Keep characters consistent in an AI story

Separate identity from scene state

A useful ledger distinguishes a fact that should stay fixed from a fact that can change through an event. A character's name belongs in the fixed section. Their location belongs in the scene-state section. Their trust in another character may change, but your draft should show the reason. Otherwise an apparent contradiction can hide inside a plausible sentence.

Name: Mara Vale
Fixed fact: cannot read the old harbor script
Current goal: recover her brother's missing navigation chart
Knows: the chart was last seen in the ferry office
Does not know: Ivo moved it to the lighthouse
Current state: on the ferry; left ankle injured
Allowed change: she can learn a translation from another person
Next scene: reach the ferry office without discovering Ivo's secret yet

This fictional ledger is an original teaching example. It is not output from a measured model test. Paste your own compact version into the character or premise field, keeping the scene request separate from the facts you need preserved.

A contradiction and a local repair

Deliberately inconsistent example: “Mara read the ancient sign and sprinted toward the lighthouse, certain that Ivo had hidden the chart there.” This sentence breaks the ledger in several different ways. She suddenly reads an unfamiliar script, runs without acknowledging her ankle, and knows a secret nobody has told her. Changing only her name would not repair the scene.

Original revision: “Mara steadied herself against the ferry rail. The old letters above the office door meant nothing to her. She asked the ticket clerk to read them aloud, then limped inside to ask about the missing chart.” The revision gives the translation a source, preserves the injury, and keeps her goal focused on the office. It still leaves the writer free to decide what the clerk says next.

Repair instruction: “Revise only the passage where Mara reads the sign. Preserve her inability to read harbor script and her injured ankle. She may ask someone for a translation. Do not reveal the lighthouse location or change the surrounding plot.” This request identifies the conflict and the permitted solution without asking the generator to rebuild the whole story.

Check the next scene before expanding

• Identity: do names, relationships, and established abilities match?
• State: did movement, injury, or possession change through an event the reader can see?
• Knowledge: can you point to where the character learned each important fact?
• Motivation: does the action serve the goal, or does the scene explain the change?

If a change is intentional, update the ledger after the scene. Keep an event note such as “the clerk translated the sign” instead of silently rewriting the original facts. A ledger that records every decorative detail becomes hard to check; retain the facts that could alter the next decision.

Questions about consistent AI stories

Should I paste the whole previous story?

For a short continuation, start with the relevant passage and a compact ledger. If the next scene depends on an earlier event, include that event explicitly. A short summary can omit a crucial fact, so review it rather than assuming it is complete.

Can a character change their mind?

Yes. Consistency does not mean a character never changes. Show the new evidence, pressure, or choice that explains the change, and carry that consequence into the following scene.

Will this remove every contradiction?

No. Treat the ledger as a review aid. Read the result and repair conflicts before sharing it. The examples here illustrate editing decisions; they do not establish a success rate for any model.