I for one have no intention of delegating my writing assignments to apps like ChatGPT. However, I do think they can be helpful in particular circumstances. For example, I asked Claude.AI to create some personas for my writing about different forms of writing. A persona in this context is a potted biography of an ideal or typical reader. I don’t think much of this approach myself, but a lot of people swear by it.

When I created some personas “by hand”, as it were, it took me a good half hour to develop one. Claude created several in about 20 seconds. Here are the results:

Prompt

create personas for my writing about different forms of writing

Here are some potential writer personas for different forms of writing:

The Novelist

Name: Samantha 

Age: 42

Job: Full-time novelist 

About: Samantha has dreamed of being an author since she was a little girl. She loves immersing herself in fictional worlds and bringing characters to life. She writes literary fiction novels and has published three so far, to moderate success. Her writing style is elegant yet accessible. She hopes to one day write a bestselling novel. 

The Blogger 

Name: Jacob

Age: 28 

Job: Marketing associate by day, blogger by night

About: Jacob has a passion for writing and connecting with others online. He started a personal blog while in college and has kept it up in the 10 years since. He writes posts about his interests like travel, food, books, and more. His writing is conversational and peppered with humor. He aims to entertain and inform his readers. 

The Journalist

Name: Maria 

Age: 36

Job: Newspaper journalist

About: Maria has always had a curiosity about people and the world. She became a journalist to uncover interesting stories and get the facts. She appreciates the research aspect of journalism the most. She writes articles covering politics, local events, and human interest profiles. Her writing is clear, accurate, and timely. She strives for integrity in her reporting.

The Copywriter 

Name: Mark

Age: 39

Job: Freelance copywriter

About: Mark began his career working at ad agencies but branched out on his own as a freelancer. He has a knack for writing compelling copy that captures attention. He writes copy for ads, websites, brochures, and more. His writing is persuasive yet approachable. He aims to promote brands and engage audiences through his words.

The Poet

Name: Elizabeth 

Age: 25

Job: Server at a cafe, poet in free time

About: Elizabeth has written poetry since she was a teenager. She finds poetic expression comes naturally to her. She mainly writes free verse poems reflecting on nature, love, and the human experience. Her writing style is lyrical and filled with imagery. She's currently working on publishing her first poetry collection while juggling her cafe job.

To be honest, I don’t think much of these, because they’re not detailed enough. However, perhaps you will agree that if you were really stuck for ideas this might help to kick start the flow of your creative juices.

This article first appeared in Eclecticism.

Incidentally, I’ll be covering the subject of personas in my course: Writing for Blogs. Check it out!