AI For Writing

Overview

AI platforms can be useful when used as supplementary tools during the writing process. This section will cover when and how AI can be incorporated into different stages of the writing process, from planning to drafting, with a focus on strategies for prompt engineering and getting effective results. Note that AI should never be used to generate writing from scratch; that's not what learning writing skills is about. It is never acceptable to have an AI chatbot write your papers for you. Instead, we will look at ways that AI can enhance and help you to enhance your writing process, while making sure that you're still doing the bulk of the work.

While the AI Writer Toolbox can help you learn more about applications of AI in writing, it's important to remember that faculty will have different policies about the use of AI in the classroom. If you are ever in doubt about acceptable applications of AI tools in a specific class, the best thing to do is ask your instructor.

Prompt Engineering for the Writing Process

The Art of Prompt Engineering

Prompt engineering involves designing effective prompts to elicit desired responses from AI systems. Specifically, it helps generate responses that are relevant, coherent, and useful from text-generating platforms like ChatGPT.

STRATEGIES FOR CREATING EFFECTIVE PROMPTS

1. Clarity and Specificity

It's essential to make your prompts as clear and specific as possible. Ambiguous or vague prompts can lead to irrelevant or confusing AI-generated responses. Ensure that your prompts explicitly state the desired outcome or response format.

2. Contextual Information

Providing context in your prompts is crucial for the generation of accurate responses. By including relevant background information or defining specific terms, you can guide the AI model toward a more informed and appropriate response.

3. Limiting Response Length

When designing a prompt, consider specifying the desired length of the response. For instance, if you require a brief, concise answer, you may include a phrase like "in one sentence" or "summarize in 100 words." This ensures that the AI model generates responses that meet your expectations.

4. Iterative Refinement

The process of prompt engineering often involves trial and error. Test your prompts with the AI system and observe the responses. If the generated output is not satisfactory, refine your prompt by making it more specific, adding context, or adjusting the response length.

5. Prompt Chaining

Sometimes a single prompt may not be enough to obtain the desired response. In such cases, you can use "prompt chaining," which involves breaking down a complex prompt into simpler, interconnected prompts. This strategy helps guide the AI model step-by-step toward the desired outcome.

Prompt Chaining Example

To begin, we prompt ChatGPT to "list three primary causes of climate change."

Then, we follow-up and utilize the information from the initial response to gain more in-depth and nuanced information on the subject by asking ChatGPT to "discuss the impact of each cause on global temperatures and weather patterns."

The result is a detailed and lengthy explanation on how each of the three causes of climate change impacts global temperatures and weather patterns. This information can be used to help you outline a paper on this topic by helping organize and break down your thought process.

AI Prompt Engineering

AI Prompt Engineering.pdf

Refer to our Writing Center handout about AI Prompt Engineering for an in-depth look at prompt engineering strategies. Download the PDF for your reference.

Additional Resources

AI for Brainstorming

Utilizing Generative AI: Beyond Idea Generation

Ethical Considerations & Academic Integrity

It's essential to remember that in order to effectively use AI for writing help, you need a base knowledge of writing and rhetorical techniques, especially when dealing with prompt engineering and response evaluation. Therefore, it's important to be mindful of if, when, and how you use AI to assist in your work. If you are ever in doubt about acceptable applications of AI tools in a specific class, the best thing to do is ask your instructor.

See the AI Ethics page to learn more about the ethical implications of using AI.

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