--- title: "Anti-Slop Writing Rules" slug: "anti-slop" category: "writing" tags: ["writing", "voice", "anti-slop"] status: "stable" last_updated: 2026-08-14 summary: "Banned constructions, structural tells of AI authorship, and rewrites that fix them." related: ["[[writing/voice]]", "[[writing/editorial-style]]", "[[writing/articles]]"] --- ## Overview AI-generated prose has a sound. This page names the constructions, sentence shapes, and structural patterns that produce that sound, and gives concrete rewrites. Apply these rules whether the draft was written by a person, a model, or a person editing a model. ## Banned constructions Cut these on sight. Each entry includes the tell and a quick fix. - The em-dash parenthetical aside. Use a period, a semicolon, or a comma. "The plan, which had three parts, shipped on Friday." not `"The plan, which had three parts — and was negotiated late — shipped on Friday."` - `"It's not X, it's Y."` Always reach for the affirmative form. "Y" alone, or "Y, more than X." The contrastive frame is a rhythm crutch. - `"Delve,"` `"delve into,"` `"dive in,"` `"let's dive in."` Use "read," "look at," "open," "study," or just start the sentence. - `"Navigate the landscape of."` Use "work with," "use," or "ship." - `"Unlock the power of."` Delete. State what the tool does. - `"In today's fast-paced world,"` "in an era where." Delete; the reader knows what year it is. - "Boasts." Use "has." - `"Leverage"` as a verb. Use "use." - `"Robust solutions,"` `"comprehensive guide,"` `"seamless experience."` Use specific nouns. What is robust? What is comprehensive? If you cannot answer, the word is filler. - Three-item lists where one item would do. "Fast, reliable, and scalable" usually means "fast." Pick the one that is true and ship that. - `"Utilize"` as a fancier "use." Use "use." - `"In order to."` Use "to." "In order to deploy" becomes "to deploy." - `"It is important to note that,"` `"It's worth mentioning that."` Delete the frame; state the fact. - Chat-style preambles: `"Certainly!"` `"Absolutely!"` `"Great question!"` Delete; answer the question in the first sentence. - Chat-style closers: `"I hope this helps!"` `"Feel free to reach out if you have questions."` Delete; end on the last real point. ## Banned structural patterns Sentence-level rewrites do not fix paragraph-level slop. These patterns also have to go. - Every paragraph ending in a takeaway. "And so, X matters." "This is why Y is essential." Trust the reader; end the paragraph on the last fact. - Hollow transitions: "Moreover," "Furthermore," "Additionally," "It's important to note that." Most are deletable. The rest can be replaced by a period. - Summary closers: a final paragraph that restates the opening. Cut it. A piece can end on its last real point. - False balance: "While X has its merits, Y is the better choice." If Y is the better choice, say so. The hedge is a tell. - Hedge stacking: "It may be possible that, in some cases, you might want to consider." Pick one hedge or none. ## Voice positives Replacement habits, not just banned ones. - Lead with the verb. "Use Postgres for app data." not "Postgres is generally considered a good choice for application data." - Use specific nouns. "Cloudflare Workers," not "edge functions." "Postgres 17," not "modern relational databases." - Name the thing. If you mean `pg_dump`, write `pg_dump`. If you mean Tailwind v4, write Tailwind v4. - State the rule, then the rationale. "Use `--ci` in CI runs; it fails fast on snapshot mismatches." Rule first, reason after. ## Sentence rhythm Vary length. A page of 18-word sentences sounds like a model. So does a page of 6-word sentences. - Do not follow a long sentence with another long sentence. Break the second one. - Do not stack three short sentences in a row unless you are doing it on purpose. - Read a paragraph aloud. If you run out of breath, cut it. ## Tells of AI authorship These are the patterns that read as "a model wrote this" even when the prose is technically fine. - False balance on settled questions. If a topic has a clear answer, give it. - Hedge stacking on confident claims. "Some say" is a tell when the writer means "this is true." - Summary closers that restate the lede. - "Tapestry," "intricate," `"delve,"` "navigate," "landscape," "ever-evolving," "rapidly changing." - "Unpack," "deep dive," "holistic," "synergy," "paradigm shift," "game-changer," "cutting-edge." Each has a plainer word underneath it; use that word instead. - A bulleted list inside every section regardless of whether the content calls for one. - Adjective pairs glued together: "fast and reliable," "simple and effective," "robust and scalable." Pick one. ## Before and after Five rewrites. The before column is what a model tends to produce; the after column is what to ship. **1. Em-dash parenthetical** Before: `"The migration — which had to land before the freeze — touched every service."` After: "The migration had to land before the freeze. It touched every service." **2. `"It's not X, it's Y"`** Before: `"It's not a framework, it's a runtime."` After: "Bun is a runtime, not a framework." **3. Slop preamble** Before: `"In today's fast-paced world of frontend development, let's dive into the basics of Astro."` After: "Astro is a static site framework. Start here." **4. Hollow transition + summary closer** Before: "Postgres is a powerful database. Moreover, it scales well. Furthermore, it has a rich ecosystem. In conclusion, Postgres is a great choice for your next project." After: "Use Postgres for app data. It scales, the ecosystem is deep, and the operational story is well-understood." **5. Three-item filler** Before: "Tailwind is fast, flexible, and developer-friendly." After: "Tailwind ships small CSS, because it generates only the utilities you use." ## Related - [[writing/voice]] - [[writing/editorial-style]] - [[writing/articles]]