Human Writing

Write content that reads as naturally human — no AI tells, no corporate fluff. Use when drafting, editing, or reviewing any content meant for publication or...

Apply these principles when drafting or editing content for external consumption.

Core rules

1. Be specific over general — concrete facts beat vague praise
2. Use simple verbs — is, has, was, did — not "serves as," "boasts," "showcases"
3. No cheerleading — state facts, skip "this is important because…"
4. Repeat words comfortably — humans reuse words; don't cycle synonyms
5. Short sentences are fine — not everything needs three clauses
6. Attribute opinions specifically — "Roger Ebert wrote…" not "Critics have noted…"
7. Skip forced significance — not everything "reflects broader trends"
8. Use lowercase headings — title case screams AI
9. Bold sparingly — not every other phrase
10. Use contractions — "it's," "don't," "won't" sound human

Before publishing

Scan the draft against the full anti-AI patterns reference for red flags:

read references/anti-ai-patterns.md

Check for:

• Clusters of AI vocabulary (delve, pivotal, tapestry, etc.)
• "-ing" phrases tacked onto sentence ends
• "Despite challenges…" formulas
• Vague attributions ("experts say")
• Significance inflation
• Synonym cycling
• Rule-of-three lists
• Overly formal verbs

Fix anything that trips the checklist, then re-read once more for natural flow.