Science fiction writing is a unique and fascinating genre that allows writers to explore endless possibilities and push the boundaries of imagination. For those looking to master the art of science fiction short story writing, a few key techniques can help elevate your work to the next level. Of course, that entire opening paragraph was written by an AI! I have just started on my science fiction writing journey and probably know about as much as any writer who has only just begun their journey. However, I couldn't resist the wonderfully meta idea of letting an AI make it look like I knew what I was talking about.
I use several AI writing tools in my practice (I hear that's a good way of describing the "doing" of writing); the primary tool is Grammerly. Over the last eight years, I have written over 10 million words that Gramerley has checked. I write, on average, 20 thousand words a week - in fact, Grammerly just checked that last sentence and suggested I ran it the other way around. I rejected that suggestion... I often write backwards; I often speak backwards... putting the proposition first, then the qualifier... I like it that way. However, where Grammarly really helps me is in my Grammar... I mean, it's not really a big surprise. I was poorly educated; I grew up on a council estate in Peterborough; my School, Bushfield, was so bad that they demolished it about 20 years ago rather than trying to improve it. MY typing is also a bit ropey - I often type the as the - and by often, I mean literally every time I type it. Now, I can correct that mistake with the tap of the tab key. It saves me hours of fixing things that have nothing to do with my writing; they are other skills that I have just learnt badly or have never tried to refine. Bad typing is like poor handwriting and shouldn't be a blocker to writing a story.
As I look back on this text, I can see many suggested amends. I'm going to ignore most of them... I want my writing to reflect me, how I speak and how I see the world. I don't want it to become a homogenised version of me, some Vanilla representation of how I construct sentences or see the world. So stick with the bad grammar, defy the Oxford comma and come with me into a world where all AI does is fix my typos and growl annoyed in the background as I defy form and function and most of the rules in the vain hope my voice stays my voice, and I am allowed to write any way I want.
S M Garratt 08/10/2024
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