Home · Email & writing · Write an apology that owns it without grovelling or excuses

Just ask 1 minUnder a minute

Write an apology that owns it without grovelling or excuses

You got it wrong and your draft either excuses you or self-flagellates. Get a clean apology with a repair offer.

Updated 17 Oct 2026

The prompt · ChatGPT

Write an apology that owns it.

What I did: [facts]
Impact on them: [as I understand it]
What I can do to repair: [concrete]
Channel: [text / email / in person opener]
I still disagree about part of it: [optional — keep out of apology if possible]

Ask me up to 3 short questions first if anything important is missing. Wait for my answers.

Then:
1. A sendable apology (own + impact + repair).
2. Excuse and 'but you…' lines you removed, with why.
3. A private vent version I will not send.
4. What to do if they don't reply.

Only use what I've told you, leave blanks for anything I haven't given, and don't invent facts, quotes or what the other person thinks. Give a sendable version and, when I've pasted a vent, a one-line note on what you left out and why. This is help with wording, not legal advice. UK English.

Stay in this ChatGPT chat. Do not turn on apps or connectors, and do not use memory from another chat.

A short example

Fill the blanks, then paste. facts: a short note you already have. as I understand it: a short note you already have. Leave the rest of the prompt as written.

Loading the outline…