Write Smarter, Stay Human
Ethical tools for writers, a quick F1-romance origin story, and free digital gifts
I recently watched this video on YouTube that I wanted to share with you. It’s The Move 37 Moment for Knowledge Workers | Paul Roetzer | MAICON 2025
Move 37 refers to a point in a famous game of Go between an AI and the world champion. It was at that point the champion realized the AI was smarter than he was. Roetzer suggests that moment is coming in all industries, including creative ones.
It’s particularly interesting for me because I’m delivering my lecture on Ethical Uses of AI for writers at the Pompano Beach Library this Saturday afternoon. It’s free, but registration is required:
And if you belong to a writer’s group that would like to hire me to deliver this by Zoom, just let me know! I’ve spoken to MWA and Sisters in Crime chapters as well as other groups.
Joanna Penn, who I consider one of the thought leaders in how authors can use AI in their writing, summarized it well in her newsletter. I’m going o pick out a couple of points and show you how I’m using it. Her first point:
Accelerate Idea Generation and Concept Development: Authors can use AI to bypass months of searching for a concept. By asking AI systems, such as ChatGPT, for script or story ideas, writers can quickly receive suggestions that are described as “good and original and fleshed out” within seconds. This allows writers to focus their human effort on execution rather than initial brainstorming.
A few months ago, I read that the market for Formula 1 romances was booming. Since I had just finished The Big Race, my return to contemporary MM romance, I was looking for new ideas. I asked ChatGPT about the market, and discovered that while there are a few MM romances in this subgenre, it’s not heavily saturated.
My first problem was how to put together two potential lovers in an environment where the characters move around from week to week. Chat suggested a driver/journalist pairing, and I jumped right on that.
Using Chat to frame the idea helped me avoid hours of searching and thinking, and allowed me to move right onto putting my own spin on the story.
(I created this image with ChatGPT. A single, quick prompt.)
Another point Joanna Penn picked out was:
Embrace the “Human Plus AI” Model: View the intersection of creativity and technology as a collaborative effort, not a competition. The future requires moving past the concept of “human versus AI” and committing to a “human plus AI” approach. AI is a tool designed to unlock human potential and creativity, provided you give it the opportunity to do so.
I used Chat to help me research the technical aspects of Driven Together. What’s it like to race in Monaco—and how does that differ from the track in Barcelona? I was able to salt in enough technical detail to satisfy readers familiar with Formula 1, while maintaining the focus on the developing romance.
For previous books, when I needed that level of insight, I had to spend hours reading books and websites, looking for the crucial details that would make my story come alive. Once I had to drive to a faraway library that had the only copy of a book I needed, an academic one that was torture to dig through. Add in the time driving there to check the book out, then back again to return it, and I was logging hours for a few small facts.
I hope this explains some of the ethical uses of AI I’ll be talking about in my lecture.
Now, for some fun stuff. As I mentioned in my extra newsletter on Saturday, each day I’m giving away a digital gift on my website. I want to reward you all for reading and following me, and show you some of the different books and stories I write. Today’s gift is “The Missing Delegate,” a story featuring George Clay, my Miami Beach private eye in 1972, as he searches for a naïve young man.
Oher gifts include a Mahu prequel, a couple of stories with Jewish themes, and more Rochester. Check back every day to see what the gift is. www.mahubooks.com.
If you are a Kindle Unlimited reader who likes cozy mysteries, check out this promotion: https://books.bookfunnel.com/cozykindleunlimited/vahajsu2ms. You’ll find recommendations for books with dogs, cats, food, ghosts, Christmas and more.
As always, with love and gratitude (and apologies for any spelling errors, as my t key is sticking on my laptop!)
Neil
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