By Lisa Malice, Ph.D.
Beat the Bots: A Writer’s
Guide to Surviving and Thriving in the Age of AI. It’s an intriguing title,
wouldn’t you say? This new book from Jane Cleland, the award-winning author of Mastering
Plot Twists and Mastering Suspense, Structure, & Plot, had me
wondering what amazing breakthrough she had made in tackling what many consider
as the existential threat to writers the world-over.
I poured through the book (as I
always do with Jane’s brilliant writing guides) and was excited to discover a simple,
elegant, and honest approach. One sure to inspire today’s writers, as it has me,
and those of generations yet to come as they strive to write the stories inside
them yearning to be told. The way to thrive in the age of AI is to capitalize
on what computers cannot be programmed to do—be creative.
“I believe, and this point cannot
be repeated enough, that we succeed as writers precisely because we are
human, not in spite of it,” notes Jane. “Bots are derivative, they can only
regurgitate, on a very superficial level, words that have been fed into their
memory.”
Indeed, Jane presses this point
throughout her book. “I asked chatbots to craft all manner of story elements—descriptions,
dialogue, character backstories, plots, even editing suggestions. The results
were laughable—clichéd, superficial, overwritten, missing the mark entirely in nearly
every case—in effect, showing that although AI could conceivably write a book,
it cannot craft a story that anyone would enjoy.”
And that, according to Jane, is
precisely why humans beat the bots each time. “As humans, we are creative, able
to draw on our lived experiences, our humanity, our ability to connect on an
emotional level with something inside us—our story—that resonates with readers.
Being a methodical gal, I decided to construct a step-by-step process for
writing that story, one that would harness writers’ creativity from idea
inception to revision, while also staying organized.”
The result? A masterpiece of a writer’s
toolkit—twelve chapters (divided into three sections) of tactics, techniques, roadmaps,
and exercises to cultivate the writer’s creative process. Part one, Find
Your Inner Voice, offers four tactics to spark writers’ imaginations from
searching for that story idea, exploring character motivations, plot points,
and immersive settings. Part two, Your Story, Your Voice, provides
strategies for making the most of point-of-view, artfully injecting backstory
into the work, crafting dialogue that advances the tale, and writing
thematically. Part three offers four tactics for Polishing for Perfection.
There is something for everyone
in this outstanding guide to creative writing, for beginning writers, as well
as authors of one bestselling book after another (ask them if they ever
struggle with their writing, they will say, “Yes!”). For me, as a recovering
debut author (feeling the weight of my first-book success on my
work-in-progress), I’m thrilled with Jane’s twelve-step creativity program. I
was tickled to learn I excel at some techniques, such as using Jane’s two-word
prompt (“What if . . .?”) for conceptualizing an initial story idea. For
me, a pantser, her “Mind-wandering” technique for exploring plot points will
help firm up my saggy second act.
One unique tool offered by Beat
the Bots that other craft books do not—a TikTok community for readers wherein
they can learn from others as they work through the book’s techniques and
exercises. “I decided to capitalize on the popularity of TikTok, hoping to
connect with writers I would not otherwise have any way to reach.”
The group is in its infancy, and Jane
is helping it along by recording her own responses to spur participation, but this
inspired tool for stimulating creativity hits the mark dead-on. I’m eager to
discover how these conversations, centered on sharing unique life experiences,
feelings, and perspectives will spark new, more diverse story ideas, plots,
characters, and settings inside my writer’s mind.
Get your copy of Beat the Bots
today and have a more creative tomorrow. As an added bonus, you’ll help restore
beautiful reefs. Jane’s publisher. Regalo Press, donates a portion of their
profits to their authors’ charity of choice. Jane and her husband, avid
snorkelers, chose Reef Renewal Foundation International, which incubates and transplants
coral for struggling reefs. Learn more at www.ReefRenewal.org.
Bio:
Jane K. Cleland has written fourteen novels in the multiple
award-winning Josie Prescott Antiques Mystery series. The series has been
optioned for TV/film development. Jane’s other nonfiction books, Mastering
Suspense, Structure & Plot and Mastering Plot Twists, both won
the Agatha Award. Jane is a contributing editor for Writer’s Digest Magazine
and the chair of the Black Orchid Novella Award, presented by the Wolfe Pack in
partnership with Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine. http://janecleland.com.
