How to write an obituary with AI
AI can turn a page of scattered memories into a graceful first draft in minutes — but it works best when you bring the human details only your family knows. Here's how to use it well.
1. Gather the facts before you open the tool
Full name, dates and places of birth and death, immediate family (predeceased and surviving), career highlights, faith or community, and the service details. Ten minutes of note-taking now saves an hour of editing later.
2. Collect two or three specific memories
AI is good at structure and tone; it's not good at inventing the story of the fishing trip your grandfather took every June. Jot down two or three moments that capture who they were — a saying they used, a habit, a kindness. These are what turn a template into a tribute.
3. Choose the tone first, then generate
Traditional, celebration of life, faith-based, newspaper-style, warm and personal. Picking the tone before the AI writes anything keeps the draft consistent. In Obituary Suite you select this on the intake form; if you're using a general-purpose chatbot, say it out loud in the prompt.
4. Prompt the AI with memories, not adjectives
"He was kind and funny" produces a generic draft. "He kept butterscotch candies in his coat pocket for grandchildren" produces a line that reads like him. Feed the tool the concrete details from step 2 and let it do the shaping.
5. Read it aloud, then edit for truth
AI drafts sometimes soften edges that shouldn't be softened, or add flourishes that don't sound like your loved one. Read the draft out loud with a family member. Cut anything that doesn't sound like them. Add anything the AI missed.
6. Verify names, dates, and relationships
This is the one step no AI can do for you. Double-check the spelling of every name, the dates, and the list of surviving family. Ask another family member to review before you publish.
7. Export, share, and keep a copy
Download the final version as a PDF or DOCX so you have it for the newspaper, the funeral program, and the family archive. Save one copy somewhere safe — you'll want it again on anniversaries.