Write Smarter, Not Harder: ChatGPT Prompts for Writers

TL;DR

• Writing effective ChatGPT prompts helps writers get high-quality outputs.
• There are five strategies to write better prompts tailored to your projects.
• Ready-to-use prompt templates for writers can spark creativity, save time, and improve the quality of your writing.

I’m bullish on AI but unwilling to concede my career to ChatGPT. Whatever your thoughts about the future and technology, AI has become an essential writing tool. You can use it to brainstorm headlines. You might draft pitches or create outlines. ChatGPT’s response quality relies on how well you craft your prompts. Learning to write clear and effective ChatGPT prompts will help you unlock AI’s potential. It will save you hours of work and elevate your freelance writing game.

Why Writers Need ChatGPT Prompt Strategies

As a freelance writer, your success depends on delivering creative, polished work on deadline. To that end, ChatGPT can help you:

• Generate fresh content ideas and new angles.
• Write first drafts for blogs, emails, or proposals. (No, they won’t be ready to deliver straight away! You still need to finesse the language.)
• Simplify time-consuming tasks like gathering research or creating lists of potential interview subjects. (Yes, you still need to fact-check!)

A well-defined prompt strategy helps you get the exact results you need, while poorly written requests deliver vague, unhelpful responses. Learning to write a great prompt gives you tailored, actionable results and streamlines your workflow.

5 Strategies for Effective ChatGPT Prompts

1. Define Context and Role

Start by setting the scene for ChatGPT. Tell it who to “be” and what role to take on.

Example:

❌ “Give me writing tips.”

✅ “Act as a seasoned freelance writing coach. Suggest five tips to help beginners improve their writing speed without sacrificing quality.”

Why it works: Role playing helps ChatGPT deliver contextually relevant information. You’re giving it a framework for the expertise you need.

2. State Your Goal Clearly

Ambiguity will kill your prompts. Be clear and specific about what you want from ChatGPT.

Example:

❌ “Write a blog post.”

✅ “Write a 700-word blog post on… the benefits of freelancing, including financial independence, work-life balance, and skill growth.”

Pro tip: Give ChatGPT specific directions on word count and the type of references you want. For example, “Include references to 4-5 academic papers published in the last four years that are relevant to this topic.”

3. Specify the Format You Want

Give ChatGPT direction on the final deliverable to make sure you get a helpful response. Ask for bullet points, outlines, executive summaries, headline lists, etc.

Example:

❌ “Help me with social media content.”

✅ “Create five Instagram captions for a freelance writer promoting their services. Each caption should include a call-to-action and be under 150 characters. Include emojis where appropriate!”

Pro tip: Request plain-text formatting if you need an editable file, like a draft email or proposal. Newer versions of ChatGPT will create a downloadable version that you can edit.

4. Include Examples or Style Preferences

ChatGPT mirrors your prompt style. It will learn to generate responses that are aligned with your writing. Share other examples to guide tone or structure if you want a specific vibe.

Example:

❌ “Write a pitch email.”

✅ “Write a pitch email to a magazine editor, using this style: ‘Hi [Editor’s Name], I loved your recent piece on [Topic]. I’d like to pitch an idea for a story on [Your Idea].’”

Advanced Prompting: You can paste sample writing snippets and ask ChatGPT to replicate the tone. Paste some of your earlier pitch emails as samples so the result will be closer to your natural style.

5. Refine Through Iteration

Think of ChatGPT as a collaborator. If the first response isn’t perfect, tweak the prompt and try again.

Examples:

• “Make it more casual.”
• “Add a call-to-action.”
• “Shorten the response to 300 words.”

Pro tip: Experimentation leads to better outputs. Don’t be afraid to go through a few rounds of iteration.

Ready-to-Use ChatGPT Prompts for Writers

Now that we’ve covered basic strategies, here are some ready-to-use ChatGPT prompts for writers to help you run your business!

Headline ideas:

“Generate 10 engaging and SEO-friendly blog post titles about freelancing for beginners. Each title should focus on a benefit or pain point.”

Client pitches:

“Act as a freelance writer pitching a content strategy to a tech startup. Draft a 200-word pitch email highlighting your experience and services.”

Social media content:

“Write five LinkedIn posts for a freelance writer looking to attract clients in the energy space. Include motivational quotes and a subtle call to action.”

Blog outlines:

“Create a detailed outline for a blog post titled ‘5 Tools Every Freelance Writer Needs.’ Include an introduction, five tools with descriptions, and a conclusion.”

Time-saving templates:

“Draft a one-page freelance writing contract, including sections for deliverables, deadlines, payment terms, and revisions.”

Warning! Avoid These Common Mistakes

There are a few prompting mistakes that will give unusable results and leave you struggling with frustration. Avoid these like the plague:

• Being vague: Lack of details leads to generic, unusable responses.
• Ignoring context: Results will miss the mark if you don’t include a clear audience or tone.
• Not experimenting: Your first prompt may not be perfect—refine and iterate.

Is ChatGPT the Future of Writing?

Will AI replace freelance writers? No. But the way we work is changing. An organization called Writing Commons has built an extensive repository of information on AI, and it’s worth checking out. Tools like ChatGPT can help us craft better narratives. They help us to dig deeper into subjects in a short amount of time. These tools can also help us distill complex ideas into more easily digestible communications.

Learning how to write ChatGPT prompts is like learning a new creative skill. It takes practice. But the more specific and thoughtful your prompts, the better your results.

Ready to take your freelance writing to the next level? Download the Freelance Writing Starter Kit today! No email required. 🙂