Dyslexia and AI: How I use AI to help me write better articles as a blogger with Dyslexia
I am proud to use AI to assist me in the writing process. There, I said it.
Many writers attack Artificial Intelligence, or AI, as 'cheating' or destructive. In some circles and ways, it is destructive, damaging, and degrading.
However, I have found that AI is helping me write better articles as a Dyslexic. However, before we head down that road talking about my story with dyslexia, what is dyslexia and some of the benefits of AI about neurodiversity.
What is Dyslexia?
Dyslexia is not a disability; it is a neurodiversity that gives people with dyslexia a different range of abilities.
Like Autism, it is not a superpower; it is just a different neurological set, which means you approach life and tasks in different ways.
Primarily it is known for its language processing elements around spelling, reading and writing, which is where the commonly held belief that it's just a reading and writing issue comes from.
Dyslexia is not an intelligence issue, far from it, many dyslexic people are highly intelligent and can think from different perspectives.
According to Michigan University, Dyslexics have strengths in the following areas: excellent puzzle problem-solving skills, strong memory for stories, brilliant spatial reasoning, great conversations, tremendous empathizers, abstract thinkers, think outside of the box and critical thinkers.
Like all neurodiversities, it brings both positives and negatives that help to add to the rich tapestry of life.
Subscribe to my blog
My Story
As a Dyslexic, I have always fought not to have Dyslexia define who I am, and who I want to become. Not to submit to helplessness around words, writing and reading.
With this attitude and a lot of help, from people around me, I was able to get an undergraduate degree and a master's degree, work in politics and set up my own business. This would not have been possible without the following: a lot of help from teachers and family, dedication and hard work and a changing attitude in the late 1990s that stopped writing people with dyslexia off.
During my University years, writing essays took time, exams were a nightmare, and honestly, I really struggled to pass the exam part of university as the compression of time did not suit my writing style and speed.
Into the work place and on the whole, although my grammatical correctness and spelling was poor and I was always needed to double and triple check emails, I was always able to work in office based roles.
However, writing was always a frustrating process that still at times haunts me today. Having all this knowledge in your head you are trying to get across, yet you cannot get the words out is a frustrating and at times disheartening experience.
Genuinely, I do wonder what life for me would have looked like if I had not had the support I did to help me build coping mechanisms and habits that allowed me to transcend this different-ability.
Neurodiversity and AI
Artificial Intelligence gets a lot of stick around its potential downsides in both popular media and specialised media. However, my personal take is that AI is a tool. Humans can use tools to make the world better and make the world worse.
For me, I see AI becoming an enabler for millions of people around the world that will help them to live their life on a level playing field.
AI's broader impact on society is going to lead to the destruction of some jobs, and the creation of new jobs and will open up a whole host of opportunities.
How do I use AI to write?
Finally, I have gotten around to talking about the specifics of how I use AI to improve my writing.
My writing tool stack includes three tools: Google Docs, Grammarly and Chat GPT.
The process of how I write is broken down into the following stages:
First draft write - Idea dump and long-form writing Second draft - Tighten the work Third Draft - Read aloud Chat GPT - Spelling and Grammar Review Chat GPT - Critical Review - ask for specific changes Chat GPT - Formatting Review Last Review Publish
First Draft
My process is initially to write the very first and second drafts of the article within Grammerly. Undertaking the features of Grammarly to fix the obvious spelling and grammar mistakes that plague my typing and writing.
The Grammarly tool is wonderful as it helps to free me of the burden to be reading and checking each sentence as I write. This allows me to get the words out of my head and onto the page.
With my web/network thinking can be very difficult to shape the idea in my head into words that are understandable, legible and follow and structure that readers will enjoy.
Second Draft
During this stage I am still writing the document within Grammerly and am reading and reviewing as go through the document, making changes to spelling and grammar as I go.
However, I am not using the Clarity, Engagement and Delivery tabs of Grammerly as this is taking me too far away from the writing and ideas being my own.
Third Draft
This is the last draft done using Grammarly exclusively and is focused on me reading the article aloud to see if it makes sense when said out loud.
For me this is a sense check as hearing the words come out of my mouth helps me understand if my writing makes sense or is total nonsense. Which can often happen.
Chat GPT - Spelling and Grammar review
This stage I have now got a sophisticated AI involved. Chat GPT could write an article from a series of bullet points that I wrote out. However, for me writing is about sharpening your thinking around a subject as much as informing the reader.
During phase I am asking CHAT GPT To only look at spelling, punctuations and grammer mistakes and to highlight sentences that are unfinished.
This phase is broken down into asking CHAT GPT to list all the spelling, punctuation and grammar mistakes.
I will then read through each one and ask once completed for CHAT to make the changes to the text, but highlighting again only the changes above and explaining which ones to exclude.
Once those changes have been made I will read through the article again to ensure chat GPT has not added in stuff it should not. Then we move onto the next section.
Chat GPT - Critical Review
At this stage, I ask Chat GPT to undertake a critical review of the article and its messaging.
This stage is the stage where I will have the most amount of back and forth looking at the suggestions and making decisions based on each recommendation.
At this stage, a lot of these suggestions are ignored as they go against what I want to say.
However, it is a great stage as I am nearing completion and the article is coming to fruition.
Once I have reviewed all the changes, I will ask Chat GPT to make the changes in the article.
Chat GPT - Formatting Review
This is the last cosmetic review of the article that I will undertake and it is essentially around headings, formatting etc. I will read each suggestion and make them myself. Many of these changes are simple as capitalisation mistakes.
Once this stage has been completed, I will move to publishing.
Publishing
This will include one last read-through through and then I will publish it to my blogging platform.
Subscribe to my blog
Risks of this process?
Using any tool is without problems or issues. It is the same with AI. The best way to approach working with AI is to treat it like a co-worker. Be friendly ,but ensure they know what they are talking about.
You will need to be critical of what the AI is saying. You do need to read what it is saying and reject some of its recommendations to ensure that you are not acting slavishly towards the AI.
Again, remember AI is a co-worker, not a boss.
Final Thoughts
My own journey with dyslexia has been a near-lifelong struggle that has shaped my work ethic and my belief that I can solve problems if I tackle them.
Dyslexia and AI are a marriage made in productivity heaven. AI can make up for the weaknesses that Dyslexics struggle with, and enhance their unique way of looking at problems. For me it is enhancing my writing and helping the world to understand my thoughts like never before.
AI is going to offer more broadly to people who are neurodiverse an opportunity to level the playing field, and in some cases, go far above.
Thank you for reading. I would love to hear from you if you have any other suggestions that I could include in a future article.
If you found this article interesting, you might find the following books interesting reads that will help you learn more about the subject:
The Gift of Dyslexia by Ronald Davis This is Dyslexia by Kate Griggs At Home With Dyslexia by Sascha Roos
Thank you for taking the time to read this article. We appreciate it.
We have also written a number of books, which you can view here.
We have also created a number of digital resources, which you can view here.
You can also connect with me on: