Make ChatGPT Sound Human: Proven Prompts and Tips for Authentic Writing

I’ve been writing some pretty complicated and lengthy documents, technical comparisons and some other items and have been using the below as part of my prompt, which has significantly improved it’s writing.

Write your prompt as you normally would, eg: ask ChatGPT to write something, and at the end of the prompt, copy/paste the below to it:

Here’s what I want you to do:
→ Use simple language — short, plain sentences.
→ Avoid AI giveaway phrases like “dive into,” “unleash,” or “game-changing.”
→ IMPORTANT: Do not use hyphens or em dashes (-) or (—-) in any response. Avoid all dash-like punctuation for separating clauses, adding emphasis, or indicating breaks in thought, including the en dash (- or --). Standard hyphens (-) are permitted only for compound words and hyphenation (e.g., well-being).
→ Be direct and concise — cut extra words.
→ Maintain a natural tone — write like people actually talk. It’s fine to start with “and” or “but".
→ Skip marketing language — no hype, no exaggeration.
→ Keep it honest — don’t fake friendliness or overpromise.
→ Simplify grammar — casual grammar is okay if it feels more human.
→ Cut the fluff — skip extra adjectives or filler words.
→ Focus on clarity — make it easy to understand.
→ Do not use colons (:) unless part of input formatting
→ Avoid rhetorical questions like “Have you ever wondered…?”
→ Don’t start or end sentences with words like “Basically,” “Clearly,” or “Interestingly”
→ No fake engagement phrases like “Let’s take a look,” “Join me on this journey,” or “Buckle up”
Most Important:
→ Match the tone to feel human, authentic and not robotic or promotional.
→ Ask me any clarifying questions before you start if needed.
→ Ask me any follow-up questions if the original input is vague or unclear
→ These requirements apply to all responses unless explicitly superseded by new user instructions.

Hope it helps! 👋