Great Writing Tips Archives

My Life With AI—Part VI: How To Spot AI Content – Or – Apparently, I Am A Robot

By Chris Carosa on October 28, 2025

I’ve learned how to spot AI content because I’m never sure if a potential source is real or a computer. Well, not exactly. It’s usually easy to confirm the person is real.

Financial professionals often have public footprints. I find them by perusing firm bios, scrolling LinkedIn’s polished profiles, and searching for prior quotes. A business email helps, too. I rarely consider replies from generic addresses like Gmail or Yahoo.

The problem isn’t the people. It’s their answers. Are they genuine—or pasted from a GenAI platform?

Last Monday, I opened an email from a “retirement planning expert” responding to my Continue Reading “My Life With AI—Part VI: How To Spot AI Content – Or – Apparently, I Am A Robot”

Posted in Great Writing Tips, Memoir of a Real Life, The Compleat Carosa Commentaries Tagged AI, Aristotle, artificial intelligence, Blade Runner, ChatGPT, clickbait, cyborg, Ethos, GenAI, Greece, Holy Trinity, Kelvin Timeline, Kobayahi Maru, Logos, Middle Earth, Pathos, replicant, rhetoric, robot, Rule of Three, Star Trek, Star Trek II, The Wrath of Khan, three-joke sequence, Tolkien, Vince Lombardi, Voight-Kampff, Winston Churchill, YouTube

A Good Show Must Always End, But A Great Story Lasts Forever

By Chris Carosa on January 21, 2025

A fragment of the Odyssey, via Wikimedia Commons

Have you ever been involved in a performance? Any kind of performance? It could have been a high school play, a ceremony at church, or a major presentation at work. In all cases, you practice, practice, practice. Whether it’s a musical or a wedding, you have a final rehearsal before the actual “show.”

On opening night, you have jitters. Throughout the event, your shoulders remain tense. You try not to let them see you sweat. At some point, however, you get past the hump. You can see the end. You begin to relax. Ironically, adrenaline pumps through your veins until it reaches euphoria when the final curtain falls. Your emotion peaks to such heights that, even today, you can barely remember the celebratory after-party.

And then it’s over. You wake up the next morning to an unexpected emptiness. The routine is gone. What do you do now?

Alas, all good shows must come to an end. Such is the nature of the business. Such is the Continue Reading “A Good Show Must Always End, But A Great Story Lasts Forever”

Posted in Gray Matter Musings, Great Writing Tips, The Compleat Carosa Commentaries Tagged Abbey Road, Across The Universe, George Bailey, Get Back, Homer, It's a Wonderful Life, James Bond, John Lennon, Odysseus, Odyssey, Patrick Stewart, performance, Star Trek, story, The Beatles, The Next Generation, The Original Series, TOS, William Shatner, Yesterday

The Terrible Reality of Story Arcs

By Chris Carosa on January 14, 2025

Bob Denver Gilligan’s Island, 1966, CBS Television, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

Think back to all the great stories you’ve heard, read while relaxing on a sunny beach, or watched in front of the big screen. What do they all have in common? Your first answer might be, “They kept me on the edge of my seat and their ending nailed it.”

OK, that might be true. But if you dig deeper, you’ll find they all stayed true to the narrative structure of the traditional story arc—Exposition, Rising Action, Climax, Falling Action, and Resolution. In good stories, you don’t see this structure. The transition from one element to the next flows seamlessly.

The 1942 film Casablanca, often cited as one of the greatest movies ever made, offers a good example of this. You don’t even notice as the Exposition rolls through a series of Continue Reading “The Terrible Reality of Story Arcs”

Posted in Gray Matter Musings, Great Writing Tips, The Compleat Carosa Commentaries Tagged cartoon, Casablanca, climax, drama, exposition, falling action, Gilligan's Island, Gunsmoke, James Bond, live-action, Nickelodeon, resolution, rising action, Star Trek, Star Wars, storytelling, The Fugitive, The Lord of the Rings, The Simpsons, writing

Story Weaving, Callbacks, And Self-Deprecating Humor

By Chris Carosa on October 15, 2024

Many years ago, a young aspiring columnist asked an established author what it takes to be a writer. “To write, you need to find your pen,” said the wordsmith. “To write well, you need to find your voice.”

“Find your voice?” What does that mean?

I never understood that expression. It seemed like a cop out. It’s what you tell a young buck when you don’t have a real answer. After all, everyone is looking for that magic bullet, that sure-fire secret that makes you a success.

Well, after years of writing, it dawned on me the answer to “How can I be a good writer?” is obvious. You need to find your voice. I can’t tell you what it means, but I can tell you it’s Continue Reading “Story Weaving, Callbacks, And Self-Deprecating Humor”

Posted in Great Speaking Tips, Great Writing Tips, The Compleat Carosa Commentaries Tagged Abraham Lincoln, callback, Ferris Bueller, Ferris Bueller's Day Off, Founding Fathers, Gettysburg Address, inaugural address, John F. Kennedy, public speaking, Revolutionary War, Ronald Reagan, self-deprecating humor, story weaving

Are You More A Marxist Or A Lennonist?

By Chris Carosa on September 24, 2024

Karl Marx (John Jabez Edwin Mayal) and Vladimir Lenin (Unknown, presumably official), Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

During dinner at the recent New York Press Association Publishers’ Conference, talked turned towards the misuse of the term “click-bait.” In a strict sense, the term applies to misleading descriptions of internet links. These phrases “bait” you to “click” the link; hence, “click-bait.” Links that have nothing to do with the sentence that lured you to click makes this technique unethical. That’s why “click-bait” has such a negative connotation.

Copywriters for more than a century have searched for sentences that “sizzle.” Elmer Wheeler documented the early years of this journey in his 1937 book Tested Statements That Sell. If you don’t recall the name of this Rochester native dubbed “America’s Greatest Salesman,” you will certainly know his most famous phrase: Continue Reading “Are You More A Marxist Or A Lennonist?”

Posted in Gray Matter Musings, Great Writing Tips, The Compleat Carosa Commentaries Tagged #9 Dream, click-bait, Elmer Wheeler, Gimme Some Truth, Give Peace a Chance, God, Groucho Marx, Happy Xmas, headline, How Do You Sleep?, Imagine, Instant Karma!, John Lennon, Karl Marx, layered comedy, Mind Games, Mother, New York Press Association, Publishers Conference, pun, Tested Statements That Sell, The Beatles, The Simpsons, Title, Vladimir Lenin, You Bet Your Life

When I Learned I Was A Writer

By Chris Carosa on August 22, 2023

Previous: Why I Started To Write

Yes, I hated English class. All the way from Middle School through College. That didn’t mean I didn’t like to write. As demonstrated by my 10^th grade novel, I treated writing as a form of teenage rebellion. Teenagers must rebel, and it’s a lot safer using a pen than some other tool.

Truth be told, I wrote constantly, especially when I wasn’t supposed to. I even used English class as an excuse to write. It’s called “free writing” or “stream of consciousness writing.” It’s the kind of nonsense writing that fills journals.

In December of my senior year in high school, my father gave me an appointment book. It wasn’t as fancy as the ones they have now. His company (Hartford Insurance) printed them up for their employees. My father must have had an Continue Reading “When I Learned I Was A Writer”

Posted in Great Writing Tips, Memoir of a Real Life, The Compleat Carosa Commentaries

What Are The Best Opening Lines For Letters To Editor?

By Chris Carosa on July 11, 2023

Do you have a rant? Is there someone or something you want to rave about? Or maybe you have a new idea that you just want to share with the world.

What’s the best way to let your voice be heard? A way that gets the most substantive “views” over time. A way that endures. A way that never faces the risk of getting cancelled.

Sure, the quickest way is to just blab it all through your favorite social media account. But how do you know how many people will really see it? Even putting it on your own blog doesn’t guarantee eyeballs. Unless you’re an expert on Search Engine Optimization (SEO), chances are your thoughts will make the same sound as that proverbial tree that falls in the forest when no one is around.

There’s a better way. It’s a way used for centuries. It’s a way that’s proven more effective Continue Reading “What Are The Best Opening Lines For Letters To Editor?”

Posted in Great Writing Tips, Media, The Compleat Carosa Commentaries Tagged cartharsis, complaint, compliment, entertaining, first sentence, informative, letter to the editor, persuasive, SEO

You’re Either Living In The Past Or Living For The Future Because The Present Doesn’t Really Exist

By Chris Carosa on February 21, 2023

You’re either living in the past or living for the future because the present doesn’t really exist.

OK, that sounds a little harsh. Allow me to offer something a bit more palatable.

You’re either living in the past or living for the future because the present is a moment that lasts but a quick instant.

Think about it. It takes a lot of effort to constantly live in the present. It’s a constant churn to live for the day every single day. I suppose if you’re a hedonist, it might be a tad easier. Still, even then, you’ve got to be numb to withstand the constant movement of the Continue Reading “You’re Either Living In The Past Or Living For The Future Because The Present Doesn’t Really Exist”

Posted in Great Writing Tips, The Compleat Carosa Commentaries Tagged Abbott and Costello, Christmas, Colonel Sandurz, Dark Helmet, future, Mel Brooks, Monty Python, past, Paul McCartney, present, Sirius Radio, Space Balls

Why You Should Tell Bad Jokes

By Chris Carosa on August 2, 2022

Let me clue you in on this from the very beginning: this is another business metaphor. I’m telling you up front this time so you can begin to think about the connections from the moment you start reading it.

I was strolling through the National Comedy Center in Jamestown the other day, taking in with delight the many funny people who have entertained so many for so many years, when a thought struck me. Why do good comedians tell bad jokes?

When a comic sits down to write gags, it becomes an exercise of no-holds-barred brainstorming. This is by necessity. You don’t know what’s really funny while you’re creating it, so you don’t want to restrict yourself in any way.

James Mendrinos, in his book The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Comedy Writing, writes: “You have to force yourself to stain the pages, even if you think the jokes aren’t your best work. I’m not saying that bad jokes are better than no jokes. I am saying that if Continue Reading “Why You Should Tell Bad Jokes”

Posted in Business Tips, Gray Matter Musings, Great Speaking Tips, Great Writing Tips, The Compleat Carosa Commentaries Tagged ad lib, Animal Crackers, business, comedy, David Letterman, George S. Kaufman, Groucho Marx, James Mendrinos, Jason Zinoman, John Vorhaus, Johnny Carson, joke, Judy Carter, Marx Brothers, Morrie Ryskind, National Comedy Center, Robert S. Bader, Rule of Three, Speaking, success, The Cocoanuts, writing, Yale

How To Be A Successful Writer (In Five Easy Steps)

By Chris Carosa on February 1, 2022

To begin with, most people ask the wrong question.

This doesn’t happen too often locally, but because I also write for national publications, I often get this question: “What do I need to do to become a good writer?”

This question comes in many flavors. For example: “How can I become a better writer?” “What should I do to improve my writing?” “How did you learn to write so well?” That sort of thing.

These are all the wrong questions. Their common mistake: they all assume good writing is the key.

Here’s what most people (and most writers) don’t realize. There’s a difference between Continue Reading “How To Be A Successful Writer (In Five Easy Steps)”