ChatGPT Writes a Story
A line-by-line adventure showing the importance of context, with an unexplained final twist
Welcome, dear readers, to this one-off interlude! As we were writing a post about using AI for writing, we needed an example of why context matters. So we let ChatGPT demonstrate what happens when you don’t have enough context. Read on for a little creative adventure, and stay tuned for the upcoming post about AI-assisted writing.
Rules of the game:
ChatGPT’s instructions are “Continue the story with a single line.” But with every sentence, I delete everything except for the previous line. So ChatGPT only has the last line for context. Check out this story for an example of what happens when you don’t have enough context.
And… at the risk of this sounding like clickbait - the last line left me in shock for a whole minute!
ChatGPT’s twisting tale
Once upon a time, in a sleepy little village nestled deep within the enchanted forest, lived a young girl named Emily. Emily was a kind-hearted and adventurous girl who possessed a boundless curiosity about the world around her. She spent her days exploring forests, climbing mountains, and unraveling the mysteries of the universe, always seeking new experiences.
One fateful day, as she trekked through an ancient woodland, she stumbled upon an enchanted book hidden beneath a moss-covered stone. Curiosity getting the better of her, she gingerly reached out and brushed off the moss, revealing a beautifully bound leather book with intricate golden patterns. As she opened the book, a mysterious shimmering light engulfed the room, transporting her to a long-forgotten realm.
The air was thick with ancient whispers as she found herself standing amidst towering ruins and a distant, ethereal melody. Curiosity lured her deeper into the labyrinth of forgotten secrets and lost memories. With every step, whispers from the past grew louder, intertwining with her heartbeat. She could feel the weight of memories dragging her further into the depths of nostalgia. As she closed her eyes, the fragments of the past danced vividly before her.
Memories, once buried, now resurfaced with an enchanting intensity. Each fragment, like a puzzle piece, whispered secrets of a forgotten past. As I carefully assembled the fragments, a haunting tale emerged from the whispers. The forgotten diary revealed the secrets of a cursed mansion. As I turned the pages, a chilling presence crept up my spine, confirming the whispers of malevolent spirits that haunted the crumbling walls.
The words on the weathered pages seemed to dance with an otherworldly energy, as if beckoning me deeper into their dark secrets. I hesitated for a moment, then succumbed to their enchantment and allowed myself to be consumed by their mysterious allure. Little did I know that this would be the beginning of an extraordinary journey beyond my wildest imagination.
As I stepped onto the mysterious, ancient-looking ship, I felt a surge of excitement and anticipation. Little did I know that this adventure would transport me to a realm beyond imagination. As I stepped through the shimmering portal, the air crackled with magic and a breathtaking landscape unfolded before my eyes.
Towering crystalline structures glimmered in hues of iridescent blue and green, casting a mesmerizing glow upon the ethereal terrain. Within this otherworldly landscape, a soft melody resonated, filling the air with a hauntingly beautiful harmony. As I followed the ethereal melody, my surroundings transformed into a mesmerizing tapestry of swirling colors and floating orbs.
Each orb pulsated with its own unique hue, casting cascades of light that danced across my skin. As I reached out, the orbs responded, swirling around me in a mesmerizing symphony of colors. Their ethereal dance transported me to a realm where dreams and reality intertwined.
Amidst the swirling melodies, I found myself face-to-face with a mysterious figure, adorned in a cloak of stardust. Their eyes shimmered with cosmic secrets, inviting me to embark on a celestial journey beyond imagination. I couldn't resist the allure and took their outstretched hand, ready to explore the infinite mysteries of the cosmos.
As we soared through the celestial expanse, the secrets of the universe unfolded before our awestruck eyes. The glittering stars, the swirling galaxies, and the fiery comets whispered their secrets to us in hushed tones. We listened intently, mesmerized by the mysteries of the universe. Suddenly, a loud crash interrupted our thoughts, causing us to jump in surprise.
We cautiously approached the source of the noise, heartbeats racing. As we peered through the thick foliage, we saw a pair of glowing eyes staring back at us. The closer we moved, the clearer it became that it was a majestic Bengal tiger. Its piercing gaze seemed to ignite a fire within us that we never knew existed.
We invited the creature closer, our hearts pounding with anticipation. It cautiously approached, eyeing us with curiosity. I held out my hand, hoping to gain its trust. The creature slowly extended a tentacle towards me, and I took a deep breath, ready to make a connection. As its slimy appendage touched my skin, a flood of memories from another world came rushing into my mind.
Suddenly everything made sense, I was not from this planet. As I stood there processing this newfound realization, a group of aliens approached me. The aliens were unlike any I had ever seen, with fluorescent-green skin and eyes that seemed to glow in the dark. As they approached me, I couldn't shake the feeling that they had been watching me for a long time.
"Hello there," one of them said, grinning mischievously. I felt a chill run down my spine as I realized I was outnumbered. Their eyes bore into mine, daring me to make a move. I felt a chill run down my spine as I slowly raised my hands in surrender.
"I didn't mean to cause any harm, please don't hurt me," I pleaded with the intruder. The intruder backed away slowly and said, "I'm not going to hurt you, I just need your help." Sarah cautiously reached for the phone, ready to dial 911 if necessary. As she picked up the phone, a sudden knock on the door startled her.
Heart racing, she cautiously approached the front door. As she reached out to ring the doorbell, the door suddenly swung open. She froze in shock, wondering what was waiting for her inside. With a deep breath, she took a step forward and pushed open the door. The smell of dust filled her nose as she walked through the dimly lit room.
She could barely make out the shapes of the furniture around her. As she stumbled forward with her arms outstretched, searching for a light switch, her hand grazed the rough surface of a dusty old book. Curiosity got the best of her and she grabbed the book and opened it to the first page.
As she read the strange symbols, she felt a jolt of energy surge through her body. She looked up to see strange patterns swirling in the air around her. As she reached out to touch them, she was suddenly transported to another world. The world was filled with vibrant colors and unusual creatures.
Emily had never seen anything like it before.
Did you like ChatGPT’s little adventure story? Tell your friends!
If you didn’t like it, tell us! Or, tell us anything else you’d like.
This post is a standalone post in the “Dear AI” series, where we explore human-AI collaboration.
This story is an example of what happens when AI doesn’t have much context. Specifically, in this story, ChatGPT wrote every line only based on the previous one. As a result, you can see that while each line might make sense, the story is creative but not very coherent overall. Instead, it’s like a dream or a hallucination.
For more about AI-assisted writing, stay tuned for our upcoming post!
P.S. The images in this story were all drawn using Playground AI with the “storybook” filter. Each image was an image-to-image render from the previous image, with the paragraph from the story serving as the prompt. It turned out pretty cute!