20 practical, difficulty-rated ways English and Creative Writing students at Hobart and William Smith Colleges can use AI — 10 easy, 6 medium, 4 hard. They start at “Define literary terms” and run up to “Debug NotebookLM source synthesis”, drawing on 15 tutorials between them. Every card carries a starter prompt already written for English and Creative Writing, so you can copy it and go.
Before you use these on graded work: check your professor’s policy on AI.
It differs by course, and these examples are study aids — not permission.
All English and Creative Writing AI use cases
Easy
Define literary terms
Explain metonymy, free indirect discourse, or iambic pentameter with clear examples. The linked tutorial covers ChatGPT's Study Mode (type /study), an interactive tutor that guides you with questions step by step instead of just handing over the answer, and the starter prompt below already frames it for English and Creative Writing.
What you'll take awayHow to switch ChatGPT into tutor mode so it drills you on terms and ideas rather than doing the thinking for you — enough to use on English and Creative Writing work this week.
Starter prompt — paste into ChatGPT
I'm an English and Creative Writing student at HWS. My task: Define literary terms — Explain metonymy, free indirect discourse, or iambic pentameter with clear examples.
Define each term in one clear sentence, then give a concrete example of each in context. Once I've read them, quiz me on them one at a time and tell me what I got wrong and why.
Keep the terminology, examples, and level of detail appropriate for an undergraduate English and Creative Writing course.
Condense assigned Faulkner or Woolf reading into a plot recap. The linked tutorial covers MacMost's copy-paste method — pull an article into reader view, paste it into ChatGPT after 'summarize this:', then ask for a set word count or a 10-bullet version; also how to grab a YouTube transcript to summarise a video, and the starter prompt below already frames it for English and Creative Writing.
What you'll take awayHow to compress a long reading or video into a summary of the exact length you need, and why pasting the source keeps it accurate — enough to use on English and Creative Writing work this week.
Starter prompt — paste into ChatGPT
I'm an English and Creative Writing student at HWS. My task: Summarize a dense novel chapter — Condense assigned Faulkner or Woolf reading into a plot recap.
Give me (1) a three-sentence summary, (2) five bullet-point key claims, and (3) anything the author asserts without supporting evidence. Text below:
[PASTE THE TEXT HERE]
Keep the terminology, examples, and level of detail appropriate for an undergraduate English and Creative Writing course.
Generate genre prompts, character wants, and inciting incidents for drafting. The linked tutorial covers three brainstorming methods in ChatGPT — a reusable custom-instructions 'brainstorm paradigm', an AI-diagram tree that fans one topic into dozens of branches, and a SWOT prompt to pressure-test an idea, and the starter prompt below already frames it for English and Creative Writing.
What you'll take awayThree prompt patterns you can reuse to go from a blank page to a categorised list of options, plus a way to stress-test the one you pick — enough to use on English and Creative Writing work this week.
Starter prompt — paste into ChatGPT
I'm an English and Creative Writing student at HWS. My task: Brainstorm short story premises — Generate genre prompts, character wants, and inciting incidents for drafting.
Give me 10 options grouped into 3 themes, then mark the 3 most original and explain what makes them stronger.
Keep the terminology, examples, and level of detail appropriate for an undergraduate English and Creative Writing course.
Request a deadline extension on a portfolio submission politely. The linked tutorial covers drafting an email in ChatGPT and improving it through conversation — the first draft is deliberately generic, then detail is added turn by turn — plus what not to paste in for privacy, and the starter prompt below already frames it for English and Creative Writing.
What you'll take awayWhy the first draft always reads like AI, how to iterate it into your own voice, and to keep real names out of the prompt — enough to use on English and Creative Writing work this week.
Starter prompt — paste into ChatGPT
I'm an English and Creative Writing student at HWS. My task: Draft an email to a professor — Request a deadline extension on a portfolio submission politely.
Keep it under 150 words: polite, specific, with one clear ask. Give me two versions — one formal, one warmer. Don't include real names, ID numbers, or anything private.
Keep the terminology, examples, and level of detail appropriate for an undergraduate English and Creative Writing course.
Unpack imagery and tone in a Keats ode line by line. The linked tutorial covers a 10-step ChatGPT prompt system — standard definition, an explain-it-to-a-10-year-old version, real-life analogies, a simple diagram, then a comparison table — that you aim at any concept you're stuck on, and the starter prompt below already frames it for English and Creative Writing.
What you'll take awayA repeatable prompt sequence that turns a confusing idea into a definition, an analogy and a diagram you can check against your course notes — enough to use on English and Creative Writing work this week.
Starter prompt — paste into ChatGPT
I'm an English and Creative Writing student at HWS. My task: Explain a poem's meaning — Unpack imagery and tone in a Keats ode line by line.
Start with a one-sentence definition, then explain it as if I'm 10, then give a real-world analogy. Finish by flagging anything scholars genuinely disagree about — and tell me what you're unsure of.
Keep the terminology, examples, and level of detail appropriate for an undergraduate English and Creative Writing course.
Generate seminar questions on theme and narrative voice
Open-ended prompts that spark disagreement rather than yes/no answers. The linked tutorial covers the fundamentals of ChatGPT — prompting basics, what it can and can't do, and how to personalise it, and the starter prompt below already frames it for English and Creative Writing.
What you'll take awayEnough grounding to attempt an unfamiliar task with AI and judge whether the answer is trustworthy — enough to use on English and Creative Writing work this week.
Starter prompt — paste into ChatGPT
I'm an English and Creative Writing student at HWS. My task: Generate seminar questions on theme and narrative voice — Open-ended prompts that spark disagreement rather than yes/no answers.
Walk me through how to do this step by step. Ask me any clarifying questions first, and show your reasoning so I can check it.
Keep the terminology, examples, and level of detail appropriate for an undergraduate English and Creative Writing course.
Offer stronger verbs and precise diction for a flat sentence. The linked tutorial covers three brainstorming methods in ChatGPT — a reusable custom-instructions 'brainstorm paradigm', an AI-diagram tree that fans one topic into dozens of branches, and a SWOT prompt to pressure-test an idea, and the starter prompt below already frames it for English and Creative Writing.
What you'll take awayThree prompt patterns you can reuse to go from a blank page to a categorised list of options, plus a way to stress-test the one you pick — enough to use on English and Creative Writing work this week.
Starter prompt — paste into ChatGPT
I'm an English and Creative Writing student at HWS. My task: Suggest synonyms and word choice — Offer stronger verbs and precise diction for a flat sentence.
Give me 10 options grouped into 3 themes, then mark the 3 most original and explain what makes them stronger.
Keep the terminology, examples, and level of detail appropriate for an undergraduate English and Creative Writing course.
Structure a thesis and topic sentences for a literary argument. The linked tutorial covers using ChatGPT across the research-paper workflow — finding a topic where a genuine gap exists, then structuring the paper around it, and the starter prompt below already frames it for English and Creative Writing.
What you'll take awayHow to pick a defensible topic and lay out the sections before you start writing — enough to use on English and Creative Writing work this week.
Starter prompt — paste into ChatGPT
I'm an English and Creative Writing student at HWS. My task: Outline a five-paragraph essay — Structure a thesis and topic sentences for a literary argument.
Give a topic-sentence outline only — not full prose. For each section, state the argument it makes and the evidence it would need.
Keep the terminology, examples, and level of detail appropriate for an undergraduate English and Creative Writing course.
Summarize deconstruction or reader-response theory in plain language. The linked tutorial covers a 10-step ChatGPT prompt system — standard definition, an explain-it-to-a-10-year-old version, real-life analogies, a simple diagram, then a comparison table — that you aim at any concept you're stuck on, and the starter prompt below already frames it for English and Creative Writing.
What you'll take awayA repeatable prompt sequence that turns a confusing idea into a definition, an analogy and a diagram you can check against your course notes — enough to use on English and Creative Writing work this week.
Starter prompt — paste into ChatGPT
I'm an English and Creative Writing student at HWS. My task: Explain a critical theory basics — Summarize deconstruction or reader-response theory in plain language.
Start with a one-sentence definition, then explain it as if I'm 10, then give a real-world analogy. Finish by flagging anything scholars genuinely disagree about — and tell me what you're unsure of.
Keep the terminology, examples, and level of detail appropriate for an undergraduate English and Creative Writing course.
Match structure to mood across villanelle, sonnet, and free verse. The linked tutorial covers three brainstorming methods in ChatGPT — a reusable custom-instructions 'brainstorm paradigm', an AI-diagram tree that fans one topic into dozens of branches, and a SWOT prompt to pressure-test an idea, and the starter prompt below already frames it for English and Creative Writing.
What you'll take awayThree prompt patterns you can reuse to go from a blank page to a categorised list of options, plus a way to stress-test the one you pick — enough to use on English and Creative Writing work this week.
Starter prompt — paste into ChatGPT
I'm an English and Creative Writing student at HWS. My task: Brainstorm poem titles and forms — Match structure to mood across villanelle, sonnet, and free verse.
Give me 10 options grouped into 3 themes, then mark the 3 most original and explain what makes them stronger.
Keep the terminology, examples, and level of detail appropriate for an undergraduate English and Creative Writing course.
Analyze diction, syntax, and imagery across Hemingway and James passages. The linked tutorial covers a compare-and-contrast prompt in ChatGPT (demonstrated on Buddhism vs Hinduism) that asks for similarities and differences, then expands any point you want more depth on, and the starter prompt below already frames it for English and Creative Writing.
What you'll take awayA prompt for structured comparisons, and how to push ChatGPT to elaborate on the specific dimension you care about — worth checking against your English and Creative Writing course material before you lean on it.
Starter prompt — paste into ChatGPT
I'm an English and Creative Writing student at HWS. My task: Compare two authors' styles — Analyze diction, syntax, and imagery across Hemingway and James passages.
Give me a table of the key similarities and differences, then one short paragraph on which difference matters most and why.
Keep the terminology, examples, and level of detail appropriate for an undergraduate English and Creative Writing course.
Build an argument map for a postcolonial research paper
Synthesize sources on postcolonial themes into an annotated argument map. The linked tutorial covers ResearchRabbit — seed it with one paper, then explore the citation network visually to surface related work and spot gaps, and the starter prompt below already frames it for English and Creative Writing.
What you'll take awayA way to map a literature landscape from a single starting paper instead of searching keyword by keyword — worth checking against your English and Creative Writing course material before you lean on it.
Starter prompt — paste into ChatGPT
I'm an English and Creative Writing student at HWS. My task: Build an argument map for a postcolonial research paper — Synthesize sources on postcolonial themes into an annotated argument map.
Group the sources below into themes, show where they agree and disagree, and name the gap that's left. Do not invent sources.
[PASTE SOURCES OR ABSTRACTS HERE]
Keep the terminology, examples, and level of detail appropriate for an undergraduate English and Creative Writing course.
Get targeted feedback on pacing, rhythm, and dialogue in a scene. The linked tutorial covers a 'teacher rubric' prompt that turns ChatGPT into a strict grader — paste your draft and the rubric, and it grades it and lists exactly what to fix before submission, and the starter prompt below already frames it for English and Creative Writing.
What you'll take awayA prompt that gives you rubric-based feedback on a draft while you still have time to act on it — worth checking against your English and Creative Writing course material before you lean on it.
Starter prompt — paste into ChatGPT
I'm an English and Creative Writing student at HWS. My task: Line-edit a workshop draft — Get targeted feedback on pacing, rhythm, and dialogue in a scene.
Act as a strict professor grading this. Score it against a rubric (argument, evidence, structure, style), give a letter grade, and list the 3 highest-impact fixes. Be blunt. Draft below:
[PASTE YOUR DRAFT HERE]
Keep the terminology, examples, and level of detail appropriate for an undergraduate English and Creative Writing course.
Compile and interpret recurring water imagery with chapter citations to verify. The linked tutorial covers ChatGPT's Study Mode (type /study), an interactive tutor that guides you with questions step by step instead of just handing over the answer, and the starter prompt below already frames it for English and Creative Writing.
What you'll take awayHow to switch ChatGPT into tutor mode so it drills you on terms and ideas rather than doing the thinking for you — worth checking against your English and Creative Writing course material before you lean on it.
Starter prompt — paste into ChatGPT
I'm an English and Creative Writing student at HWS. My task: Trace a motif across a novel — Compile and interpret recurring water imagery with chapter citations to verify.
Define each term in one clear sentence, then give a concrete example of each in context. Once I've read them, quiz me on them one at a time and tell me what I got wrong and why.
Keep the terminology, examples, and level of detail appropriate for an undergraduate English and Creative Writing course.
Develop connective threads, recurring characters, and thematic arc across pieces. The linked tutorial covers ChatGPT Projects as a workspace — turning a rough idea into a full plan with timelines, task assignments and a risk assessment that stays organised across sessions, and the starter prompt below already frames it for English and Creative Writing.
What you'll take awayHow to go from a vague goal to a structured plan with milestones and risks, kept in one persistent workspace — worth checking against your English and Creative Writing course material before you lean on it.
Starter prompt — paste into ChatGPT
I'm an English and Creative Writing student at HWS. My task: Plan a linked story collection — Develop connective threads, recurring characters, and thematic arc across pieces.
Break this into phases with milestones, working backwards from [DUE DATE]. Include the top 3 risks and how I'd mitigate each.
Keep the terminology, examples, and level of detail appropriate for an undergraduate English and Creative Writing course.
Combine multiple scholarly readings of a text into a coherent literature review. The linked tutorial covers ResearchRabbit — seed it with one paper, then explore the citation network visually to surface related work and spot gaps, and the starter prompt below already frames it for English and Creative Writing.
What you'll take awayA way to map a literature landscape from a single starting paper instead of searching keyword by keyword — worth checking against your English and Creative Writing course material before you lean on it.
Starter prompt — paste into ChatGPT
I'm an English and Creative Writing student at HWS. My task: Synthesize secondary criticism — Combine multiple scholarly readings of a text into a coherent literature review.
Group the sources below into themes, show where they agree and disagree, and name the gap that's left. Do not invent sources.
[PASTE SOURCES OR ABSTRACTS HERE]
Keep the terminology, examples, and level of detail appropriate for an undergraduate English and Creative Writing course.
Configure a GPT trained on your style guide and workshop rubric. The linked tutorial covers building a Custom GPT from scratch in ChatGPT and feeding it your own past writing so its output sounds like you rather than generic AI, and the starter prompt below already frames it for English and Creative Writing.
What you'll take awayHow to set up a reusable assistant with your instructions baked in, so you stop re-explaining context every session — bring the result to a English and Creative Writing professor or TA before it goes near graded work.
Starter prompt — paste into ChatGPT
I'm an English and Creative Writing student at HWS. My task: Build a custom writing-feedback GPT — Configure a GPT trained on your style guide and workshop rubric.
Draft the name, description, instructions and 4 conversation starters for this Custom GPT. The instructions should tell it to ask clarifying questions and to admit when it doesn't know.
Keep the terminology, examples, and level of detail appropriate for an undergraduate English and Creative Writing course.
Write Python to measure sentence length and lexical diversity across authors. The linked tutorial covers pasting a broken snippet into ChatGPT with the prompt 'scan the following code for potential problems' — it finds the bug (a divide-by-zero), explains why it happens and returns a fixed version, and the starter prompt below already frames it for English and Creative Writing.
What you'll take awayA debugging prompt formula, plus the habit of re-running the fixed code to confirm the error is actually gone — bring the result to a English and Creative Writing professor or TA before it goes near graded work.
Starter prompt — paste into ChatGPT
I'm an English and Creative Writing student at HWS. My task: Run computational stylometry analysis — Write Python to measure sentence length and lexical diversity across authors.
Tell me what's wrong, explain why it happens, then give the corrected version. Walk through the fixed code line by line with a concrete input.
[PASTE YOUR CODE AND THE ERROR HERE]
Keep the terminology, examples, and level of detail appropriate for an undergraduate English and Creative Writing course.
Plan topic modeling of a genre corpus with verification of outputs. The linked tutorial covers designing a study end-to-end in ChatGPT — research questions, hypotheses, survey items, sample size and sampling method, R code for the analysis, then implications and titles, and the starter prompt below already frames it for English and Creative Writing.
What you'll take awayA full research-design workflow, including how to answer a reviewer who says your sample is too small — bring the result to a English and Creative Writing professor or TA before it goes near graded work.
Starter prompt — paste into ChatGPT
I'm an English and Creative Writing student at HWS. My task: Design a corpus text-mining study — Plan topic modeling of a genre corpus with verification of outputs.
Propose a research question, hypotheses, method, sample and sampling strategy, and the analysis plan. Then critique the weaknesses of your own design.
Keep the terminology, examples, and level of detail appropriate for an undergraduate English and Creative Writing course.
Ingest a scholarly PDF set, then verify AI citations against originals. The linked tutorial covers Google NotebookLM — load PDFs, Drive docs, websites and YouTube videos as sources, then get summaries, ask questions answered only from those sources, and generate mind maps, and the starter prompt below already frames it for English and Creative Writing.
What you'll take awayHow to build a private research assistant grounded in your own documents rather than the open internet — bring the result to a English and Creative Writing professor or TA before it goes near graded work.
Starter prompt — paste into ChatGPT
I'm an English and Creative Writing student at HWS. My task: Debug NotebookLM source synthesis — Ingest a scholarly PDF set, then verify AI citations against originals.
Answer using only the sources I upload, and cite which source each claim comes from. If my sources don't answer the question, say so instead of guessing.
Keep the terminology, examples, and level of detail appropriate for an undergraduate English and Creative Writing course.
English and Creative Writing AI questions, answered
How can English and Creative Writing students use AI at HWS?
This page lists 20 practical AI use cases written specifically for English and Creative Writing students at Hobart and William Smith Colleges — 10 easy, 6 medium, 4 hard by difficulty. They range from everyday coursework help such as define literary terms and summarize a dense novel chapter through to project-scale work like debug notebooklm source synthesis. Each one comes with a starter prompt you can paste straight into ChatGPT, Claude, or Gemini.
Which AI use cases should a English and Creative Writing major try first?
Start with the 10 rated Easy — they need no setup and work on the first try. For English and Creative Writing that means define literary terms, summarize a dense novel chapter and brainstorm short story premises. Once those feel routine, move up to the Medium tier, which includes compare two authors' styles and build an argument map for a postcolonial research paper.
What do I need to start using AI as a English and Creative Writing student?
A free account with ChatGPT, Claude, or Gemini is the whole list — no coding, no paid subscription, and nothing to install. The 20 English and Creative Writing use cases here draw on 15 tutorial videos between them, and each card ships with a starter prompt already framed for English and Creative Writing coursework, so the first thing you do is paste, not write.
Is it OK to use AI for English and Creative Writing coursework at HWS?
Your English and Creative Writing professor decides, and the answer changes from course to course and even between assignments — so read the syllabus before any of this touches graded work. Everything on this page is a study aid: a use case like "Debug NotebookLM source synthesis" exists to get you through English and Creative Writing material faster, not to produce something you submit as your own. If the syllabus is silent, ask before you use it.