.

AI is a tool.

Your story is yours for sure.

So nothing to think much.

Thank you so much for listening and I'll see you next time in the other episode.

Have a great day.

Thank you so much.

Thank you.