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  "articleBody": "**[How To Write With An LLM](https://sockpuppet.org/blog/2026/09/17/how-to-write-with-an-llm/)**. Thomas Ptacek on using LLMs as copyeditors, not as writing assistants:\n\n> **Rule Number One: You may not use a single word an LLM suggests to you.**\n>\n> \\[...\\] I think that as a form of intellectual personal protective equipment you should adopt the rule that any specific turn of phrase an LLM suggests is off limits. Be strict about the rule!\n\nI won't let LLMs write content for my blog, but I use them for fact-checking, spelling and grammar and as an occasional thesaurus (see [my proofreading prompt](https://simonwillison.net/guides/agentic-engineering-patterns/prompts/#proofreader)).\n\nThe rule to never use a turn of phrase suggested by an LLM feels good to me. The text has that weird smell to it, and it's also a good principle to help stay disciplined.\n\nLater in this piece Thomas shows a screenshot of his personal LLM copyediting tool (see also [this Twitter thread](https://x.com/tqbf/status/2100414465187475821)), and provides a prompt to help kickstart building your own.\n",
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  "content_html": "<p><strong><a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https://sockpuppet.org/blog/2026/09/17/how-to-write-with-an-llm/\">How To Write With An LLM</a></strong>. Thomas Ptacek on using LLMs as copyeditors, not as writing assistants:</p>\n<blockquote>\n<p><strong>Rule Number One: You may not use a single word an LLM suggests to you.</strong></p>\n<p>[...] I think that as a form of intellectual personal protective equipment you should adopt the rule that any specific turn of phrase an LLM suggests is off limits. Be strict about the rule!</p>\n</blockquote>\n<p>I won't let LLMs write content for my blog, but I use them for fact-checking, spelling and grammar and as an occasional thesaurus (see <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https://simonwillison.net/guides/agentic-engineering-patterns/prompts/#proofreader\">my proofreading prompt</a>).</p>\n<p>The rule to never use a turn of phrase suggested by an LLM feels good to me. The text has that weird smell to it, and it's also a good principle to help stay disciplined.</p>\n<p>Later in this piece Thomas shows a screenshot of his personal LLM copyediting tool (see also <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https://x.com/tqbf/status/2100414465187475821\">this Twitter thread</a>), and provides a prompt to help kickstart building your own.</p>\n",
  "content_markdown": "**[How To Write With An LLM](https://sockpuppet.org/blog/2026/09/17/how-to-write-with-an-llm/)**. Thomas Ptacek on using LLMs as copyeditors, not as writing assistants:\n\n> **Rule Number One: You may not use a single word an LLM suggests to you.**\n>\n> \\[...\\] I think that as a form of intellectual personal protective equipment you should adopt the rule that any specific turn of phrase an LLM suggests is off limits. Be strict about the rule!\n\nI won't let LLMs write content for my blog, but I use them for fact-checking, spelling and grammar and as an occasional thesaurus (see [my proofreading prompt](https://simonwillison.net/guides/agentic-engineering-patterns/prompts/#proofreader)).\n\nThe rule to never use a turn of phrase suggested by an LLM feels good to me. The text has that weird smell to it, and it's also a good principle to help stay disciplined.\n\nLater in this piece Thomas shows a screenshot of his personal LLM copyediting tool (see also [this Twitter thread](https://x.com/tqbf/status/2100414465187475821)), and provides a prompt to help kickstart building your own.\n",
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  "description": "How To Write With An LLM Thomas Ptacek on using LLMs as copyeditors, not as writing assistants: Rule Number One: You may not use a single word an LLM suggests to you. [...] I think that as a form of intellectual personal protective…",
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  "summary": "How To Write With An LLM Thomas Ptacek on using LLMs as copyeditors, not as writing assistants: Rule Number One: You may not use a single word an LLM suggests to you. [...] I think that as a form of intellectual personal protective equipment you should adopt the rule that any specific turn of phrase an LLM suggests is off limits. Be strict about the rule! I won't let LLMs write content for my blog, but I use them for fact-checking, spelling and grammar and as an occasional thesaurus (see my proofreading prompt). The rule to never use a turn of phrase suggested by an LLM feels good to me. The text has that weird smell to it, and it's also a good principle to help stay disciplined. Later in this piece Thomas shows a screenshot of his personal LLM copyediting tool (see also this Twitter thread), and provides a prompt to help kickstart building your own. Tags: thomas-ptacek, writing, ai, generative-ai, llms",
  "tags": [
    "ai",
    "generative-ai",
    "llms",
    "thomas-ptacek",
    "writing"
  ],
  "temporalCoverage": "2026-09-18T01:14:43.309993603+00:00",
  "title": "How To Write With An LLM",
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