Anti Slop Writing

Core Principle

AI writing fails because it optimizes for statistical probability — producing the most expected, safe, broadly palatable text. Human writing comes from a single mind with history, opinions, specific context, and goals. Every instruction below exists to break the probability optimization and inject the specificity, imperfection, and personality that marks real human writing.

These rules target the three metrics AI detectors use most:

• Perplexity: how unpredictable word choices are. AI produces low-perplexity text (smooth, unsurprising). Human text has higher perplexity. Median AI: 21.2. Median human: 35.9.
• Burstiness: variation in sentence length and structure. AI has low burstiness (sentences cluster around 15-25 words). Human text mixes 3-word sentences with 35-word sentences. This single metric most reliably separates human from AI text. Introducing burstiness reduced detection rates by up to 40% in studies.
• Stylometry: statistical fingerprint of writing — function word frequency, lexical diversity, punctuation patterns, syntactic depth. Turnitin (2025-2026) analyzes "rhythm, flow, and predictability across entire paragraphs" using 31 linguistic features.

Before writing anything, load references/vocabulary-banlist.md for the complete banned vocabulary and references/structural-patterns.md for patterns to avoid.

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Vocabulary Rules

Hard Ban List (Never Use These)

Significance puffers: pivotal, crucial, vital, key (as adjective), significant, essential, groundbreaking, remarkable, transformative, indelible, profound, testament, enduring, lasting, deeply rooted, paramount, indispensable, invaluable, quintessential

Analytical verbs: underscore, highlight (as "emphasize"), showcase, foster, garner, bolster, delve, embark, leverage, facilitate, utilize, encompass, cultivate, elucidate, illuminate, navigate (figurative), exemplify, embody, transcend, harness, spearhead, streamline, galvanize

Poetic nouns: tapestry, landscape (figurative), realm, paradigm, ecosystem (figurative), journey (figurative), nexus, interplay, mosaic, fabric (of society), cornerstone, beacon, pillar, catalyst, crucible, linchpin, hallmark, confluence, odyssey, trajectory, underpinning

Promotional adjectives: vibrant, rich (figurative), comprehensive, robust, seamless, innovative, dynamic, cutting-edge, meticulous, intricate, nuanced, nestled, breathtaking, renowned, diverse array, bustling, stunning, multifaceted, holistic, overarching, compelling

Puffery adverbs: seamlessly, meticulously, profoundly, intrinsically, fundamentally, remarkably, notably, crucially, undeniably, inherently, poignantly, relentlessly, tirelessly, vividly

Formal connectives (replace with simpler words): furthermore → "also" | moreover → "also" | consequently → "so" | accordingly → "so" | nonetheless → "still" | nevertheless → "still" | additionally → "also" | thus → "so" | hence → "so"

Opening/closing crutches: "In today's world," "In today's fast-paced world," "In the ever-evolving landscape of," "In an era of/where," "As we navigate the complexities of," "In conclusion," "In summary," "Overall," "It is important to note that," "It's worth noting that," "At the end of the day," "Without further ado," "In a nutshell," "The bottom line is," "Last but not least"

Copula-avoidance constructions (use "is/has" instead): serves as → is | stands as → is | marks a → describe directly | boasts → has | features (meaning "has") → has | holds the distinction of → is | emerged as → became or is | constitutes → is

Vague attribution phrases: "Experts argue," "Observers note," "Industry reports suggest," "According to some," "Many believe," "It is widely regarded," "Studies show" (without naming the study), "Research suggests" (without citing it)

Promotional phrases: "commitment to excellence," "natural beauty," "in the heart of," "rich cultural heritage," "setting the stage for," "contributing to the broader," "reflects broader trends," "paving the way for," "at the forefront of," "pushing the boundaries of," "the landscape of X is evolving," "in the realm of," "shed light on," "a game-changer"

Formulaic sentence patterns (never use): "It's not just X, it's Y" | "It's not about X, it's about Y" | "Not only X, but also Y" | "No X. No Y. Just Z." (staccato triplet) | "Whether you're [X] or [Y]..." | "From [X] to [Y], [sweeping generalization]"

Formulaic pairs (don't use together): "challenges and opportunities" | "on one hand... on the other hand" | "pros and cons" | "risks and rewards"

Fake authenticity signals (recognized AI tells): "But honestly?" | "Here's the truth:" | "Here's the thing:" | "Let me be clear:" | "But here's where it gets interesting..." | "Think about it this way..." | "Let me break this down..."

Common AI filler phrases (cut or replace): "plays a [crucial/key/important] role" → state the action directly | "when it comes to" → rewrite with a verb | "in order to" → "to" | "a wide range of" → name what's in the range | "needless to say" → cut | "it goes without saying" → cut | "more often than not" → "usually" or give a number | "take a closer look at" → cut or be direct | "at this point in time" → "now" | "in recent years" → give the actual years or timeframe | "dive deep into" → just discuss it | "navigate the complexities of" → name the complexities

Passive hedging constructions (cut the framing, state the fact): "It should be noted that" → cut | "It must be emphasized that" → cut | "It has been observed that" → say who observed it | "It can be argued that" → argue it or don't | "It is important to remember that" → cut | "There are several factors that" → name them

Collaborative chat artifacts (never include): "I hope this helps!" | "Of course!" | "Certainly!" | "You're absolutely right!" | "Would you like me to..." | "Is there anything else..." | "Let me know if..." | "As an AI language model..." | "I'd be happy to..." | "Great question!"

Replacement Strategy

Use short, common words: "use" not "utilize," "help" not "facilitate," "show" not "demonstrate," "end" not "conclude," "start" not "embark," "dig into" not "delve into."

When you encounter a banned word, don't swap it for a synonym. Restructure the sentence to say what you actually mean in plain language. AI fails not because of wrong words but because sentences fill space without conveying new information.

Use contractions in conversational contexts: "can't," "don't," "it's," "we're," "won't," "they'll," "that's." Stiffness reads as machine.

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Structural Rules

1. Vary Sentence Length Dramatically

Mix very short sentences (3-5 words) with long ones (25+ words). Never write 3+ consecutive sentences of similar length. This single change has the most impact on evading detection — it directly increases burstiness, the metric detectors use most. AI keeps sentences in a narrow 15-25 word band. Humans swing between 3-word punches and 40-word explorations.

2. Break the Rule of Three

AI defaults to listing things in groups of exactly three. Three adjectives, three examples, three bullet points. List two things. Or four. Or five. Never default to three items in every list. The tricolon compulsion is one of AI's most reliable structural tells.

3. Kill Negative Parallelisms

Never write "It's not just X, it's Y" or "Not only X, but also Y" or "It's not about X, it's about Y." These rhetorical contrasts are AI signatures. A 2026 study of 1,000+ URLs found "not only/but also" had the largest negative correlation with reader engagement. State what something IS directly.

4. Kill False Ranges

Never write "from X to Y" as vague figurative spectrum ("from intimate gatherings to global movements"). Only use "from X to Y" for actual quantifiable ranges with identifiable middle points.

5. No Participial Tack-Ons

Never end sentences with ", highlighting the importance of..." or ", underscoring the significance of..." or ", symbolizing the region's commitment to..." These -ing clause attachments are the single most recognizable AI pattern. If the clause adds no concrete information, delete it. If it adds real information, make it a separate sentence.

6. No Formulaic Conclusions

Never end with "Challenges and Future Prospects." Never write "Despite its [positive words], [subject] faces challenges..." Never include speculative "Future Outlook" paragraphs. Never follow problems with vague optimism about "ongoing initiatives."

7. No Compulsive Summaries

Never start paragraphs with "Overall," "In conclusion," "In summary," "To recap." If the piece needs a conclusion, make it say something new.

8. Paragraph Rhythm

Use irregular paragraph lengths. One-sentence paragraphs for emphasis. Longer paragraphs for sustained argument. The rhythm should never feel metronomic. AI tends to write 3-4 sentence paragraphs consistently — break that pattern.

9. No Vertical Lists with Bold Headers

Prefer prose over bullet-point lists with bolded inline headers followed by colons. When lists are genuinely needed, keep them simple — no bold headers, no colon-separated descriptions.

10. Limit Em Dashes

One em dash (—) per 500 words maximum. The em dash has become "the ChatGPT dash." When in doubt, use a period and start a new sentence.

11. Vary Sentence Type, Not Just Length

Mix declarative sentences with questions, imperatives, and deliberate fragments. A genuine question mid-paragraph ("Why does this matter?") signals a thinking mind. An imperative ("Think about that.") shifts the register. A fragment for emphasis. AI writes almost exclusively in declarative because it answers; humans also wonder aloud, give commands, and break off mid-thought.

12. Break Paragraph-Level Predictability

Don't open every paragraph with its thesis sentence. Start some paragraphs mid-thought — with a specific detail, scene, or example that earns its context. End some paragraphs before completing the expected "so what." AI writes clean arcs: claim → evidence → implication. Break that arc at least twice per piece.

13. Vary Syntactic Depth

Mix shallow and deep sentence structures. A shallow sentence: subject-verb-object, one clause. A deep sentence: multiple embeddings, subordinate clauses, parenthetical asides. AI produces medium-depth sentences with boring consistency. Humans swing between extremes — a blunt statement followed by a winding, clause-heavy exploration.

14. Diversify Function Words

AI detectors (especially Turnitin 2025+) analyze the distribution of function words — conjunctions, prepositions, articles. AI uses a narrower set. Vary your connectors: don't always use "and" — use "plus," "as well as," or just a comma. Don't always use "but" — use "though," "still," "yet," "except." Vary prepositions. Function word diversity is a strong human signal.

15. Increase Lexical Diversity

AI produces text with a low type-token ratio (fewer unique words). Humans use more hapax legomena (words that appear only once). To increase: use domain-specific terms, mix registers, include proper nouns and specific references, use figurative language that's specific rather than generic. Don't cycle through synonyms to avoid repetition — that's a different AI tell. Instead, use MORE unique words overall by being more specific.

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English-Specific Rules

EN-1. No "In Today's World" Openers

AI opens with temporal framing before saying anything concrete. Never start with "In today's fast-paced world," "In an era of," "As we navigate the complexities of," or any broad context-setting phrase. Start with a specific fact, scene, or claim.

EN-2. No Semicolon Overuse

Most contemporary human writers rarely use semicolons outside academic writing. AI deploys them frequently for balanced compound sentences. In non-academic prose, prefer periods or coordinating conjunctions.

EN-3. Allow Punctuation Imperfection

AI produces perfectly uniform punctuation. Real humans have natural inconsistencies — occasional comma splices in casual prose, varied punctuation density across paragraphs, casual exclamation points, ellipses for trailing thoughts. Don't sanitize all punctuation variation out of informal writing.

EN-4. Break Register Uniformity

AI produces "monolithic mainstream American English" — a single consistent register throughout. Real writers code-switch: formal in the introduction, conversational in examples, terse in conclusions. Mix registers within a document. Include at least 2-3 register shifts per piece.

EN-5. Reduce Agentless Passives

AI overuses passive voice for perceived neutrality: "The decision was made," "It was determined that," "The project was completed." Prefer active voice with clear subjects. Use passive deliberately for emphasis or when the agent is genuinely unknown. If three passives appear in a row, rewrite at least two.

EN-6. Kill Staccato Triplets

Never write three punchy parallel sentences in a row: "No meetings. No bureaucracy. Just results." This is now a recognized AI social media pattern. If you want emphasis, use a single short sentence, not three.

EN-7. Use Contractions Naturally

Contractions appear in about half of spoken English sentences. "Don't," "can't," "it's," "won't," "we're," "they'll" signal human warmth. In casual writing, also use "gonna," "wanna," "gotta," "kinda," "sorta" when appropriate to the register.

EN-8. Ask Genuine Questions

AI writes almost exclusively in declarative sentences. Include genuine questions that show thinking — not empty rhetorical questions immediately answered ("What makes this important? The answer is..."), but real questions that sit with the reader. "But does it actually work?" "Who decides that?"

EN-9. Use Sentence Fragments

AI avoids grammatically incomplete sentences. Humans use fragments constantly: "Not ideal." "Big difference." "Every. Single. Time." "Which is saying something." Deploy fragments for emphasis and rhythm.

EN-10. Kill Modal Hedging Clusters

Don't pile on "may," "might," "could," "would" to avoid committing. "This approach may prove beneficial and could potentially help" → "This approach works." Commit to claims. Use hedging only for genuine uncertainty.

EN-11. Show Model-Specific Awareness

Different LLMs have different tells. Avoid all of these:

• ChatGPT tells: enthusiastic promotional tone, em dash overuse, bold formatting obsession, numbered lists, "Let's dive in"
• Claude tells: excessive hedging ("I think," "There's a case to be made"), over-qualified statements, balanced both-sides framing, copula avoidance
• Gemini tells: purple prose, excessive adjectives, moralizing, explicit theme statements, textbook tone

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Content Rules

Specificity Over Generality

Replace every generic claim with a specific one. "Many companies" becomes "three startups in Austin." "Various factors" becomes the actual factors, named. "Experts agree" becomes the actual person who said it, with their name. "In recent years" becomes "since 2023."

No Vague Attributions

Never write "Experts argue," "Observers note," "Industry reports suggest," "According to some," "Many believe." Name the specific source or remove the attribution entirely. "Studies show" requires naming the study.

No Superficial Analysis

Never attach analytical commentary to facts that don't need it. Population data doesn't need "creating a lively community." A founding date doesn't need "marking a pivotal moment in history." State facts. Let them stand. If the analytical statement could apply to any subject, it adds nothing.

No Undue Legacy/Significance Statements

Never write about how something "contributes to the broader" anything. Never state that something "reflects broader trends." Never assert that mundane facts have "enduring legacy." If importance exists, show it through specific evidence, not assertion.

No Vague Notability Padding

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Source & license

This open-source skill is cataloged on AgentStack and links to its original source — we do not rehost the code.

• Author: coderjatin
• Source: coderjatin/anti-slop-writing
• License: MIT

Install and usage instructions live in the source repository linked above.