Think Inspiration Produces Great Stories? Think Again!

I’m all for writers encouraged by inspiration, but great stories rely on structure to exceed readers’ expectations, and here’s how to do it.

By: Grant P. Ferguson

Last Updated: April 3, 2024

Inspiration Falls Short of Producing Great Stories

Many articles and websites tout artificial intelligence as the tool that can inspire a bestseller, and unfortunately, an increasing number of books and paid courses promise falsely AI is the shortcut to fame.

AI can bring to mind many possibilities, generating words and images to inspire creative ideas. It will even show you how to emulate the writing style of famous writers. Some versions of AI can generate a full-length novel, however…

Content produced by AI is not yours, but a kluged copy of works by others.

Top authors know that structure is the DNA of great stories, and they avoid even a hint of copying others by using their knowledge of writing craft to assemble and order the narrative’s essential parts.

Curious about AI’s consequences? Click for details.

Great Stories Come from within You!

You’re the brand and readers want what you offer, not AI.

Let’s get real. AI is being used by many for a variety of purposes, so it’s not a question if people will use it. Instead, it’s all about how they’ll use AI.

In reality, ideas alone are a dime a dozen, and it’s what you do with a concept that can make your content priceless.

Structure Supports Great Stories

Check out current and past bestsellers to see how authors exceed readers’ expectations.

The audience expects ideas to play out based on the structure they learned from countless films, TV shows, and books. Top authors use structure to arrange and order content based on these expectations pre-established in readers’ minds. Even if you’re inspired by a unique concept, the audience wants your idea presented according to the expected structure.

Readers will judge your story by their expectations, not yours.

Master Story Structure, Not AI Prompts

If you’re a serious writer, focus on what matters most to readers.

Great stories come from authors willing to learn and practice our writing craft.

At best, AI is merely a tool for creative inspiration.
At its worst, AI is a shortcut to obscurity.

Steven Pressfield encourages writers to follow their calling. You may know him from his book and film The Legend of Bagger Vance. The title of another of his books, Do the Work, sums up a key writing goal that requires the mastery of structure.

Yet here’s what’s more important than doing the work and mastering the structure:

Writing Principle: Don’t let the distractions of life or false promises, even meaningful goals and study, steal the joy of writing the stories emanating from your heart.

In your writing, how do you envision using AI, and what are your perceptions of the consequences?

Do Human Authors Matter More than AI?

Should Novelists Trust AI?

Writers Respond to Survey with a Chasm of AI Mistrust

13 responses to “Think Inspiration Produces Great Stories? Think Again!”

D. Wallace Peach

Great post, Grant. My 93-year-old dad loves dabbling with AI, and we have fun watching it write little stories about Vikings on Bicycles and things like that. But the writing is horrible over all, cliched to the point of eye-rolling. There’s nothing quite as good as the authentically human touch and it’s noticeable when it’s missing.

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1. Grant at Tame Your Book!
  
  Sounds fun, Diana. If people steer clear of taking AI to the extremes, they’ll avoid areas where it causes more harm than good. For instance, accepting recommendations without an awareness of the consequences has caused many legal issues. AI generated “trash” fiction makes it harder for legit indies to get noticed.
  
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  1. D. Wallace Peach
    
    Hopefully, publishers (even Amazon) will get a handle on it, and at least let readers know that a piece of work has AI material in it. I’d definitely avoid those books.
    
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    1. Grant at Tame Your Book!
      
      Absolutely!
      
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KC-Ink

I love this:
Great stories come from authors willing to learn and practice our writing craft. 👏👏👏

Writing is hard work, but there’s nothing like creating my own unique story.

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1. Grant at Tame Your Book!
  
  You nailed it, KC! When we write, our unique work produces an overwhelming sense of joy. Within us and for the readers.
  
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Jacqui Murray

I’m with Priscilla. I do use AI for bones, not meat. What I get from ChatGPT always requires a lot of rewrite!

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1. Grant at Tame Your Book!
  
  AI is not going away, but the link I shared, even though it’s poking fun, shows the potential for large tech to do things that could disadvantage writers. I encourage people to consider all the potential consequences.
  
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Silk Cords

You got pranked on that Kindle Weaver link. 🙂

You’re still completely right though, and I have no doubt Amazon would do it if they could and will at the earliest opportunity.

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1. Grant at Tame Your Book!
  
  I purposely showed this as a serious link, and although it pokes fun, it’s spot on as to why we need to think twice about where AI is heading.
  
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  1. Silk Cords
    
    Definitely. Too many people only seem to care about perceived short term gain though.
    
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Priscilla Bettis

I’ve used AI for suggestions for fictional school and restaurant names (which, ironically, I never used; but they gave me a direction to go to come up with names), but not writing inspiration.

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1. Grant at Tame Your Book!
  
  I LOL at the post by Alex at K-lytics. If you missed the link, it a fun April 1 insight with a serious side. https://k-lytics.com/news-amazon-reveals-kindle-weaver/
  
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