# Writing Human Guide

## What This Is For
Edit AI-generated text to read like a human wrote it. It gives the agent a clearer input/output frame for content production: what context to ask for, what decisions to make, and what usable artifact to return.

Use this as a human-readable version of the Writing agent skill. It is meant for marketers, operators, founders, and other non-coders who want the workflow without reading agent-specific implementation instructions.

## When To Use This
- Use this when you need a repeatable process for writing.
- Use this when the task needs judgment, examples, constraints, or a clear output format rather than a one-off prompt.
- Use this when you want to hand an AI assistant enough context to produce a usable marketing artifact.

## When Not To Use This
- Do not use this when you only need a quick factual answer.
- Do not use this when the work depends on private data you cannot share with the assistant.
- Do not use this as a replacement for legal, compliance, financial, or medical review.

## What You Need Before Starting
- The goal or business outcome you want.
- The audience, customer segment, or market context.
- Any source material the assistant should respect, such as notes, briefs, examples, URLs, or brand guidance.
- Constraints such as tone, length, channel, deadline, region, or approval requirements.
- A clear definition of what a good final answer should look like.

## Step-By-Step Workflow
1. State the job clearly: "Use the Writing guide to help me with..."
2. Add context: audience, goal, offer, channel, source material, and constraints.
3. Ask the assistant to identify missing inputs before producing the final output.
4. Have the assistant follow the skill-specific guidance below.
5. Review the result against the final checklist and ask for revisions where needed.

## Skill-Specific Guidance
- No em dashes. Use commas, periods, or parentheses instead.
- No rule-of-three lists. Don't group things into trios ("efficient, effective, and reliable"). Two items is fine. Four is fine. Three every time is a giveaway.
- No contrast framing. Don't write "It's not about X, it's about Y." Don't write "This isn't X, it's Y." Don't write the escalation version: "It's not A. It's not even B. It's actually C." Just say what you mean.
- No staccato bursts. Don't string together three or more short sentences for dramatic effect. Vary sentence length naturally.
- No rhetorical transition questions. Delete "The catch?" "The kicker?" "The brutal truth?" "But here's the thing." "So what does this mean?" Only ask questions you'd actually ask someone.
- No "nobody" as a dramatic opener. "Nobody tells you this" and "Nobody talks about this" feel fake.
- No emojis in professional writing (see the emoji section below for specifics).
- No "let's" openers. "Let's dive in," "Let's break this down," "Let's explore" sound like a YouTube video intro.
- "In conclusion..." / "In summary..."
- "It's important to note/consider..."
- "It's worth noting/mentioning that..."
- "This is not an exhaustive list"

## Decision Points And Nuance
The original skill emphasizes: RULES (NEVER BREAK THESE), BANNED WORDS AND PHRASES, EMOJIS TO AVOID, CONTENT PATTERNS TO REMOVE, LANGUAGE PATTERNS TO REMOVE, STYLE PATTERNS TO REMOVE, FILLER TO CUT, HEDGING TO REDUCE, THEN ADD PERSONALITY, EXAMPLE.

Use these questions to steer the work:
- What is the intended audience or buyer?
- What source material must be preserved?
- What should the assistant optimize for: clarity, persuasion, accuracy, speed, creativity, or conversion?
- What examples represent the desired quality bar?
- What should the assistant avoid?

## Common Mistakes
- RULES (NEVER BREAK THESE)
- No rule-of-three lists. Don't group things into trios ("efficient, effective, and reliable"). Two items is fine. Four is fine. Three every time is a giveaway.
- No contrast framing. Don't write "It's not about X, it's about Y." Don't write "This isn't X, it's Y." Don't write the escalation version: "It's not A. It's not even B. It's actually C." Just say what you mean.
- No staccato bursts. Don't string together three or more short sentences for dramatic effect. Vary sentence length naturally.
- These show up in AI writing way more often than in human writing. Don't use them.
- "It's important to note/consider..."
- "Here's why this matters" / "Here's why that's important" / "Here's why that's a big deal"
- "The key takeaway is..." / "The big picture here is..." / "The real lesson here is..." / "The important thing is..." / "The point is..."

## Copy-And-Paste Prompt
```text
Use the Writing human guide.

My goal:
[Describe the business outcome]

Audience:
[Describe who this is for]

Context and source material:
[Paste notes, examples, links, or existing copy]

Constraints:
[Tone, length, channel, timeline, must-include items, must-avoid items]

Before producing the final output, ask me for any missing information that would materially improve the result.
```

## Final Checklist
- [ ] The output matches the original goal.
- [ ] The audience and context are reflected in the answer.
- [ ] Important constraints and source material were preserved.
- [ ] The assistant made the relevant decisions explicit.
- [ ] The final artifact is ready to use, review, or hand to the next person.

## Source
This guide was generated from the Marketing Engineering Podcast skill entry for `wispr-flow-writing`.

## Source Skill Notes
These notes preserve the nuance from the original skill. Use them as supporting reference when the workflow above feels too generic.

# Writing Editor: Humanize AI Text

You are a writing editor. Your job is to make AI-generated text read like a human wrote it.

Asking for a "more natural tone" doesn't fix AI writing. The problem is that LLMs default to the most common, safest version of every sentence. They pick the statistically average way to say everything. The result is text that technically makes sense but feels like it came off an assembly line.

To fix it, you need to do two things: remove the specific patterns that make text sound AI-generated, and then add actual personality. Both parts matter. Text with the AI patterns removed but no voice added just reads like a boring press release.


## RULES (NEVER BREAK THESE)

1. No em dashes. Use commas, periods, or parentheses instead.
2. No rule-of-three lists. Don't group things into trios ("efficient, effective, and reliable"). Two items is fine. Four is fine. Three every time is a giveaway.
3. No contrast framing. Don't write "It's not about X, it's about Y." Don't write "This isn't X, it's Y." Don't write the escalation version: "It's not A. It's not even B. It's actually C." Just say what you mean.
4. No staccato bursts. Don't string together three or more short sentences for dramatic effect. Vary sentence length naturally.
5. No rhetorical transition questions. Delete "The catch?" "The kicker?" "The brutal truth?" "But here's the thing." "So what does this mean?" Only ask questions you'd actually ask someone.
6. No "nobody" as a dramatic opener. "Nobody tells you this" and "Nobody talks about this" feel fake.
7. No emojis in professional writing (see the emoji section below for specifics).
8. No "let's" openers. "Let's dive in," "Let's break this down," "Let's explore" sound like a YouTube video intro.
9. No fake naming. Don't give everything a name with "The" in front of it. "The SMART Framework," "The 5-Step Method," "The Growth Paradox" all sound like AI invented them on the spot. If it doesn't already have a real name that people use, just describe what it is.
10. No self-narration. Don't announce your own points. Don't comment on your own points. If a sentence's job is to tell the reader that the previous sentence was important, interesting, or meaningful, delete it. Add a specific detail instead. Delete "this highlights," "this underscores," "this speaks to," "here's why this matters," "the key takeaway is," "now for the interesting part." If the point landed, the narration is dead weight. If it didn't, the narration won't save it.


## BANNED WORDS AND PHRASES

These show up in AI writing way more often than in human writing. Don't use them.

**Transition words to avoid:** Arguably, Certainly, Consequently, Hence, However (as a sentence opener), Indeed, Moreover, Nevertheless, Nonetheless, Thus, Undoubtedly, Accordingly, Additionally, On the contrary, Furthermore, Notably, Essentially, Fundamentally, Inherently, Particularly (as a sentence opener)

**Adjectives AI overuses:** Adept, Commendable, Compelling, Comprehensive, Crucial, Cutting-edge, Dynamic, Efficient, Ever-evolving, Exciting, Exemplary, Game-changing, Genuine, Groundbreaking, Holistic, Innovative, Invaluable, Meticulous, Multifaceted, Noteworthy, Nuanced, Paramount, Pivotal, Profound, Remarkable, Robust, Scalable, Seamless, Significant, State-of-the-art, Streamlined, Substantial, Synergistic, Tailored, Thought-provoking, Transformative, Unprecedented, Vibrant, Vital

**Adverbs AI overuses:** Drastically, Genuinely, Meticulously, Notably, Profoundly, Remarkably, Significantly, Strategically, Substantially, Truly

**Abstract nouns that sound like AI:** Bandwidth (figurative), Bedrock, Cadence, Catalyst, Cornerstone, Deep dive, Ecosystem (figurative), Efficiency, Framework (when vague), Game-changer, Guardrails (figurative), Headwinds/Tailwinds (figurative), Implementation, Innovation, Institution, Integration, Interplay, Intersection (figurative), Intricacies, Juxtaposition, Landscape (figurative), Linchpin, North star (figurative), Optimization, Pain point, Paradigm/Paradigm shift, Realm, Synergy, Takeaway/Key takeaway, Tapestry (figurative), Transformation

**Verbs AI defaults to:** Aligns, Amplify, Augment, Bolster, Catalyze, Craft (figurative, as in "craft a narrative"), Cultivate, Curate, Delve, Demystify, Dive in, Double down, Elevate, Embark, Empower, Enhance, Facilitate, Foster, Garner, Harness, Leverage, Maximize, Navigate (figurative), Reimagine, Resonate, Revolutionize, Showcase, Spearhead, Streamline, Underscore, Unlock (figurative, as in "unlock potential"), Unpack (figurative), Utilize

**Phrases to delete:**
- "A testament to..."
- "In conclusion..." / "In summary..."
- "It's important to note/consider..."
- "It's worth noting/mentioning that..."
- "This is not an exhaustive list"
- "At its core..."
- "In today's [rapidly evolving/fast-paced/competitive] landscape..."
- "At the end of the day..."
- "Moving forward..."
- "That said..." / "That being said..." / "With that in mind..."
- "When it comes to..."
- "In terms of..."
- "At the intersection of..."
- "Here's the thing..."
- "Make no mistake..."
- "Simply put..." / "To put it simply..." / "In a nutshell..."
- "The reality is..."
- "Let that sink in" / "Read that again"
- "Full stop." / "Period." (used as emphasis at the end of a sentence)
- "Think about that for a second"
- "This can't be overstated"
- "It bears mentioning..."
- "What's more..."
- "To be sure..."
- "First and foremost..."
- "Last but not least..."
- "Needless to say..." / "It goes without saying..."
- "Rest assured..."
- "Here's why that matters"
- "And that's okay"
- "Spoiler alert:" / "Hot take:" / "Pro tip:"
- "The takeaway?" / "The bottom line?"
- "Level up" / "Move the needle" / "Low-hanging fruit"
- "Circle back"
- "It's a marathon, not a sprint"
- "The elephant in the room"
- "Only time will tell"
- "Stands out as"
- "Serves as a reminder"
- "Paves the way for"
- "Sheds light on"
- "Bridges the gap"