Writers Need More Than AI

As Leah* crumbles into the swivel desk chair beside me, her tote bag tips and its contents tumble across the floor. Emitting a long sigh, she doubles over to scoop up the remains of her day — balls of crumpled paper, a red Sharpie, a half-eaten granola bar, and an assortment of empty paper coffee cups. When she leans back in the chair, I observe her grimace, her smudged eyeliner, and her ombre curls escaping a messy bun.

My client, a Gen Z entrepreneur, usually arrives to our coaching sessions dressed on-trend with camera-ready hair and makeup. Her energy and confidence fill the room. 

Today is different. Her appearance tells me she is stressed and overwhelmed.

While she opens her laptop, Leah announces the source of her frustration. “I need to create a professional website for my online business. I wrote down a bunch of ideas, but, honestly, I don't know where to start!”

The Backstory

Leah has been casually buying and selling inexpensive sunglasses online to friends and family through Instagram. She has earned a minimal profit, just enough to support her own accessory budget. Now she’s ready to take the business to the next level.

Glancing at Leah’s laptop, I notice that her visuals are captivating! She has taken photographs of herself and other young flirty models wearing her sunglasses while walking, hiking, and biking, often in sun-filled, sandy locations. 

Her product descriptions and the related copy, however, seem generic, even sterile. I now understand why she’s dissatisfied with her work.

Instead of focusing on her website draft, I engage Leah in a lively discussion. With just a few opening questions, she begins to share her preferred travel destinations (Italy, Greece and Spain), her favorite capsule wardrobe for traveling light, the characteristics of a great pair of sunglasses, etc. While we chat, I listen for excitement in her voice, and I jot down the particular words and phrases she uses to discuss her fashion preferences. I observe her body language and note how she relaxes when explaining her travel activities.

After thirty minutes or so, we review the notes I have taken. Key phrases jump out at us: young professionals, pragmatic, fashion-forward, intrepid travelers who prefer active lifestyles, Mediterranean locations, and a preference for durable, inexpensive accessories that add variety to a minimalist travel wardrobe.

I watch as Leah’s eyes widen and her smile reappears. She realizes that she knows her target market well, and she already has the words she needs to appeal to them! 

Armed with her notes, Leah begins to outline her website. By the end of our session, she has several pages of engaging ad copy with ideas for color selections and themes. Her confidence is back.

What about AI?

Leah’s coaching session occurred several years ago, before it became commonplace for writers to use AI tools. These applications might have been useful when she was researching her competition or creating templates for common e-commerce communication, such as FAQs and refund and return directions. However, AI would have been less likely to help her create engaging content for her website or social media marketing. Most audiences, especially Gen Z, are savvy; they crave authenticity and can spot AI-generated photos and texts in an instant!

With a writing coach, Leah was encouraged to move past her frustrations and doubts, to analyze her target market’s needs and values, and to explore her own travel experiences for insights into product selection. Over many sessions she learned how to tap into her passions so that she could develop a true story of her brand.

The Benefits of Coaching

Writing coaches are not tyrants who wave a red pen while demanding perfect grammar and prose. Rather, they are like athletic coaches who help you reach peak performance. With coaching you will gain:

• Increased self-confidence as you limit and work through “blank page” stress and anxiety.
• Greater self-awareness as you identify your writing challenges, skills, and unique voice.
• Better decision-making as you practice how to use probing questions to explore ideas and challenge perspectives.
• Improved writing performance as you learn how to use constructive, honest feedback to organize, revise, and edit your texts.

If you’re ready to explore how coaching could help you create more powerful, results-driven messages, check out the Active Writing Sideline Chat, a free, no-obligation coaching session.

Thanks for reading!

Elizabeth McCrea

* Client names and identifying features have been changed to preserve confidentiality.