AI-Generated Fiction: Generic Writing with a Language Model

What is Wrong with AI-Generated Fiction?

While AI-generated fiction often lacks nuance and originality, it can serve as a useful starting point in the writing process. Instead of accepting these drafts at face value, we can treat them as raw material—prompts that help us sharpen our critical instincts and deepen our storytelling craft. By revising with intention and applying key elements of effective fiction—such as strong characterization, vivid setting, meaningful conflict, and emotional resonance—we can transform generic output into something authentically our own. In working with an AI-assisted draft, using it as prompt and for initial brainstorming, consider the following areas to guide the process:

1. Focus on Character Development

Go beyond surface-level characters by giving them depth and dimension.

• Create distinct characters with rich backstories, motivations, and flaws.

• Use internal monologues and dynamic dialogue to show their personalities and growth.

• Introduce quirks, habits, and unique perspectives to make them truly memorable.

2. Develop Unique Settings

Root the story in a setting that feels alive and specific.

• Build immersive worlds with cultural, geographical, or historical texture.

• Use sensory details—what characters see, smell, hear, and feel—to ground the reader.

• Let the setting shape the story: how does the place influence character decisions or the plot?

3. Craft a Strong Narrative Voice

Voice is one of the clearest ways to make your story stand out.

• Use a consistent tone and perspective that fits the story’s mood and message.

• Consider first-person or deep third-person POVs for emotional closeness.

• Infuse the narration with humor, irony, or lyricism to create a distinctive style.

4. Add Layers to the Plot

Enrich the storyline with depth and complexity.

• Weave in subplots that echo or challenge the main theme.

• Avoid formulaic arcs; aim for twists or developments that feel earned and meaningful.

• Experiment with structure—nonlinear timelines or multiple perspectives can add intrigue.

5. Explore Deep Themes

Move the story beyond entertainment into resonance.

• Engage with big ideas: identity, morality, memory, justice, belonging.

• Let themes emerge through the characters’ lived experiences.

• Don’t be afraid to leave questions open-ended—complexity invites reflection.

6. Infuse Real-World Knowledge

Add texture and authenticity through research or lived experience.

• Incorporate specific knowledge—unusual jobs, historical facts, scientific concepts—to enrich the world.

• Use real details to anchor speculative or fantastical elements in something believable.

• Ask: What do I know that only I can bring into this story?

7. Prioritize Emotional Resonance

A story becomes memorable when it makes the reader feel.

• Highlight emotional stakes: what do your characters stand to lose or gain?

• Show vulnerability, internal conflict, or quiet moments of insight.

• Use emotion not just as a reaction, but as a driver of action and transformation.

8. Edit for Precision and Style

Refinement is where voice and clarity truly shine.

• Replace generic language with vivid, specific imagery.

• Streamline exposition to keep the pace tight and focused.

• Pay attention to sentence rhythm, variation, and impact—let the prose carry weight.

AI-generated Fiction

[The short story below was generated using Chat GPT. Comments in Italics are not by CHAT GPT AI]

Shadows in Bauan

María Santos hurriedly scrubbed the wooden table, her hands trembling despite the warm morning sun spilling through the open windows of her modest nipa hut in Bauan, Batangas. Outside, the soft rustle of banana leaves and the distant crow of a rooster seemed to mock the tension in her chest. Her husband, Mateo, had been gone for three nights now, his absence stretching like an endless horizon.

Focus on AI-generated character development

What about Maria Santos' anxiety? Missing in this AI-generated description is a set up of an emotional resonance. This can be done by writing relevant details of marriage relationship leading to Maria's worried situation.

The opening paragraph is filled with cliches - remember that this comment applies to all the subsequent paragraphs.

Mateo was a rebel. A katipunero fighting against the Americans who had taken the land and pride of their people after the Spaniards left. María had begged him to stay when he announced his decision to join General Malvar’s resistance.

“You have a family to think of!” she cried.

“And that is why I fight,” Mateo replied, his voice firm. “For you. For our son. For a future without masters.”

María knew there was no convincing him, just as she knew that every knock on their door could mean the end.

How did Mateo become a Katipunero? Many motivations for becoming a Katipunero were not purely for revolutionary zeal, but out of sheer anger and a desire for personal revenge. Others were naïve and were easily recruited because they were available. This was the Philippine-American War and it is noteworthy to include information about massacres happening then: what if this was Mateo’s reason for joining the revolution? There could be other motivations. Research on the massacres in Bauan, Batangas can infuse this tale with real incidents that history can validate. Two things, then, should be happening in the narrative, a detailing on the historical backdrop and personal instance within that backdrop evoking the character's emotional response.

Develop unique settings in the fictional AI-narrative

That afternoon, María went to the riverbank to fetch water. The air was thick with heat and tension, and even the sound of the bamboo buckets dipping into the water seemed to carry a heavy weight. Other women stood along the bank, whispering nervously.

“Have you heard? The Americans have arrived in Bauan,” one said, her voice low but urgent.

“They’re rounding up men—anyone suspected of being with the rebels,” added another.

María’s heart sank. Her grip on the bucket tightened as she thought of Mateo. Was he safe? Had he eaten? Was he still alive?

The Philippine countryside is the same everywhere, but in a fictional tale, this particular setting cannot merely be where the story happened. Fetching water from a river should give an idea of this dangerous task, given the threats surrounding the then highly militarized town of Bauan.

Real-World Knowledge is Missing in this AI-generated Context. An interesting historical fact that is good to note in this Philippine-American war story was the zoning applied to the Batangas towns to pressure General Miguel Malvar to surrender. In the AI-generated text, we get only the general context that can be applied to any context of war employed in any narrative.

Add layers to the Ai-generated plot

When María returned home, she found a young boy waiting outside her hut. He was barefoot and dusty, his eyes darting nervously.

“Tía,” he whispered, addressing her with a term of respect. “I have a message from Ka Mateo.”

María’s breath caught. She ushered the boy inside, where he handed her a small, crumpled note.

“Burn this after reading,” he instructed before slipping away like a shadow."

María unfolded the paper with trembling fingers. Mateo’s handwriting was hurried but clear:

"They are closing in. Hide the papers. Hide the rice. Burn what you must. Trust no one. I will return.

The boy's back story woven into the context of the narrative need not be missed here. Using him simply as prop to advance the tale render his character flat and one dimensional, somebody that could be replaced by anyone, or even by something. Instead, create a subplot using his character, and then build the story incorporating the value of his role in this story.

Craft a strong narrative voice in the AI-generated character

That night, María worked by the dim glow of an oil lamp, her hands moving with practiced urgency. She dug a hole beneath the floorboards and hid Mateo’s papers—maps, letters, and a list of supplies for the rebels. She scattered ashes over the freshly dug earth, hoping to mask the scent from any curious soldiers or their dogs.

The rice was harder to conceal. María divided the grains into small bundles and tucked them into hollow bamboo poles, sealing the ends with wax.

As she worked, she thought of her son, Lucio, only six years old and fast asleep in the corner. Mateo had insisted they send him to live with relatives in a more remote barrio, but María had refused.

“If we lose everything else, I will not lose him,” she had said.

Maria's point of view as AI-generated can be richer with a nuanced character development. At this point in the fictional narrative, her strength should be clear so that she isn’t somebody who merely acts as instructed in the tale but as her character demands, giving it authenticity.

AI-generated fiction must explore deep themes

The knock came just before dawn.

María froze, her heart pounding like a drum. She quickly doused the lamp and pressed her back against the wall, straining to hear.

“Señora Santos!” a voice barked in accented Spanish.

American soldiers.

María took a deep breath and opened the door, feigning grogginess. Three soldiers stood before her, their faces shadowed by the brim of their hats.

“We have reason to believe your husband is aiding the insurgents,” said the tallest one, his tone cold and authoritative.

María met his gaze, her voice steady despite the fear coiling in her belly. “My husband is a fisherman. He has been at sea for days.”

The soldier’s eyes narrowed. “We’ll see about that.”

They pushed past her, their boots heavy on the bamboo floor. María clenched her fists as they tore through her belongings, upending baskets and kicking over pots. One soldier prodded the floor with his rifle butt, his boots inches from the hidden cache.

“Nothing here,” he muttered.

Another soldier grabbed a small woven bag from the corner and opened it. Inside were a few grains of rice. He sneered.

“You’re hiding food. Do you know the penalty for aiding rebels?”

María squared her shoulders, her voice sharp. “A mother hides food for her child, not for soldiers.”

The soldier glared at her but said nothing. Finally, the tall one barked, “Let’s go. She’s just a fisherman’s wife.”

María watched them leave, her knees nearly buckling with relief. But she knew this was only a reprieve.

The soldier’s response (Let's go, she's just a fisherman's wife) can be more nuanced given this ethical question. This soldier has a flash justification for his action. AI-generated fiction as a language model, does not show his moral dilemma. It captures only the essence of the problem but misses the deep ethical nuance of the situation.

Prioritize emotional resonance in the fiction by AI

Days later, Mateo returned under the cover of darkness, his body leaner and his face more worn than María remembered. She hugged him tightly, inhaling the scent of sweat and earth.

“They’ve burned the next town,” he said grimly. “They’ll come for Bauan soon."

María’s eyes filled with tears. “And then what? Where does it end?”

Mateo cupped her face in his calloused hands. “It ends when they leave. When our children can live free. I fight for that day, María. Even if I don’t see it.”

It seems as if we've seen this scene a thousand times. The characters in this AI-generated fiction are developed within a main frame of love amid war, or with an understanding of how deeply their love for each other is now being sacrificed in the name of the revolution. But nearing the end, we are still not into the story, or we're not having an emotional resonance, or we simply have an idea of what's happening but not experiencing the situation - which is what fiction should do.

Edit the draft for precision and style

María nodded, her heart heavy but resolute. She knew the road ahead would be long and fraught with danger. But she also knew that in the shadows of Bauan, amidst the fear and uncertainty, there was strength.

And that strength, born of love and defiance, would carry them through."

Endings like this are convenient and very optimistic. Yet, endings should be dictated by the organic flow of events in the story and not by the desire of the narrator who is the author trying to give this story a clean wrap-up.

Workshop Wrap

Indeed anybody can write a short story using AI. However, a critical reading will always reveal the weakness of such AI-generated fiction. Our authentic storytelling will be impactful and enigmatic only if we understand that writing requires diligence, deep engagement, evaluation, and checking of facts and details from careful or exhaustive research, and a deep empathy with real human beings. This is paramount aside from the mastery of the elements of fiction in our study and the application of devices learned from the close reading of the works of master storytellers.

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