Lo fi, No AI

When I teach storytelling, two letters are constantly popping up. A & I.

Surprised? No, me either.

Whether I am teaching pitching, values-based messaging or storytelling, I have to talk about using AI. Or, more specifically, how not to use AI in writing.

Earlier this year, I wrote a blog, Telling Sloppily Human Stories in an AI World, to help people protect their authentic voice while using AI as a tool. The takeaway? AI can help you write faster, but it can also make you sound predictable, hollow and bland.

In the months since I wrote the article, has anything changed? Nope, still lots of questions about AI. And the best writing? Still comes out of your beautiful lived experience.

Futures Thinking – The Storytelling Boardgame

In October, I presented a futures-based storytelling board game at SXSW Sydney with futurist Steph Clarke. The players were thrown into the first chapter of a high-stakes story. By rolling a dice, the teams harnessed their collective imagination. They created a story to rescue the characters. Their goal was to build a better future. It’s a mix of storytelling, creativity and futures thinking.

Our session was hosted at the University of Technology Sydney, and a few of the student volunteers ended up playing. One of the students asked, “Did you use AI to write these stories?”

Steph laughed and said we used our brains to write them. She observed signals. Based on these observations, we created a high-stakes scenario. I wrote the first sci-fi-style chapter in an unfolding future.

We got the same question when we presented on our experience of speaking at SXSW to RMIT Forward industry fellows. Someone asked, “How do you use AI to create future scenarios?”

You can probably guess our response.

Workshop – Your One Big Idea

Last week, I taught a workshop on creating a tight five-slide pitch deck. No one asked the question yet, so I answered preemptively. Can AI write a pitch for you?

Yes, but:

• It will be generic
• It won’t sound like you
• And you’ll spend more time fixing it than if you’d just written it yourself

You will get it done, but it will need a lot of work. On the other hand, my pitching framework shapes your ideas through a process of writing them out. It is important not to outsource your thinking.

The 20 Minute Presentation Process

To get a good pitch, you only need to work through five steps:

1. Big Idea – Your one sticky message that ties everything together.
2. People – Who is your pitch for, and what do they actually need?
3. Problem – What real issue are they dealing with, and why does it matter?
4. Process – How does your solution work, simply explained?
5. Future – What does life look like after your idea succeeds?

It’s fast, structured and human. When you’ve done the thinking for yourself, then and only then does AI become a useful tool. Use it to reorder the ideas, rewrite sections for clarity, or adjust the tone for different audiences. But the foundational thinking, the insights that come from a real human life, and the stories must come from you.

Don’t AI – Lo-fi

What is the best way to start a lo-fi human writing process?

The short answer? Frameworks

The long answer: Frameworks provide structure to turn a deluge of thoughts into something with shape and stability. Don’t overthink, free-write into the structure, and you’ll create a good draft.

While your ideas might be complex, frameworks are not. If you don’t currently use any, that’s the perfect time to use AI.

Here is an example prompt:

“Give me a simple framework for a blog post. Don’t write the blog. Just give me the structure.”

Here is how ChatGPT responded:

• Start with a hook
• Establish the problem
• Explore your ideas
• Offer insight or a solution
• Close with a takeaway

This is a skeleton. Fill it with your own thinking, your own voice, your own stories.
Now you’re writing something interesting, human and meaningful.

That’s how to combine you and AI:

You are the story. AI is the structure.

Frameworks Are Powerful

I have been teaching storytelling for over 10 years, I have taught before AI, and I will teach into the future. I have done this by giving people repeatable frameworks that unlock their own thinking.

No AI slop.
Human stories.

From storytelling challenges to story thinking board games, to values-based messaging and a new product I’m collaborating on for conferences and activations. My fill-in-the-blank tools get you learning and thinking fast. But every story comes from you.

Your voice, life, and story are unique, unpredictable and can’t be replicated. Never give your power away. Your unique voice is what people want to hear.