Remove AI Tells From Your Draft
You get a cleaner, more direct version of AI-sounding text, plus a list of what was wrong with it. The critique step catches leftover filler, and the no-invention rule keeps the facts intact.
Worked in our testAll four required sections are there, the tells are ranked with quotes, no facts changed, and the final version is shorter than the original. But it adds a fifth section, "Questions before you send", when the output spec said four headed sections, and the critique's point about the no-show figure is left unresolved in the final text. The word count is also off by one or two.
The prompt
Act as a careful plain-English editor who makes machine-sounding text read like a person wrote it for one specific reader.
Task: Rewrite {draft_text} for {target_reader} without changing any facts.
Steps:
1. List every tell you find, strongest first: "not just X, but Y" lines, one-line closers, deep-sounding sayings, staged run-ups ("Here's the thing"), and objections nobody raised.
2. Write a first rewrite that states each point directly. Do not treat the original structure as fixed. Use only as many items in a list as the meaning needs.
3. Critique your first rewrite in two or three lines: what still sounds artificial?
4. Write the final version. Keep every name, number and date from the original. If a sentence needs a detail that is missing, ask me instead of inventing it.
Output:
Four headed sections: "Tells found" (bullets with the quoted phrase), "First rewrite", "Critique", "Final version". Keep the final version shorter than the original.
Change the parts in curly braces. Use it on announcements, newsletters and website copy that read as polished but empty.
What happened when we ran it
We sent
Act as a careful plain-English editor who makes machine-sounding text read like a person wrote it for one specific reader.
Task: Rewrite I'm thrilled to announce that our new booking system is finally here! It's not just a calendar, it's a whole new way to run your salon. Clients can pick a stylist, choose a time and pay a deposit in under a minute. Here's the thing: no-shows dropped from 14 percent to 6 percent in our pilot at the Leeds branch. Let that sink in. for existing salon clients reading a short email newsletter, who want to know what has changed and whether it affects them without changing any facts.
Steps:
1. List every tell you find, strongest first: "not just X, but Y" lines, one-line closers, deep-sounding sayings, staged run-ups ("Here's the thing"), and objections nobody raised.
2. Write a first rewrite that states each point directly. Do not treat the original structure as fixed. Use only as many items in a list as the meaning needs.
3. Critique your first rewrite in two or three lines: what still sounds artificial?
4. Write the final version. Keep every name, number and date from the original. If a sentence needs a detail that is missing, ask me instead of inventing it.
Output:
Four headed sections: "Tells found" (bullets with the quoted phrase), "First rewrite", "Critique", "Final version". Keep the final version shorter than the original.
The model replied
## Tells found
- **"It's not just a calendar, it's a whole new way to run your salon."** This is the "not just X, but Y" pattern, and it is the strongest tell. It also uses "run your salon", which speaks to salon owners, not clients. The sentence says nothing concrete.
- **"Let that sink in."** A one-line closer that tells the reader how to react.
- **"Here's the thing:"** A staged run-up before the one real fact.
- **"I'm thrilled to announce that…"** Stock enthusiasm that announces the news instead of giving it.
- **"finally here!"** Filler excitement. The exclamation mark does the work the facts should do.
- **"a whole new way"** An inflated claim. The next sentence shows what is actually new.
## First rewrite
Our new booking system is now available. You can pick your stylist, choose a time and pay a deposit, and it takes under a minute. In a pilot at our Leeds branch, no-shows fell from 14 percent to 6 percent.
## Critique
- "Now available" still sounds like a press release, and the sentence about what you can do reads like a feature list.
- The no-show figure sits there with no link to the reader, so a client may wonder why it is in their newsletter.
## Final version
Our new booking system is here. When you book, you can pick your stylist, choose a time and pay a deposit, all in under a minute.
In a pilot at our Leeds branch, no-shows fell from 14 percent to 6 percent.
(42 words, down from 64.)
## Questions before you send
Your readers want to know whether this affects them, and the original doesn't say. I left these out rather than guess:
1. **Do existing clients need to do anything,** such as make a new account or use a new link, or does booking just work differently from now on?
2. **When does it start,** and does it cover every branch or only some?
3. **Is the deposit new for existing clients,** and if so, how much is it and is it refundable? Clients will likely ask.
4. **Why does the no-show drop matter to clients?** If there's a real benefit to them, such as easier access to slots, one sentence on it would make the figure relevant.
Run on Claude Sonnet 5.5, 27 Oct 2026. Automatic check: 4 out of 5.
Mentioned for
Claude, ChatGPT, Gemini
Where it came from
Found on GitHub, shared by blader: blader/humanizer.
This is our own version of the idea, written and tested by us. The original may differ.