November has come and gone. I had high ambitions of meeting my goal of a 50k word count for Ravenmaster book two. Sadly, while I started off strong, I didn’t make my goal. As of today, the book two stands at 23,961 words with only three chapters in. I’m not disappointed in my progress. In fact, I am only 14,055 words short of my first book, and I plan on making this one longer. Many options try to tempt me to choose the easiest path. I could throw my ideas and planning documents into an A.I. site and ask it to write a 50k word novel, but it wouldn’t be my words. I wouldn’t have the passion that drove me to start this story in the first place.
Writing is hard work. It’s something I am trying to get my students to understand. For the last two months, I have tasked them with writing a nine page Hallmark script. It didn’t mean the script had to fall under the holiday umbrella; there is a lot more to Hallmark than Christmas. We spent a few days breaking down their bible and the formula the films follow. I thought it was amazing to have a guideline for them to follow. It gave their writing purpose and direction, a direction that was usually lacking in their writing.
While Hallmark has its films broken down into nine acts, I have my students break theirs down into nine pages. That way, their film is only 9-10 minutes long. That alone is a task in itself.
The ideal story structure 10-Pages:
- PG1- introduction/meet cute
- PG2 – Inciting Incident
- PG3- Early Bond/friendship
- PG4- Midpoint/turning point
- PG5 -Growth/conflict
- PG6 Holiday event/Emotional Peak
- PG7 Low Point//Doubt
- PG8- Resolution/truth
- PG9 Happy Ending/Celebration
My expectation was for every student to write their own story. I met with each and everyone of them. We discussed who their main character was, the setting, and the plot. I had them write their responses so no one could say, “I forgot what we talked about.” After talking with them all, I was hopeful. They seemed to get what was asked of them.
After an ample time passed after the deadline, I started reading the scripts. I knew formatting issues were going to be a problem; that was to be expected. Sadly, I knew I would get frustrated by the lack of punctuation. For some reason, this generation thinks they are rude, while I just want to know when the sentence stops. But I had high hopes people would actually write their own stories. That isn’t the case. I’ve read twenty-six scripts, and I have another twenty-nine to go, and more often than not, I am coming face to face with A.I. work.
The very first thing I do when I read my students’ work is open their Google Docs and check their version history. If it goes from 10:33 pm blank document, to 10:34 pm nine full pages, I am sad. They cheated.
Some will cover it up and delete the markers that ChatGPT and other AI software leave within their writing. Some will even put the scripts in the proper format. While others are lazy and will straight up leave in space completing incorrectly and every single weird spacing, dash, and mark AI loves to use.
I would rather correct the grammar, spelling, and story issues of someone who took the time out to write, rather than sigh at my screen.
Some stories these kids prompt the robot to write are so cute, but they lack heart. The entire purpose of Hallmark. I want these young writers to craft dialogue. It forces them to explore different ways of talking and to take a closer look at how they interact with their peers and adults. When they write their own scripts, I get to see how they believe the adult world works. But all of that is lost when the robot generates the “perfect” script for the assignment.
It’s weird because of this: when I read a really bad script, I get excited. It means the student tried. They put forth the effort and took a risk. Not only that, they gave me the time of day that I am giving them when I grade their work.
AI probably is going to kill writing for a while. It’s going to infiltrate our movies, books, and scientific work because it’s just easier. It’s easier to tell AI to write what you have in your mind and have the robot spit out pages and pages of work. Unfortunately, people want the easy way out, and easy isn’t always better.
I have 26,039 words left to write. I will do it. Somehow I will find time in my day to write them, just like I did when it came to writing the first 23,961 words. My goal is to make it longer than 50k, but it will take time. Time is meant for passion, and the written word should always be passionate.
