📝 AI Writing Checklist

AI Writing Checklist: Ensure Authentic, Human Content

I. Pre-Writing Preparation

• Define your unique perspective or personal experience with the topic
• Identify specific examples, anecdotes, or case studies to include
• Research current, specific data and recent developments (avoid generic facts)
• Consider your target audience’s knowledge level and interests

II. Writing Style & Voice

• Use varied sentence lengths (mix short punchy sentences with longer complex ones)
• Include contractions naturally (don’t, won’t, it’s) where appropriate
• Add personal pronouns (I, we, you) to create connection
• Inject personality through word choice and tone
• Use colloquialisms or industry-specific jargon appropriately
• Vary paragraph lengths (avoid uniform 3-4 sentence paragraphs)

III. Content & Structure

• Start with a compelling hook (question, story, surprising fact)
• Include specific, concrete examples rather than abstract concepts
• Add unexpected insights or counterintuitive perspectives
• Use transitional phrases that feel natural, not formulaic
• Include rhetorical questions to engage readers
• Break from predictable structure occasionally

IV. Vocabulary & Phrasing

• Remove or replace common AI phrases:
• ❌ “It’s worth noting that…”
• ❌ “Delve into…”
• ❌ “In today’s world…”
• ❌ “Plays a crucial role…”
• ❌ “At the end of the day…”
• Use varied vocabulary (avoid repeating the same descriptors)
• Include domain-specific terminology naturally
• Mix formal and informal language appropriately

V. Details & Specificity

• Replace general statements with specific details
• Include numbers, dates, names, and concrete facts
• Add sensory details where relevant
• Reference current events or recent developments
• Cite specific sources (not just “studies show”)

VI. Human Elements

• Share personal experiences or observations
• Include opinions, preferences, or subjective judgments
• Acknowledge uncertainty or limitations
• Add humor, metaphors, or creative comparisons
• Show emotion appropriate to the topic
• Include occasional imperfections (natural human writing isn’t perfect)

VII. Editing & Refinement

• Read aloud to check for natural flow
• Identify and revise overly formal or stilted phrases
• Check for repetitive sentence structures
• Vary your use of commas, semicolons, and dashes
• Break up long lists with prose explanations
• Remove unnecessary qualifiers and hedging language

VIII. Final Verification

• Run through Phrasly AI Detector (or similar tool)
• Check sentence-level scores for highly flagged sections
• Revise any sections scoring 70%+ AI probability
• Have another person read for authenticity
• Verify all sources and citations are accurate

IX. Common Pitfalls to Avoid

• ❌ Overly balanced arguments (be willing to take a stance)
• ❌ Perfect grammar with no variation
• ❌ Lists of 3-5 items for every concept
• ❌ Starting too many sentences with “The” or “This”
• ❌ Generic conclusions that restate the introduction
• ❌ Absence of specific examples or evidence

X. Pro Tips for Natural Writing

• Write in your natural voice first, edit later
• Include intentional “imperfections” that humans naturally make
• Use active voice predominantly (but not exclusively)
• Add paragraph breaks at natural thought transitions
• Include brief asides or parenthetical thoughts
• End with a memorable conclusion, not a summary