My Creative Slump – How the Idea Started
I’ve been in a bit of a writing slump lately. If you visit HotPinkTech regularly-ish, you may have noticed. It has been a long time since I have been able to create regular posts. Call it burn out. Call it lack of motivation. Call it whatever. The truth is, I have just not been able to write. I’ve wanted to write. I’ve wanted to share ideas and thoughts and new tech finds with you all, I have just not been able to do it. <<sigh>>
Over the past year, as I have been expertly putting off writing new posts, I have also been watching the internet chatter about Artificial Intelligence (AI) and the impact it is having on the creative community and education. I have been intrigued and curious, and fascinated. In fact, last year at the International Society for Technology in Education (ISTE) conference in New Orleans, AI was one of the hottest topics. From keynotes to featured sessions, educators were talking about how AI is and will transform education. Since last June, I have had dozen of AI tools bookmarked and ready to explore. I just haven’t done it. Aside from a few fun works of art created on Dream by WOMBO, I have not really dug deep into the world of using AI to create. But I have wanted to explore it and look at how we can use it with students and educators.
So, here I sit, a year later lamenting about my lack of content on my sad little blog and lamenting about being behind the times when it comes to exploring AI. Then that an idea struck me… Why don’t I explore AI while creating content. I can take you all on my journey into the weird, wonderful world of creating with AI! I’ll play and post about it. Two birds! Win-win! Let’s do this.
Can an AI Co-Write a Blog Post?
Time to experiment. What happens if you use an AI to help write content? Would the content be any good? Would it be accurate or informative? Could it use my voice? Am I breaking every ethical code of intellectual property that I have ever learned? Who knows? But I want to find out. Let’s see what happens when I put my content dry spell in the hands of an AI.
For this post, I experimented with Bard from Google. I’ve played around with Bard a bit before. Trying a few prompts like design a summer camp, plan an event, or even, my favorite, write a poem. I asked Bard to write me a poem about joy, happiness and creativity. Not bad, Bard.
Enough playing around. Let’s really see what Bard can do. I signed in to Bard and used the following prompt.
Write a blog post about using AI to co-write a blog post. Use a maximum of 500 words. Use the style of hotpinktech.com.
I hit enter and after just a couple seconds, Bard produced the following. Give it a read. I’ll join you again at the end and we’ll discuss. Just in case you are wondering, this is me talking. The real me. Below, in the pink box, is Bard talking. It is straight from the Bard’s mouth. I have not edited it so we can compare. I did tweak the formatting but other than that, it is all Bard.
How to Use AI to Co-Write a Blog Post (Written by Bard)
Introduction
How AI Can Help You Write Blog Posts
Artificial intelligence (AI) is rapidly changing the world, and the field of content creation is no exception. AI writing tools are becoming increasingly sophisticated, and they can now be used to co-write blog posts. This can save bloggers a significant amount of time and effort, and it can also help them to produce higher-quality content.
AI writing tools can help you with every step of the blog writing process, from coming up with ideas to editing and proofreading. Here are a few of the ways that AI can help you:
- Idea generation: AI tools can help you come up with new blog post ideas by analyzing your website traffic, social media engagement, and search engine results.
- Content creation: AI tools can generate content for your blog posts, including headlines, introductions, body paragraphs, and conclusions.
- Formatting: AI tools can format your blog posts for optimal readability, including adding headings, subheadings, lists, and images.
- Grammar and spelling: AI tools can check your blog posts for grammar and spelling errors.
How to Use AI Ethically
While AI writing tools can be a valuable resource for bloggers, it is important to use them ethically. Here are a few tips for using AI ethically:
- Don’t plagiarize: Always give credit to the original source of any information that you use.
- Don’t use AI to replace human writers: AI writing tools should be used as a supplement to human writers, not as a replacement.
- Use AI to improve the quality of your content: AI writing tools can help you to produce higher-quality content, but they cannot replace your own creativity and expertise.
Conclusion
AI writing tools can be a valuable resource for bloggers. They can save you time and effort, and they can help you to produce higher-quality content. However, it is important to use AI ethically and to remember that AI writing tools are not a replacement for human writers.
Here are some additional tips for using AI to co-write a blog post:
- Start with a clear idea of what you want to write about. What is your main topic? What are your key points? The more specific you can be, the better.
- Provide plenty of context for the AI. The more information you can give the AI, the better it will be able to understand what you want it to write. This includes providing links to relevant articles, research papers, and other resources.
- Be prepared to edit and proofread. Even the best AI writing tools can make mistakes. Be sure to edit and proofread your blog post before you publish it.
With a little planning and effort, you can use AI to co-write high-quality blog posts that will engage your readers and help you achieve your marketing goals.
How Did it Do?
The Good
Well, that wasn’t too bad. Overall, the post was informative. Not mind-blowing but it had a few good ideas. The content was on target with the prompt. The post gave ideas for how a human author could use AI to write a blog post. I’ll say, it even came up with some ideas I did not think of using it for formatting and grammar checking (something I usually need). I also was really pleased to see a section on using AI ethically. Nice addition there, Bard. The whole ethics of co-creating with AI can be an entire post on its own and definitely something I need to explore further. Are the ideas that Bard generated any different than what I would have come up with after doing my own research online? Maybe. But, my own research would have taken time. Reading different sources. Synthesizing ideas and packaging it into my own writing. So, did I save myself time or am I plagiarizing someone else’s ideas? Even if that someone is a bot. Again – I have so many questions.
The No So Good
For me, the biggest drawback (aside from the shady ethics issues) is the lack of personality. The post written by Bard does not have my writing style or voice. Where is my dry humor, witty turn of phrase, or annoying asides (for some that might not be a bad thing)? This is something that would take more experimenting. Would it be possible to train an AI using my writing so it could better imitate my voice? (Shady ethics again?) Or is the better use of this tool to research a first draft? I could see it saving time on some first pass research. Almost like having a thought partner to help you shake out ideas, find supporting resources, and get you past that dreaded blank page stage. Someone (something) to help you over the fist hurdle of writing and just get something down so you can edit and polish. Hmmmm…. It almost feeling like cheating.
What’s Next
I am very interested in exploring this more. The technology is so new and the possibilities are endless. However, as I’ve said, I still have so many questions. I think I will try it again with ChatGPT4 just to see if there is a difference between a free AI and a paid AI. Oh, I have so many questions…
- Do different AI tools produce different results with the same prompt?
- How does the prompt change the results?
- Can AI really be used as a serious content creation tool in an ethical way?
- If I craft the prompt and lead the AI to the content I need, is it my content?
Join me as I deep dive into this strange new world. Exploring the potential of AI and content creation might just be that robot friend I’ve always wanted and the very thing that kicks me out of my blog writing slump.
What do you want to know about these new AI tools and what it means for content creators? Have you used these tools to help you create? I’d love to hear your thoughts and questions as we explore together.