How to train agentic writers to avoid AI tells
If you are using AI to write and don’t want to sound like it, here is a list of tells to ask your agent to avoid. And yes, this came from the horse’s mouth, ChatGPT, but as a writer and poet in my spare time (!) I’ve given my personal commentary. You can just cut and paste this as is into style notes saved for your AI agent.
Avoid these AI tells
Too much structure. Everything comes in neat groups of three, tidy bullets, mini-headings, and perfectly balanced sections. I do like a list of bullet points with emojis, but it’s a tell.
The “not X, but Y” construction. “It’s not about working harder, it’s about working smarter.” AI loves this construction and uses it relentlessly.
Generic warmth. This is especially noticeable in letters and emails: “I hope this message finds you well.” “I wanted to reach out personally.” “We’re thrilled to have you.” For me, the worst of these is “thrilled.” Thrill, thrilling, and thrilled are words I never hear in person, unless talking about a movie.
Marketing language without anything concrete behind it. “Unlock your potential.” “Take your business to the next level.” “Navigate today’s rapidly evolving landscape.” “Drive meaningful growth.” My nemesis here is “today’s.” I’m constantly editing this out of AI-produced talking points. Am I going to offer to navigate yesterday’s evolving landscape? I think not.
Overuse of em dashes. Humans use them occsasionally, AI sprinkles them everywhere.
Everything comes in threes. “Simple, powerful and effective.” “Connect, collaborate and grow.” Once you start noticing the AI rule of three, you see it everywhere. Brevity is an underated virtue (more on this later).
Fake punchiness. “The result? More leads. Better engagement. Less work.” Note the stack of three again, along with the period at the end of fragments, which can work, occasionally, but with a writerly finesse. I would edit it to “More leads and better engagement.” instead.
Stock transitions. “Here’s the thing.” “That’s where X comes in.” “The bottom line.” “But there’s more.” “Here’s why.” They aren’t wrong, but can look suspicious or sound kind of overtly salesy, too. Is this one of those marketing ploys where I’m interested but going to spend 20 minutes getting sucked along before I understand what you are selling?
Unnaturally polished symmetry. The paragraphs are similar lengths. The argument proceeds flawlessly. Every point receives exactly the amount of explanation it deserves. Real people tend to linger on one thing, rush another, and occasionally take a detour.
Restating the obvious. AI often explains a sentence that didn’t need explaining. It makes the point, explains what the point means, and then sometimes wraps up by making the point again. This is another nemesis I wind up editing out of curated newsletter first drafts.
Suspiciously comprehensive vocabulary. A person might write, “Publishers talk to each other.” AI turns that into, “Publishers connect, collaborate, share insights and learn from industry peers.” So not only three, but four things to think about at the same time. As a reader and writer, all I can say is that brevity rocks. When in doubt, say less.
Tells in professional emails
One of the strongest tells in business writing is subtler than any particular phrase: AI writes what a professional letter is supposed to sound like instead of what a particular person would actually say. Feed your best writing to the agent as a style guide, but you can also just give them this.
AI might write:
We’re excited to welcome you to our growing community of innovative niche publishers. As a member, you’ll gain access to valuable resources designed to help you connect, learn, and grow.
A person might write:
Welcome! I took a look at your site this morning. One question: what’s one thing you’re trying to figure out in your business right now? Send it to me by reply email. I read and answer each one.
The second has a specific detail and asks one real question.
Finally, one concrete thought per email or post is often enough. Say the point once. Use em dashes when you actually need one, not as a rhythm device. Skip the canned transitions and packaged trios. Match the length of the answer to the size of the question. And leave room for a peculiar observation, an opinion, or a sentence that isn’t perfectly balanced.
Deliberately adding typos isn’t the solution. What makes writing sound human isn’t bad grammar. It’s specificity, selectivity, opinion, unexpected phrasing, and knowing when to stop.
The best instruction you can give your AI: Don’t try so hard.
