5 Practical Steps to Make ChatGPT Write an Outstanding Essay

Written by Daisie Team

Published on 10 July 2023 5 min read

Are you curious about how to make ChatGPT write an essay that stands out? With the right approach, you can turn this AI language model into your personal essay-writing assistant. This blog will guide you through five practical steps, making the most of ChatGPT's capabilities to help you produce an outstanding essay.

Step 1: Get Familiar with ChatGPT

In the beginning, it's all about getting to know your new AI writing partner. Understanding its features and the rules of engagement will pave the way for a fruitful collaboration.

Explore its Features

ChatGPT is more than just a chatbot. It's a language model developed by OpenAI with a unique knack for generating human-like text. Here's a quick overview to get you started:

Text Generation: ChatGPT can generate text based on the input it's given. This means you can guide it by providing relevant, clear prompts.
Context Understanding: The AI pays attention to the context of your prompts. This means it can follow a conversation or an essay structure you set.
Versatility: From formal reports to casual blog posts, ChatGPT can adapt its tone based on your requirements.

Know the Dos and Don'ts

While ChatGPT is powerful, it's not perfect. Knowing what it can and can't do will help you avoid pitfalls and capitalize on its strengths when you're figuring out how to make ChatGPT write an essay.

Do give detailed instructions: The more specific you are with your prompts, the better ChatGPT can fulfill your request.
Don't expect it to fact-check: While ChatGPT can generate informative content, it doesn't verify the accuracy of the information. You'll need to double-check facts and figures.
Do guide the conversation: ChatGPT will respond to the latest input, so be sure to steer the conversation in the direction you want.
Don't rely on it for sensitive topics: ChatGPT doesn't have opinions or emotions, so it's best not to use it for sensitive or controversial subjects.

With a good understanding of ChatGPT's features and how to interact with it, you're now ready to dive into setting up your writing parameters. Stay tuned!

Step 2: Set Your Writing Parameters

Now that you're familiar with ChatGPT, it's time to set up your writing parameters. This is a key step in directing how to make ChatGPT write an essay that aligns with your expectations.

Define Your Essay Topic

First off, you need to define your essay topic. This could range from a discussion on climate change, a review of the latest iPhone model, or a character analysis of Harry Potter. Be as specific as possible: the clearer your topic, the better ChatGPT can generate relevant content.

Choose the Right Length

Decide on the length of your essay. Are you aiming for a short, snappy 500-word piece? Or do you need a detailed 3000-word analysis? Keep in mind—ChatGPT can generate a maximum of 4096 tokens per session, but don't worry, each token is typically 1-4 characters long, so you have plenty of room to play with!

Select the Appropriate Tone

The tone of your essay can greatly influence its impact. Do you want an academic, formal tone, or a relaxed, conversational style? ChatGPT can handle both and anything in between. Just specify the tone in your initial instructions to the AI.

With the writing parameters set, you're now ready to guide the conversation and start crafting your essay with ChatGPT.

Step 3: Guide the Conversation

With your writing parameters set, it's time to guide the conversation, ensuring that ChatGPT is on the right track with your essay. This stage is crucial in mastering how to make ChatGPT write an essay that perfectly fits your needs.

Use Prompts Effectively

Prompts serve as the starting point for the AI. The more specific and detailed your prompt, the more targeted the AI's responses will be. For instance, instead of simply stating, "Write an essay on climate change," you could say, "Write a 1000-word argumentative essay on the effects of human activities on climate change, with a formal tone." This gives ChatGPT a clear direction to follow.

Steer the Discussion

While ChatGPT is pretty smart, it might sometimes veer off-topic. When this happens, don't panic! You can easily steer the conversation back on track. Use your prompts to gently guide the AI, reiterating your focus topic if necessary. This ensures that your essay remains coherent and aligned with your initial topic.

Now that you've got your AI writing on track, the next stage involves reviewing and editing the generated content.

Step 4: Review and Edit

Once ChatGPT has generated your essay, it's not time to relax just yet. You'll need to review and edit the content. This step is a key factor in ensuring that your AI-written essay is top-notch and meets your requirements. Now, let's dive into the specifics of reviewing and editing.

Check for Accuracy

First, you need to review the essay for factual accuracy. Remember, while ChatGPT is a robust AI language model, it doesn't always get all the facts right. For example, if the essay is about the history of Apple Inc., cross-check the dates, names, and product releases to ensure everything is accurate. This is a key step in understanding how to make ChatGPT write an essay that is not only well-written but also factually correct.

Ensure Coherence

Next, check for coherence. This involves ensuring that the essay flows logically from one point to another. If ChatGPT has veered off the topic, make sure to steer it back. You might have to rewrite or delete some parts to maintain the flow and coherence of the essay.

Polish the Language

Finally, it's time to polish the language. Look for any grammatical errors, awkward sentences, or repetitive phrases that ChatGPT might have generated. Remember to maintain the tone you chose earlier. Polishing the language is the final touch in crafting a compelling essay with ChatGPT.

Having reviewed and edited your essay, you're almost at the finish line. But there's one crucial step left — learning and improving from this experience.

Step 5: Learn and Improve

This final step is where your journey on how to make ChatGPT write an essay truly comes full circle. In this stage, you'll reflect on the process, analyze the results, apply feedback, and learn how to do it even better next time. Let's delve into how to go about this.

Analyze the Results

Start by taking a moment to analyze the final product. Did the essay meet your expectations? Did it stay on topic, maintain the right tone, and hit the right length? Were there parts where ChatGPT really shined, or areas where it seemed to struggle? This analysis will give you valuable insights into the strengths and limitations of ChatGPT, and it'll help you better understand how to make ChatGPT write an essay that aligns with your needs.

Apply Feedback

After analyzing the results, it's time to apply what you've learned. Perhaps you found that a more explicit initial prompt yielded better results, or that a certain topic tended to confuse the AI. Whatever the case, take these findings into account when you use ChatGPT in the future. This iterative process of feedback and adjustment is key to honing your mastery over this powerful AI tool.

And there you have it — five practical steps to make ChatGPT write an outstanding essay. Remember, this is a process of discovery and learning. Don't be disheartened if your first few attempts don't hit the mark. With patience, practice, and these steps in your toolkit, you'll soon be crafting AI-generated essays like a pro! So, when's your next essay due?

If you're eager to dive deeper into mastering the art of using ChatGPT for your essay writing, don't miss the workshop 'ChatGPT: Beginners Crash Course' by Ansh Mehra. This comprehensive workshop will guide you through the fundamentals of ChatGPT and help you unlock its full potential to craft outstanding essays.