---
title: "Writing is thinking?"
subtitle: "And what is the impact of LLMs on our ability to translate thoughts in words."
author: "Lorenzo Ancona"
date: 2026-02-10
language: en
words: 1208
canonical: https://artifactstech.substack.com/p/writing-is-thinking
license: CC BY 4.0
cite_as: "Writing is thinking? by Lorenzo Ancona, Artifacts, 2026-02-10. https://artifactstech.substack.com/p/writing-is-thinking (CC BY 4.0)"
---
# Writing is thinking?

Don’t look away, I’m quite sure this has happened to you as well:

[![](https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!xA0m!,w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fd4fc25d9-176d-4318-8662-3eead6e117c7_1200x628.png)](https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!xA0m!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fd4fc25d9-176d-4318-8662-3eead6e117c7_1200x628.png)

I admit too that I rarely draft work emails 100% by myself.

But let’s look at the broader picture: **we live in an era where producing a significant amount of language with meaning is more efficient and less time-consuming than ever.** You can literally get 10 pages of anything in a few minutes by asking any LLM to do so.

Yet, **this doesn’t mean we’re producing more knowledge or that the amount of meaning keeps pace with the length of the documents spit out by machines.**

Rather, **LLMs are great at producing stuff that makes sense, sounds good, and neatly organises notions**, being able to package information either in a few bullet points or uselessly long documents.

Not surprisingly, though, **the level of these texts can’t help but be average**, as LLMs are, technically but also philosophically, *‘[technologies of average](https://www.newyorker.com/culture/infinite-scroll/ai-is-homogenizing-our-thoughts) both in the quality of the writing and in the calibre of the ideas.’*

(And usually also badly written imho)

Not only creating, but also [consuming language](https://www.newyorker.com/culture/open-questions/whats-happening-to-reading) has been drastically simplified (I swear I wrote this sentence 😅): **we may be often asking an AI to help us read and summarise a document that someone else asked AI to make longer.**

Just look at newspapers apps or any reading app or even the iPhone, that now has introduced AIs to quickly give the 3 key points of anything.

I like to call this **the accordion of AI language: we keep making texts longer or shorter depending on our needs** only cause doing it is very, very easy.

[![](https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!uxHU!,w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F157cbf39-ed1c-4b5d-999a-5319b785f96d_1024x1024.png)](https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!uxHU!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F157cbf39-ed1c-4b5d-999a-5319b785f96d_1024x1024.png)

we’re doing this to language

And so **producing simple, beautiful BULLSHIT is now extremely time-efficient, cheap and accessible** 🎉 Just peek at your LinkedIn feed if you need validation.

But that’s not as much of a problem.

What’s worse and deeply concerning is that **producing language has become a commodity.**

Large Language Models have made it so **easy to turn a few words of a prompt into newly created language.**

Yet, this makes us skip the complex, fascinating process through which we translate our thoughts into language, and thus words. **LLMs are our mediums.**

**And this means that language is less of a tool** - even a technology or an artefact - **through which we think and instead just a code enabling communication.**

All in all, **we can now think less to produce language.**

This comes with a few **implications**:

We’re no longer writing but rather **‘meta-writing’:** we more and more dictate to a machine *what* we need to write and maybe even *how* and in what style, **and then we delegate the act of writing or typing words to machines.**

**And so we stare at screens** while language is being produced by LLMs, skipping the process of thinking through what we aim to communicate.

This way, **writing is no longer a flow of 1st draft out, correcting it, changing, refining, but a back-and-forth exchange with a machine.** [As argued in Nature](https://www.nature.com/articles/s44222-025-00323-4), though, *‘**Writing compels us to think** — not in the chaotic, non-linear way our minds typically wander, but **in a structured, intentional manner.’***

Yet, **the ability to iterate over and over on a text quickly**, asking an AI to ‘make it more interesting’ or ‘make it sound more natural’ or whatever non-sensical prompts, **may decrease the time we spend on and with the language that should express our thoughts.**

So we may also understand less about what we’re ‘writing’ about but also **devote less care to what we’d like to emphasize and what requires less attention**, which is one of the most critical skills of thinking and writing.

At its extreme, **I sometimes consider writing the process by which we realise that we don’t understand what we’re talking about** - and sometimes this is so important.

This goes hand in hand with two other critical skills of writing and thinking: **the ability to break down complex issues into simple words as well as the ability to write concisely**, while not compromising on the meaning of what we say.

And still on the drafting and redrafting part, **we, as writers, are less and less the first careful readers of what we produce**, as we assume that LLMs will never have typos (rightly so, actually).

Finally, allow me to be a bit romantic, but **writing** - like reading - **is [a great process of self-discovery.](https://fs.blog/writing-to-think/)** [](https://fs.blog/writing-to-think/)

As I’m writing this Artifacts, I love seeing the mental connections I make, how I bridge different things I read in the past, what a friend maybe told me - **I thoroughly enjoy the time and feeling of the whole process.**

**And I do feel [a sense of care](https://www.theatlantic.com/family/2026/02/ai-etiquette-friends/685858/)**, of being clear and readable, so that your reading is enjoyable and an interesting time. *And I’m sure it’s the same for you, when you write.*

This being said, I’m not saying the final outcome of what I will produce would necessarily be better than an LLM *(well, I hope)*, but **the process itself of writing is probably also part of why you’re reading this piece.**

[![](https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!4QoH!,w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fe449b185-9b95-4eb2-8823-6076bd5e8acf_2950x2446.png)](https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!4QoH!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fe449b185-9b95-4eb2-8823-6076bd5e8acf_2950x2446.png)

This is everything that happens before me writing an Artifacts

Indeed, I argue that we read what others write cause we’re interested not just in the content of their writing - that could be produced by LLMs - or the information conveyed, **but also in why they wrote that something, what moved them, and, simply, in getting to know what they think.**

And so that a text - and thus the language of a thinking process - can resonate and establish a new human connection.

[Leave a comment](https://artifactstech.substack.com/p/writing-is-thinking/comments)

> ### **Save for Later**

[If a Ferrari gets designed](https://www.theverge.com/transportation/875799/ferrari-luce-jony-ive-interior-design-photos) by the person who created the iPhone.

But also [a collection of bad design tricks](https://pudding.cool/2023/05/dark-patterns/) that gets us trapped into services, so cool! And, speaking of design, [what the EU Commission is looking into TikTok for](https://www.ft.com/content/3d19372c-4922-4cdd-896c-8e3a81ecd3ba), trying to make it better

The truth on the [social media powered by AI agents.](https://www.nytimes.com/2026/02/02/technology/moltbook-ai-social-media.html) And where the truth really is between [Wikipedia and its alternatives.](https://www.lemonde.fr/idees/article/2026/01/25/entre-grokipedia-et-wikipedia-il-s-agit-de-determiner-quelles-conceptions-du-savoir-nous-souhaitons-defendre_6664020_3232.html)

AI Safety and where we are at, [with the most comprehensive report.](https://internationalaisafetyreport.org/publication/international-ai-safety-report-2026) While someone bought [AI.com for a lot of money.](https://www.ft.com/content/83488628-8dfd-4060-a7b0-71b1bb012785)

Anthropic [keeps doing super cool.](https://www.ft.com/content/a75555a6-24c3-4468-aba9-7fe12b5def31) Just look at this spot on adv on AI to mock OpenAI:

[\[Embedded media — view original\]](https://www.youtube-nocookie.com/embed/kQRu7DdTTVA?rel=0&autoplay=0&showinfo=0&enablejsapi=0)

> ### **The Bookshelf**

[![](https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!PXcL!,w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F8f516323-22b3-4f13-83d3-7103ecc32883_1080x1080.png)](https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!PXcL!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F8f516323-22b3-4f13-83d3-7103ecc32883_1080x1080.png)

If you’re into why **good writing and good stories** are not just nice to read but actually part of why and how we understand the world, “***The Science of Storytelling”*** is the book to read. It has a scientific part too but it also provides a few ideas on how good writing is crafted.

📚 **All the books** I’ve read and recommended in Artifacts are [here.](https://airtable.com/appK7fMPX1DMkQYzL/shrRh8TgI7GtmgBxM)

> ### **Nerding**

[![](https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!kg73!,w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F39087e0e-345a-4ba2-84d2-cca1632d5a6c_1080x1080.png)](https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!kg73!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F39087e0e-345a-4ba2-84d2-cca1632d5a6c_1080x1080.png)

If you wish to visualise Wikipedia pages on a board like a mental map, then [Wikiboard](https://www.wikiboard.org/) is the tool you may be looking for. I guess it can be so helpful while running a research - **and also to keep supporting Wikipedia, one of the best places of the Internet!**

> ### **☕?**

If you want to know more about Artifacts, where it all started, or just want to connect...

[Let's grab a virtual coffee ☕](https://calendar.google.com/calendar/u/0/appointments/schedules/AcZssZ2ibxlzyU7rgnuoTgqXb_DFc19dfHmJeu1OAu17IY0_oHrtcJtvtctAJnMabirgZNx5Z5NAPGs0)