# Rewrite for a different reader: checklist

Pull out the facts that must not change, work out what the new reader needs, rewrite the text for them, then check that every fact made it across and nothing new crept in.

## Before you start

- [ ] Have ready: The text as it is now
  Paste the text exactly as it stands. A page or two is about right.
- [ ] Have ready: Who will read the new version
  Say who they are, what they already know, how they will read it, and what you want them to do afterward.

## Step 1: List the facts that must stay

- [ ] Pick out the facts in the original that this reader must not lose, quoting the exact words.
- [ ] You have: A numbered table of the facts that must stay, each with its exact words from the original.
- [ ] Check: Every quote in the Exact words in the original column appears word for word in the text as it is now.
  A plain rule you can check by eye. If not: Run the step once more, and add what was wrong to the end of the prompt. If it still does not pass, fix it by hand and make a note of it.

## Step 2: Say what this reader needs

- [ ] Describe what the new reader already knows, what to explain, what to put first and what to spare them.
- [ ] You have: A short table of what this reader needs and what that means for the rewrite.
- [ ] Check: Every row of the table has something written in "What the reader needs" and "What that means for the new version" (a blank or a dash does not count).
  A plain rule you can check by eye. If not: Run the step once more, and add what was wrong to the end of the prompt. If it still does not pass, fix it by hand and make a note of it.

## Step 3: Write the new version

- [ ] Rewrite the text for this reader, keeping every fact and writing numbers exactly as they were.
- [ ] You have: The text rewritten for the new reader.
- [ ] Check: Every number in the answer also appears in the text as it is now.
  A plain rule you can check by eye. If not: Run the step once more, and add what was wrong to the end of the prompt. If it still does not pass, fix it by hand and make a note of it.

## Step 4: Check each fact against the new version

- [ ] Go through the facts one by one and mark each as kept, changed or missing in the new version.
- [ ] You have: A table that marks each fact as kept, changed or missing in the new version.
- [ ] Check: Every row of the table has one of "kept", "changed" or "missing" in the In the new version column.
  A plain rule you can check by eye. If not: Run the step once more, and add what was wrong to the end of the prompt. If it still does not pass, fix it by hand and make a note of it.

## Step 5: Put back anything that changed

- [ ] Fix every fact marked changed or missing, and leave the rest of the new version as it is.
- [ ] You have: The final text for the new reader, with every fact back as the original had it.

## Final checks

- [ ] Check: Every number in the answer also appears in the text as it is now.
  A plain rule you can check by eye. If not: Run the step once more, and add what was wrong to the end of the prompt. If it still does not pass, fix it by hand and make a note of it.
- [ ] Check: Compare the final version with the facts below and with the original. Is every fact in the list still said, with the same meaning, and is there nothing in the final version that the original did not say? Answer FAIL and name the fact that changed or the line that was added.
  Checked by a second AI prompt. If not: Run the step once more, and add what was wrong to the end of the prompt. If it still does not pass, fix it by hand and make a note of it.
- [ ] Check: Read the final version as the reader described below. Does it start with what they most need to know or do, and does it explain or avoid every word they would not know? Answer FAIL and quote the first sentence or word that does not fit.
  Checked by a second AI prompt. If not: Run the step once more, and add what was wrong to the end of the prompt. If it still does not pass, fix it by hand and make a note of it.
- [ ] Check: Read the final version as the person it is for. Would they know what to do next, and does the tone feel right for them? Mark anything that would make them stop and ask, and fix it in your own words.
  Checked by you. If not: Carry on, but write down the problem so whoever uses the result knows about it.

## You end up with

- [ ] The text rewritten for the new reader, with every key fact kept.
- [ ] A list of the facts that had to stay and a check of each one, so you can see what was kept.

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From Logic Lab (logiclabhq.com). Free to use and adapt, with credit.