When should you accept an AI suggestion, and when should you reject it?
September 9, 2026
Accept a suggestion when it clears three checks: it does what you asked, it sounds like you, and it survives the sentences around it. Reject it the moment it changes something you didn't ask about or states something you can't verify. Ask again, instead of either, when the idea is right but the execution isn't.
That's the actual rule, and it holds regardless of the decision you make: every generation in HandWrought is a flat one credit (or one of your five free generations), charged the moment it's created, not when you accept it. Accepting, rejecting, and asking again all cost the same nothing-extra, so there's no version of this where rubber-stamping saves you anything. "Read it carefully" isn't a decision framework on its own, so here's the more specific version: what actually makes a suggestion worth keeping, what's worth rejecting outright, and what's worth asking again for instead.
Table of Contents
- What makes a suggestion worth accepting?
- When is a suggestion worth rejecting outright?
- What if the suggestion is right, but not right for you?
- A quick decision framework
- FAQ
- The short version
What makes a suggestion worth accepting?
Three checks, in order, and a suggestion has to clear all three:
- Does it do what you actually asked?
- Does it sound like you?
- Does it survive reading the sentence before and after it?
A suggestion can pass the first check and fail the second: technically correct, wrong voice. It can pass the first two and fail the third: a good sentence that doesn't fit where it landed.
When is a suggestion worth rejecting outright?
Reject, don't edit-then-accept, when the suggestion changed something you didn't ask about: scope creep is the most common failure mode, and it's worth treating as a hard no rather than a partial yes. Same for anything that introduces a claim or detail you didn't write and can't verify on the spot; an AI suggestion confidently adding a fact is exactly the kind of thing the review step exists to catch.
What if the suggestion is right, but not right for you?
This is the "ask again" case, and it's different from reject. The idea in the suggestion is sound, the direction is right, but the execution isn't: too formal, too long, missing the specific angle you actually meant. Rejecting and starting over from nothing wastes the part that was already working. Asking again, pointed at what specifically felt off, is usually faster than describing the whole request from scratch a second time.
A quick decision framework
| Signal | What it means | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| Does what you asked, sounds like you | Passed all three checks | Accept |
| Right idea, wrong execution | Direction's correct, tone/length/angle is off | Ask again, pointed at the specific miss |
| Changed something you didn't ask about | Scope crept beyond the request | Reject |
| Adds a fact or claim you can't verify | Confidently wrong is still wrong | Reject |
| Technically correct, wrong voice | Passes the first check, fails the second | Reject or ask again, depending on how close it is |
Quick recap, if you just want the short version:
- All three checks pass → accept.
- Right idea, wrong execution → ask again, and say specifically what missed.
- Anything else (scope crept, or you can't verify a claim it added) → reject.
FAQ
Does rejecting a suggestion refund the credit?
No. Credits (and free generations) are spent when the suggestion is generated, not when you accept it, so a rejected suggestion still counts. This is worth knowing going in: rejecting is free to your document, not free to your balance. Asking again generates a new suggestion and is a separate charge.
One misconception worth naming directly: that isn't a wasted credit. Rejecting is the review step doing exactly what it's for. The real cost was never rejecting a suggestion: it's not reviewing at all, and letting something wrong through because looking felt like the more expensive option.
Can you edit a suggestion before accepting it?
The suggestion shows up as a proposed edit you can accept, reject, or ask again on. It's not a text field you type into directly before deciding. If it's close but not quite right, asking again with what specifically to change is the way to get there, not manual editing mid-review.
Does asking again cost the same as the first request?
Yes, every generation is flat, one credit (or one free generation), regardless of length or whether it's a first attempt or a fifth. There's no discount for refining an existing suggestion versus starting a new one.
Is there a limit to how many times you can ask again on the same spot?
No hard limit: it's gated by your credits or free generations, not by a retry cap. Whether it's worth the credits to keep refining one suggestion versus starting fresh is a judgment call, not a rule the product enforces.
The short version
Accept when it passes all three checks. Ask again when the idea's right but the execution isn't. Reject when it drifted past what you asked or added something you can't stand behind. None of this needs to be automatic. It's supposed to take a second of actual attention, and that second is the whole point of reviewing in the first place.