Why is my prompt's personalized writing style ignored in API responses compared to the Playground?

Below are some troubleshooting steps and tips that may help:

1. Verify the Full Request Payload

Even if the visible prompt appears identical, double-check that the API payload is formatted exactly as intended. Sometimes JSON encoding (e.g., handling of newlines or whitespace) can change how instructions are interpreted. Make sure the prompt string with your writing style examples is preserved verbatim.

2. Check for Additional Context or System Messages

In the Playground, context (like system messages or conversation history) might be implicitly added. Ensure that when calling the API you aren’t inadvertently adding or omitting extra system or assistant messages that might override your writing style instructions. For example, try:

• Moving your writing style guidance into a system message.
• Separating the prompt instructions from the user question.

3. Confirm API Parameters

Although you’ve verified model, temperature, and top_p settings, recheck any other parameters (such as max tokens or stop sequences) that might affect the output. Sometimes behavior may change if the API limits cause truncation or omit subtle parts of your style instructions.

4. Consider Prompt Engineering Adjustments

If the voice or writing style personalization is critical, you might benefit from:

• Using meta-prompts to guide the model. A meta-prompt can help in setting up the context precisely.
• Including more explicit examples or instructions in your prompt itself, or reordering the information such that important stylistic details are emphasized.

5. Look for Endpoint or Deployment Differences

Finally, if this issue appeared recently, it might relate to:

• A backend change in the API affecting how instructions are handled.
• Differences between the Playground’s internal processing versus the API’s external request handling.

In summary, carefully compare the full request (including formatting and any additional messages) between Playground and your API deployment. Adjust by isolating writing style instructions, possibly using system messages or meta-prompts, to ensure the model receives all necessary guidance.