Colin Gurrie mentions how the style of AI, called "AI Slop" is readily recognisable in his new essay Leave the em-dash Alone. I notice AI occasionally because it seems padded, too redundant, but I've never noticed the supposedly tell-tale "It's not X, it's Y," or the use of words like delve. I don't notice style much in real-life authors either. Whatever spell they are weaving must either just affect me without me noticing, or affect me not at all. I think some of both. I never noticed that Tolkien will begin paragraphs with short sentences when he is describing action, and break up longer sentences with colons and semicolons.* (The last few pages of "The Siege of Gondor" in The Return of the King, for example.) But it must work on me, because I hold my breath even now while reading it. I can't say that happens to me with lesser authors, though.
I am not a stylist when I write. I have habits I was taught about not running sentences too long, and using synonyms for variety. I am strictly Point A to Point B, and so notice AI Slop mostly when it is dragging its feet. I try my hand and finer writing at times, but it does not come naturally, because I do not revel in the beauty of writing even when it is good. So AI will fool me more often than thee.
*Earl, this was probably where I got the idea about varying the pace. But it's not a good example of what I told you then. Sigh.
No comments:
Post a Comment