AI drafts often serve as a functional starting point, but more often than not, they lack the nuances that human readers expect. In this article, we provide a structured approach to transform an initial AI-generated content draft into a more precise and authoritative piece of writing.
1. Add Your Personal Experience and Insights
One of the easiest ways to un-ai a text is to add your personal experience and insights. Let’s take a closer look:
- AI-Generated Version: Effective management requires clear communication. Leaders should talk to their teams regularly to avoid project delays and ensure everyone understands their roles.
- Human-Modified Version: Clear communication takes more than a weekly email blast. During a recent software launch, our team avoided a major delay only because we switched to a five-minute daily stand-up meeting. This specific change caught three technical bugs that hadn’t been mentioned in our written reports.
As you can see, the human-modified version has more weight. And yes, it might be longer, but it’s not dry or robotic. Plus, it gave the text a much-needed context and example without taking away the original meaning of the AI-generated text.
2. Rewrite Overly Used AI Words and Phrases
Large Language Models (LLMs) are trained on massive datasets and prioritize high-probability word choices, which often results in a repetitive vocabulary. Certain words appear way too often in AI outputs, such as comprehensive, meticulous, pivotal, and testament.
These words are appropriate in academic or research contexts, but overusing them in a blog post will always make the text feel formulaic.
- AI-Generated Version: This report provides a comprehensive overview of the pivotal shifts in the market. It is a testament to the importance of meticulous planning.
- Human-Modified Version: This report covers the most significant changes in the market today. It shows why careful planning is necessary for success this year.
3. Vary the Sentence Structure and Length
AI frequently produces sentences of a similar length, giving the text a monotonous rhythm. On the other hand, human writing uses a variety of structures, including:
- Simple sentences: Use these for the most important points.
- Compound sentences: Use “and” or “but” to connect two equal ideas.
- Complex sentences: Use subordinating conjunctions to provide context.
Here’s an example of how you can vary the sentence structure and length of an AI draft.
- AI-Generated Version: The technology is changing quickly. Many companies are trying to keep up. They are investing in new tools. This process takes a lot of time and money.
- Human-Modified Version: Technology changes quickly. Because of this, companies are investing heavily in new tools, but the process takes significant time and money.
4. Remove Unnecessary Interjections
We use interjections to express strong emotion or sudden bursts of thought, such as wow, hey, ouch, or oh. In professional writing, AI might insert these to try to sound more “human” or conversational, but the result often feels forced.
- AI-Generated Paragraph: Oh, it is important to realize that the market is volatile. Hey, you might think the strategy is simple, but wow, the data says otherwise.
- Human-Modified Version: The market remains volatile. Even if our strategy seems straightforward, the data suggests a different approach.
5. Go Deeper With Data
AI often provides summaries without specific or verifiable facts. And yes, sometimes it just makes facts up. One way to improve the value of your text is to add statistics and cite reputable research.
How do you know if your data is factual? Use this checklist to verify your findings:
- Locate the original study rather than a blog post summarizing it.
- Check if the data is less than three years old.
- Verify the sample size of the research.
- Identify the funding source to ensure there is no conflict of interest.
Tip: Always fact-check AI.
6. Switch to Active Voice
Active voice makes your sentences more direct and easier to follow. For example, instead of saying “the ball was kicked,” you say “the player kicked the ball.”
- AI-Generated Version: The report was completed by the team last Friday. New guidelines were suggested by the manager to improve the workflow.
- Human-Modified Version: The team completed the report last Friday, and the manager introduced new guidelines to improve the workflow.
7. Adjust the Style
Before you even start writing, consider who is reading the text. A draft for a technical audience requires specific terminology, while a draft for a general audience should avoid jargon.
Example:
- For a technical audience, you might write: “Ensure the API endpoint handles asynchronous requests to prevent latency.”
- For a general audience: “Make sure the system can handle many tasks at once so it stays fast.”
8. Infuse Storytelling
You can make your text less AI by using real-world examples, especially when illustrating how a process works or breaking down a complex idea.
For instance, instead of just listing the steps to start a business, describe the first day an entrepreneur opened their doors. You can also mention the specific details of the shop, the first customer who walked in, and how that initial interaction changed their business strategy.
9. Cut Fluff and Clichés
Phrases like “at the end of the day” or “in today’s digital world” are common in AI texts. They add zero value and should be removed in your edited version.
- AI-Generated Version: In today’s digital age, it is more important than ever to stay ahead of the curve. At the end of the day, quality is what matters most.
- Human-Modified Version: Quality matters. In a crowded market, it’s the only way to stay competitive.
Tip: If you can remove a sentence without changing the meaning of the paragraph, delete it immediately.
10. Improve the Flow and Readability
Flow refers to how ideas connect within a text, and it’s natural in human writing. AI, on the other hand? It likes to just throw short sentences one after the other.
- AI-Generated Version: The product launched in June. Sales were low at first. We changed the marketing strategy. Profits increased in August.
- Human-Modified Version: Although the June launch started slow, a quick pivot in our marketing strategy turned things around. By August, profits were finally climbing.
11. Combine Repetitive Sentences
If every sentence in a paragraph starts with the same word, the reader will tune out. So, what do you do? You’d want to merge these ideas into a single, more complex sentence to improve variety.
- AI-Generated Version: The car is fast. The car is red. The car is expensive.
- Human-Modified Version: The red car is as fast as it is expensive.
12. Simplify Overexplained Sentences
AI often overexplains concepts that most people already know, resulting in robotic, obvious text. And yes, a technical crowd knows its industry jargon, but even a general audience will feel patronized if you define basic terms like “the internet” or “social media.”
- AI-Generated Version: You should use a smartphone. A smartphone is a small mobile device that allows you to access the internet and make calls. You can download apps on it to help with your work.
- Human-Modified Version: Use your smartphone to download productivity apps that sync with your desktop.
Un-AI Your Text With This Prompt
Need a little help? Use this prompt:
You are an expert human editor specializing in transforming AI-generated drafts into natural, and human-like writing.
Your task is to rewrite the provided AI-generated draft to sound fully human, natural, and credible. When rewriting, please consider the following techniques:
1. Add specific details, real-world examples, or expert insights where appropriate.
2. Replace and avoid overused AI vocabulary (e.g., "comprehensive," "pivotal," "in today's digital world) with precise, context appropriate language.
3. Vary sentence structure and length to create a natural rhythm (use a mix of simple, compound, and complex sentences)
5. Remove unnecessary interjections (e.g., "wow," "hey") and forced conversational fillers.
6. Convert passive voice into active voice wherever possible.
7. Infuse subtle storytelling elements when helpful to illustrate concepts.
8. Eliminate clichés, fluff, and redundant phrases.
9. Combine repeitive or mechanically structured sentences.
10. Simplify overexplained ideas without sounding patronizing.
11. Use transition words and phrases (e.g., "also," "on the other hand," "while," "although") for readability and flow, especially when connecting ideas together, show contrast, or when the sentences are related.
Constraints
1. Preserve the core meaning of the original draft.
2. Ensure logical flow between sentences and paragraphs.
3. Maintain grammatical accuracy.
4. Avoid unnecessary verbosity/wordiness.
Required output
1. Humanized version
2. Revision table, summarizing key improvements
AI-generated draft for you to edit: [insert text] Final Thoughts
And there you have it! You can un-ai your text using these 12 techniques. Remember, put the reader first and focus on the details, and you can transform AI-generated writing into human-like content. For more tips, make sure to give our humanizing AI guide a read.