So You've Finished the First Draft. Now What?

So I've Written the First Draft. Now What?

In the next couple of articles, we’ll complete the writing cycle that we started. We planned our manual, created a prototype, received comments on the prototype, gathered the information, and wrote the first draft. That means we’re finished with the manual, right? Not quite.

A first draft is exactly that, a draft. The key to good writing is in the editing and rewriting of the first draft. You need to read it over at least once, and probably more than once. As you read, look for the following:

Typographical errors that you need to correct and missing words. (I’m famous for leaving out words. It’s easy to do, since your mind works faster than your fingers.)

Text that does not flow. By that I mean, you jump into a topic without giving the readers a brief introduction to the importance of the topic. The introduction may be one sentence or several paragraphs, depending on the complexity of the topic. You need to be sure your readers know why each topic is important or why they may need to know about it. You also want to be sure that your topics flow logically from one to the next.

Repeated information that is not necessary. As you wrote the first draft, you may have written an introduction that was too long and repetitive. Look for ways to eliminate redundancy unless it serves a purpose. Such purposes may be to emphasize a warning about a dangerous situation or to repeat information from another chapter.

Long sentences that should be broken into two sentences or otherwise shortened. Always look for ways to reduce the number of words you use without losing meaning. You’ll be surprised how much you can cut. Your writing will usually be clearer without the extra words.

Instructions that are clear and easy to follow. Did you number steps that need to be performed in a specific order? Do the steps start with a verb in the command form?

Inconsistencies in terminology and writing style. You want to be sure that you’ve used terms consistently throughout the manual. You should also look for changes in verb tense and in the organization of information. Your writing style and structure should be consistent throughout.

Once you’ve found and resolved these problems, you’re ready to send the draft to your client, review team, or manager for review.

Be sure to include a list of questions you need the reviewers to answer. As you wrote the first draft, you undoubtedly ran across holes in your information or areas that needed clarification. The first draft review is the best time to get your answers.

You’ll probably want your reviewers to sign off on the draft. You should include a form for each reviewer to sign.

Once you receive the reviewers’ comments, you’ll need to decide which to incorporate and which you need to discuss with the reviewer.

Depending on the number and types of comments you received from reviewers, you may now be able to prepare the final version of your manual. If you had a large number of comments, or if some of the comments result in major changes in the organization of the text, you may need to write a second draft and send it through another review cycle.

In my next article we’ll talk about finishing your manual and getting it ready for production.