diff --git a/gpt_engineer/main.py b/gpt_engineer/main.py
index 123df6a51b..0897f6de33 100644
--- a/gpt_engineer/main.py
+++ b/gpt_engineer/main.py
@@ -20,6 +20,9 @@
 def load_env_if_needed():
     if os.getenv("OPENAI_API_KEY") is None:
         load_dotenv()
+    if os.getenv("OPENAI_API_KEY") is None:
+        # if there is no .env file, try to load from the current working directory
+        load_dotenv(dotenv_path=os.path.join(os.getcwd(), ".env"))
     openai.api_key = os.getenv("OPENAI_API_KEY")
 
 
@@ -50,6 +53,12 @@ def main(
         help="""Endpoint for your Azure OpenAI Service (https://xx.openai.azure.com).
             In that case, the given model is the deployment name chosen in the Azure AI Studio.""",
     ),
+    use_project_preprompts: bool = typer.Option(
+        False,
+        "--use-project-preprompts",
+        help="""Use the project's preprompts instead of the default ones.
+          Copies all original preprompts to the project's workspace if they don't exist there.""",
+    ),
     verbose: bool = typer.Option(False, "--verbose", "-v"),
 ):
     logging.basicConfig(level=logging.DEBUG if verbose else logging.INFO)
@@ -80,13 +89,24 @@ def main(
     project_metadata_path = input_path / ".gpteng"
     memory_path = project_metadata_path / "memory"
     archive_path = project_metadata_path / "archive"
+    preprompts_path = Path(__file__).parent / "preprompts"
+
+    if use_project_preprompts:
+        project_preprompts_path = input_path / "preprompts"
+        if not project_preprompts_path.exists():
+            project_preprompts_path.mkdir()
+
+        for file in preprompts_path.glob("*"):
+            if not (project_preprompts_path / file.name).exists():
+                (project_preprompts_path / file.name).write_text(file.read_text())
+        preprompts_path = project_preprompts_path
 
     dbs = DBs(
         memory=DB(memory_path),
         logs=DB(memory_path / "logs"),
         input=DB(input_path),
         workspace=DB(workspace_path),
-        preprompts=DB(Path(__file__).parent / "preprompts"),
+        preprompts=DB(preprompts_path),
         archive=DB(archive_path),
         project_metadata=DB(project_metadata_path),
     )