In the last three years, I've written several books, and here's the thing that struck me recently — none of them came into existence the same way. I was just telling my friend Natasha this and it occurred to me that this feels significant because I used to be that writer who followed the same rigid process for every single book.
My old method was practically carved in stone: fire up a new Scrivener project, brainstorm a bit, map out the main story beats and act structures, and dive in. Simple, reliable, and completely predictable. I'd write and hope what emerged somewhat matched my initial vision.
Then AI entered the chat (literally), and everything changed.
Suddenly, I found myself experimenting with different approaches to writing. Sometimes I'd use AI to help me outline, other times I'd pants my way through with AI as a brainstorming partner. I wrote entire books in bite-sized chunks through chat interfaces, and eventually, I discovered how to create entire workflows around AI assistance.
My journey started with Sudowrite, but I didn't stop there. I've test-driven pretty much every major chat platform out there, played around with Notion's AI capabilities, explored Ulysses, taken Raptor Write for a spin, and experimented with Plotdrive. Each platform offered something different, and each book I wrote using these tools emerged in its own unique way.
This flexibility didn't come naturally to me. As writers, we often fall into comfortable patterns. We become those people who can only write in coffee shops, or need specific music playing, or can only use one particular app. I've seen what this kind of rigidity does to writers. It becomes a crutch, a limitation disguised as a requirement.
If the “muse” doesn’t come, you still have a book to write. See the problem?
Breaking free from these self-imposed constraints has been challenging. I've had to embrace failure as part of the process. Some experiments didn't work out. Some approaches led to dead ends. But here's the thing: each failure taught me something valuable about my writing process and about myself as a writer.
The publishing landscape is evolving at breakneck speed, and being adaptable isn't just about staying current. It's about survival. The writers who will thrive in this new era aren't necessarily the ones with the most talent or the best ideas, but those who can adapt and evolve their craft alongside the technology.
I'm not suggesting everyone needs to jump on every new AI tool or writing platform that comes along. But I am advocating for maintaining an open mind and a willingness to experiment. Maybe that new tool or approach you're skeptical about could be the key to unlocking your next great story? You won’t know unless you give it a try.
The most valuable lesson I've learned through all of this is that writing is never a static thing. It's a living, breathing craft that grows and changes with us. The moment we stop evolving as writers is the moment we start falling behind.
So here I am, still experimenting, still learning, and still occasionally failing. But I'm also writing more efficiently, more creatively, and with more flexibility than ever before. And in today's rapidly changing publishing landscape, that adaptability might just be the most valuable skill a writer can possess.
