Choosing What Matters: What Fiction Taught Me About My Job

Reading has always been important to me. I’m in public relations after all, not cardiology. But one of the gifts of our job – always staying on top of the news cycle – is also a curse. We take in a lot of information. When we get home and decompress, it’s easy to surrender to the scroll, or turn on the comfort show. For years, I found I wasn’t gravitating to books as much as I had in the past. Reading felt like a burden because I didn’t consider it an off switch.

Over the past two years, I’ve rediscovered my love of reading. The moment I realized it was probably halfway through John le Carré’s Karla trilogy late last year. I quickly inhaled Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy and dove into The Honourable Schoolboy (which will be a forever favorite of mine). I had no desire for other forms of entertainment, save for playoff football. By the time I finished the third installment, Smiley’s People, my mind was completely operating in that liminal space where only great books can take you – a world of your own and the characters.

The Timing Wasn’t an Accident

I don’t think it’s a coincidence that my rediscovery of reading happened alongside AI’s growing role in my work. Here at Prosek, I’m fortunate to work with some of the most innovative technology companies and investors in the world. AI has come to dominate my days, both in telling client AI stories, and in our use of these tools at Prosek. I love the feeling of peeking behind the curtain at what’s next with a client. I get excited experimenting with our own AI tools. But the more time I spent prompting AI tools to sound human, the more I gravitated toward reading fiction.

AI is excellent at generating sentences but mediocre at telling stories. Just open LinkedIn and you’ll quickly observe the sea of AI sameness regurgitated by thought “leaders.” AI writing is void of identity and tone. It so lacks the human spirit that’s best boiled down to one word: authenticity. When you’re reading a compelling book, the language is a vehicle for story – it propels you forward. AI writing and content typically feels like a vehicle for occupying real estate and creating searchability. We can do better.

There’s an ongoing conversation about whether AI has ushered in an era where taste is king. While this dialogue has welcomed quite a bit of snobbery in the opinion pages, I’m increasingly convinced of the underlying premise.  Our North Star as communicators should be authenticity, and our goal should be to help clients build brand equity through authentic storytelling. AI is a tool to help us achieve that goal, but our experiences and instincts are the things steering it.

Lessons from the Page and the Prompt

This past year of upping my time spent both reading and using AI has taught me a few things about improving my craft.

The first is to find your genre. I’m a naturally curious person, and after college, I thought I had to read nonfiction. After all, there’s so much I don’t know. That mindset led to long stretches of slow, disinterested reading. I still read nonfiction, but I’ve found my niche in spy fiction, and whenever I hit a reading lull, I have that comfort food to return to. The same is true in my career. I’ve been fortunate to find clients and subject matter that genuinely interest me, which keeps me engaged and wanting more. But lately, AI is my go-to. There are lessons to be learned from every client, but seek out the ones that hold your attention – it’s one of the great advantages of working as a consultant.

The second lesson: know when to step away. In reading, as in writing, it’s easy to fall into a rut. In the past, if I wasn’t vibing with a book, weeks could go by before I picked it up again. I’d force it rather than admit it wasn’t working. Time is finite, and the library is endless. Now, if a book isn’t clicking, I put it down and find one that is. Writing has reinforced the same instinct: sometimes stepping away is what gets you the answer. The sentence that won’t come at 4pm will come at 8am. This is where AI can be a genuinely useful sounding board, not as a writer, but to keep momentum when I step back from the work. Whether I’m drafting a press release, researching a pitch, or shaping a piece of thought leadership, I use it to pressure test and get unstuck, while my instincts stay in the driver’s seat. I think of AI as an editor, not a writer. It has sped up how I work without ever doing the work for me. And if the idea still isn’t coming, I’m not afraid to step away entirely (and potentially indulge in a spy novel).

Finally, enrich your experience. We live in the Golden Age of networks and information, and I’ve gained so much as a reader by exploring the worlds of my books outside their pages — keeping up with what family and friends are reading on Goodreads, or losing hours to Wiki-wormholes about the Cold War sparked by a passing aside in a novel. I lean into those grandpa instincts proudly, and I apply the same curiosity to client work. We’re lucky to work in a field that rewards learning, and AI has only made that easier. Getting up to speed on a client’s industry? Build custom flashcards. Rehearsing for a pitch? Ask AI to create questions from your client’s point of view. Embrace the deep dive, on your own terms.

As communicators, we’re in the business of taste and authenticity in brand storytelling. Rediscovering my love of fiction has crystallized just how essential that work has become. While AI can’t replace taste or authenticity, it can fuel it—and help you build ideas and work that matters.

It comes down to a line from my favorite book of the year, Larry McMurtry’s Lonesome Dove:

“The hardest thing on Earth is choosing what matters.”