Discover how to transform vague AI-generated story plots into compelling narratives by applying specificity in your prompts. Learn why adding detailed character information and settings is the key prompt engineering technique for better creative content.
Table of Contents
Question
You’ve been tasked with designing prompts for an AI model to generate story plots. However, the generated prompts are overly generic and lack detail. What should you do to correct this?
A. Increase the size of the model to generate more detailed plots.
B. Increase the randomness parameter to get more variety in plots.
C. Modify the prompt to be more specific, supplying information about characters and settings.
D. Shorten the size of the prompt to be more concise.
Answer
C. Modify the prompt to be more specific, supplying information about characters and settings.
Explanation
Why Specificity Is Critical in Prompt Engineering
Specificity is the cornerstone of effective prompt engineering. When AI models generate generic story plots, the root cause is almost always a lack of detail in the original prompt. Vague prompts lead to vague outputs, while detailed, specific prompts guide the AI toward generating rich, nuanced content.
Why the other options don’t work
Option A (Increasing model size): While larger models may have more parameters, they still require clear direction. Even the most advanced AI systems need specific prompts to generate targeted outputs.
Option B (Increasing randomness): Higher randomness might create more varied outputs but won’t necessarily improve detail or relevance. It could actually make results less coherent.
Option D (Shortening the prompt): Brevity often works against specificity. Shorter prompts typically provide less context and fewer details for the AI to work with.
Effective Techniques for Specific Story Prompts
To create story plots with depth and detail, implement these prompt engineering strategies:
- Add character details: Include information about personalities, backgrounds, motivations, and relationships. For example, instead of “Create a story about a detective,” try “Create a story about a jaded detective with a photographic memory who’s struggling with the anniversary of his partner’s death while investigating a case that mirrors the one that killed her.”
- Provide setting context: Specify time period, location, atmosphere, and cultural elements. This grounds the story in a concrete world and enables the AI to generate consistent details.
- Use contextual expansion: Employ the 5 “Ws and How” method (Who, What, Where, When, Why, and How) to enrich your prompt with crucial narrative elements.
- Include formatting guidance: Specify the structure and length you want for the story plot (e.g., “Provide a 3-paragraph story outline with a clear beginning, middle, and end”).
Practical Implementation Example
Compare these prompts:
Generic prompt: “Write a fantasy story.”
Improved specific prompt: “Write a 500-word fantasy story plot featuring a reluctant teenage sorceress hiding her powers in a medieval village threatened by drought. Include details about her conflicted relationship with her mentor, the village’s suspicion of magic, and three specific magical elements unique to this world. Structure the plot with an inciting incident, rising action, and a cliffhanger ending.”
The second prompt provides clear direction about characters, setting, relationships, world-building elements, and structure—all factors that help the AI generate a more detailed and engaging story plot.
By improving prompt specificity, you’re essentially providing a more detailed “blueprint” for the AI to follow, resulting in more nuanced, creative, and coherent story generation.
Prompt Engineering skill assessment practice question and answer (Q&A) dump including multiple choice questions (MCQ) and objective type questions, with detail explanation and reference available free, helpful to pass the Prompt Engineering exam and earn Prompt Engineering certification.