My Top 5 Prompt Writing Techniques
In the AI era, how you write prompts makes all the difference. You could end up with a masterpiece or an AI-generated horror that leaves you questioning reality. Here are my top five prompt-writing techniques, each with a unique twist to keep things idiosyncratic, fun, and a little unexpected.
1. Use “In the Style Of”
This one’s obvious, but the results can be fascinating. Imagine you ask the AI to write in the style of DFW. You get sprawling sentences, footnotes, deep introspections on the nature of traffic lights. But switch it up with Sally Rooney and suddenly, you’ve got sparse, emotionally precise dialogue that feels like it’s always on the verge of a breakdown. Let me show you:
- DFW Version: The sun hung low like a heavy marble in a dull atmosphere, casting shadows that seemed to mock the frail, intransigent human spirit as it attempted, futilely, to impose meaning upon the chaos of the highway system…
- Sally Rooney Version: She turned to him. “I hate the way the sun looks right now,” she said. He nodded. They didn’t need to say anything else.
Try it. You’ll never look at your AI results the same way.
2. Throw in Animals
Yes, animals. But not just any animals. Try a neon tennis-ball yellow flamingo with huge thighs as a weird, experimental Hamlet at Burning Man. AI loves specifics, and the wilder you get, the better. A prompt about a plain flamingo? Sure, you’ll get a nice lawn bird. But toss in colors, add something totally random like “as an avant-garde Hamlet rendering,” and the AI just might generate something that’ll have you questioning the limits of creativity.
Example Prompt: Describe a neon tennis-ball yellow flamingo with massive thighs playing Hamlet at Burning Man. Make it poetic, as if written by Sylvia Plath.
3. Make AI Guess
Got a hunch? Make the AI figure it out. Maybe you think there’s a link between evolution and free will, but you’re not quite sure. AI doesn’t mind being tossed into the deep end. Ask it to find the link between quantum mechanics and love. Trust me — there’s always a connection, no matter how absurd the starting point.
Example Prompt: Is there a link between Darwin’s theory of natural selection and the philosophical debate on free will?
Watch it spin wild theories, most of which won’t make sense. But one sentence? It’ll hit you. You’ll swear the AI knows something you don’t.
4. Let It Go
You don’t have to be too accurate. In fact, accuracy is overrated. Give the AI a gentle push, then back off. Leave some room for randomness. You say, “Sure, AI, talk about the importance of collective memory in cultural history, but also maybe add a giant tortoise that talks.” The trick is to balance specificity with vagueness and let the AI do its magic. If you’re too precise, you might kill the fun.
Example Prompt: Write about how cultural history shapes collective memory, but through the perspective of a thousand-year-old tortoise who has seen the rise and fall of civilizations.
5. Afterthoughts: Make Them Count
You’ll probably have an afterthought after reading what the AI spits out. That’s where the fun starts. Maybe you hate it, maybe it sparks an idea you didn’t see coming. Don’t just shrug it off — use it. Write a note. Write a letter to the editor. Better yet, write a pissed-off complaint to the AI like you’re sending a message to the void. You’re not just passively using AI; you’re in dialogue with it.
Example Afterthought: Dear AI, I wanted a Hamlet flamingo, not a flaming disaster. Is it too much to ask for some iambic pentameter?
Final Thought: The trick to writing great prompts isn’t following rules — it’s making the AI dance to your tune, then stepping back and letting it surprise you. Give it a shot. You’ll never look at writing the same way again.
The Prompt
Write a medium.com article for a wide audience, we want the readers to read from start to finish so suggest images at appropriate intervals, make it with virality potential but keep idiosyncractic and to the point the article is about “My Top 5 Prompt Writing Techniques” 1. Use “in the style of” pretty obvious. This paragraph in the style of DF Wallace sounds different to this paragraph by Sally Rooney. Example sentences. 2. Throw in animals. Neon tennis-ball yellow flamingo with huge thighs as an experimental Hamlet rendering at The Burning Man. 3. Make AI guess: you have a hunch that there may be a link between evolution and free will? Make the AI find it. There is never no link. 4. Let it go: Keep the right balance of accuracy and vagueness so the AI can do its magic. Afterthought: you have an afterthought after reading the generated text? Make a note, write a letter to the editor, pissed-off complaint to the writer (example)
Bonus
The flamingo stands, neon tennis-ball yellow,
its massive thighs a strange and supple thunder.
Feathers cling, glowing like acid dreams,
a grotesque beauty under desert stars,
as it whispers Hamlet’s grief into the smoke.
To be or not to be? The words hiss, molten.
Each line spirals like the dust devils
whirling through Burning Man’s cracked skin.
The crowd, faceless in the night’s delirium,
watches this feathered beast, a paradox,
its beak trembling over the poisoned air.
Eyes sharp as uncut diamonds — how they glitter,
hungry for the ache of meaning.
The flamingo teeters, its massive thighs twitching,
as if the burden of existence,
both glorious and absurd,
weighs heavy in the hollow bones beneath.
