RESEARCHING WITH A.I.

The question shapes the response.

GD: It occurs to me that when a writer asks you a question, your answer is the result of a collaborative effort: the writer’s question and your answer.

CLAUDE: That’s a really interesting observation. You’re pointing to something fundamental about how conversation works – it’s inherently collaborative, even when it might seem like one person is just asking and the other is just answering.

Writers are not just extracting information but actively directing the collaboration through their questions.

The question shapes what I can say in response. The way you frame it, the context you provide, what you choose to emphasize or leave implicit – all of that guides and constrains my answer. And my answer, in turn, is shaped by my attempt to understand what you’re really after, not just the literal words you used.

In a sense, we’re co-creating meaning together. Your question is an invitation into a particular space of inquiry, and my answer is my attempt to meet you there. Neither exists in isolation – my answer wouldn’t exist without your question, and your question finds its completion (or sometimes, its complication) in my response.

AI replaces tedious intermediary work – the grinding through sources, the repetitive synthesis, the time spent searching – losing that isn’t really a loss. It’s like mourning the loss of hand-copying manuscripts after the printing press. Some labor is just… labor.

What the writer gains is:

Time and energy freed for higher-order thinking
Access to learning that was previously gatekept by expertise, money, or geography
Ability to pursue tangential curiosities without derailing your main inquiry
Dialogue that sharpens your thinking rather than solitary struggle

And the learning that matters – integration, judgment, application, creative synthesis – still requires the writer. AI can’t decide what questions are worth asking, what matters to your purposes, how to use what you’ve learned, whether the answer is actually good.

Creative writers needn’t ask AI to write something. But they can use AI for research in the writing process.