5 WAYS TO
DRAFT
Properly
5. Seek appropriate feedback
When you finish your imperfect draft, seek feedback that is
appropriate for what you aimed to achieve. Seek feedback
on your key ideas and summary points that outline your core
topic. If you follow the protocol of not writing perfect first
drafts, ask your colleagues to ignore punctuation, grammar,
sentence structure, and any lack of details or thorough
explanations that can be tackled in later drafts.
If you give your draft to more than one person for feedback,
give the same version to each person and get them to give their
feedback separately. Not only is it confusing to read multiple
comments and edit on the one document when there is more
than one reviewer, but some reviewers' opinions may be unduly
influenced by someone else's comments.
Before you make changes to your first draft, print it out, take it
to a cafe, and edit it with a pen or pencil. Editing a paper copy
of your document can give you a fresh view of what you have
written and also break the cycle of making continuous small
changes when writing or editing on screen. It's also easier to
view a document as a whole when printed out.
Keep both digital and printed copies of each draft so you can
quickly retrieve writing that has been previously culled.Kind Reminder