Get Start with AI Writer

What is AI Writer?

AI Writer is the writing space inside Paperguide. You start from a research question or an existing draft, and it writes academic content for you with citations pulled from Paperguide's 200M+ papers and your reference manager. Then you refine it right there in the editor. Every claim it writes links back to a source you can check, so the draft always stays traceable to the research it came from.

Get started: create your first document

Start by opening a new document in Paperguide, then choose how much help you want from AI Writer. Your setup choices shape how AI tools write, cite, and continue your draft.

Open the editor: Click "+ New Document" to open the document setup flow. From there, choose one of these paths:

• Create new document: start fresh and pick how AI Writer helps you (next section).

• Import Word document: bring in an existing .docx to revise, expand, or cite. There's no setup. It just opens in the editor so you can start writing.
  If you want better AI suggestions later, open Document Settings and add a document description and citation sources (more on those below).

1. Choose how to start

After you choose Create new document, pick one of three paths:

Setup helps even for Start from Scratch: it gives AI Chat, Smart Continue, and AI Edit the topic and sources they need to write citation-backed content while you work.

2. Describe your document

Add your research topic, question, or writing goal. Include any instructions that should guide the draft, such as style, tone, structure, target publication type, or source requirements like year range and journal quality.

You can also attach rough notes or an early draft as context. Better document instructions usually lead to better writing suggestions, stronger source selection, and more relevant citations.

The more specific your prompt, the better the draft and the reference selection. This step applies to Generate Document, Generate Outline, and Start from Scratch.

3. Choose citation sources

Select where AI Writer is allowed to pull citations from:

• Public research data: Paperguide's 200M+ indexed papers. You can filter by journal quality, SJR, SNIP, and publication year.

• Your reference manager: papers from your Paperguide library.

AI Writer cites only from the sources you select here, plus any papers already cited in the document. This step applies to all three start paths.

4. Set document options

Configure the options that control how AI Writer formats the document.

• Citation style: the format for in-text citations and the reference list (1,000+ styles). Applies to all paths.

• Language: the language the document is written in. Applies to all paths.

• Number of references: the most references AI Writer can cite in the draft. (For Generate Document only.)

• Word count: a target length for the draft. AI Writer aims for the nearest range, not an exact number, and focuses on writing well for your topic within that range. (For Generate Document only.)

Once setup is complete, your document is created and opens in the editor. From here you continue with the AI features below.

What AI Writer does

AI Writer combines drafting, editing, citation support, and structured writing tools in one workspace. Choose your starting point first, then use AI features as the draft develops.

Generate Document

Generate Document creates a complete first draft from your prompt, instructions, and selected citation sources. Use it when you want AI Writer to build the structure and write the initial content for you.

If you prefer more control over structure, generate an outline first and draft each section at your own pace. If you already know the structure, start from scratch and use AI only when you need support.

Writing with AI

Use AI tools directly in the editor as your draft evolves.

• AI Chat — ask for help with writing, paper analysis, idea development, source-backed drafting, and research questions.

• Smart Continue — continue writing from where you stopped while following the document's structure, tone, and argument.

• AI Edit — rewrite, refine, shorten, expand, or improve selected text without leaving the draft.

These tools work best when your document topic and citation sources are set correctly.

References and citations

AI Writer keeps citations close to the writing process. Add sources from your reference manager or search Paperguide's public research database, then use those sources while drafting and revising.

This setup helps AI Writer generate citation-backed text and keeps your draft connected to supporting evidence. You can also improve imported Word documents by updating the document description and citation sources in Document Settings.

Math formulas and components

Add technical content directly in the editor with inline equations and math blocks. Write expressions in KaTeX yourself or describe the equation in plain language and let AI Writer generate it.

AI Writer also supports other document components such as headings, tables, code blocks, and images. Use these components when your document needs more structure than plain paragraphs.