TemplatesWrite

Rewrite for a different reader

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.

Sample results: runs and scores on this page are illustrations while testing is set up. How we test

  • Who it is for: Anyone who writes for more than one audience, such as coordinators, analysts and team leads.
  • Time: 10 minutes

Download it, in the format you use

  • Prompt chain

    Copy each step into ChatGPT or Claude, one after another.

  • Checklist

    Follow the steps and check off the checks by hand.

  • Claude skill

    A folder Claude loads, so it follows the steps by itself.

  • n8n file

    Import into n8n and connect your own AI account.

Open in the Editor

Using a download:How to use this in n8nHow to install a Claude skill

How it runs

Select a part to see its prompt, input, output and check.

The same job, with and without the template

Sample

One plain prompt

Rewrite this message so that it works for office staff who are not technical. (The same message and the description of the readers are pasted below.)

Subject: Door access update this weekend

Hi team,

We're upgrading the building's door system this weekend to make it faster and more reliable. Early on Saturday morning you may find that your badge doesn't work for a couple of hours, so you'll need to use the keypad instead. Some older badges will also need to be refreshed at the front desk, and please do this within 48 hours of the update. We'll be at the helpdesk on Friday afternoon around 3 pm if you want to drop by.

Thanks for your patience, and reach out if you have any questions!

Problem:It drops the date and the 6:00 to 8:30 window, turns the 12:00 to 15:00 drop-in into 'around 3 pm', and adds a 48-hour deadline that nobody set.

With this template

The same input, run through the steps.

Subject: Doors will use keypads on Saturday morning

Hello everyone in Building B and the annex,

On Sunday, October 18, from 6:00 to 8:30, the door system will restart. During that time the doors on the affected floors will use the keypad override instead of badges.

What to do:

  • If your badge was issued before March, take it to the front desk to be set up again.
  • The helpdesk will hold a drop-in on Friday, October 16 from 12:00 to 15:00.

Contractors on the annex site are not part of this phase. They will be covered in Phase 3 in November.

Questions? Please send them to the facilities queue.

  • Check:Every quote is really in the original: Seven facts listed, each quoted word for word from the original.
  • Check:Every row has something written in both columns: Five rows, each written in both columns.
  • Check:No number was added or changed: Every number in the new version is in the original.
  • Check:Each fact is marked kept, changed or missing: All seven facts are marked kept.
  • Check:No number in the final version is new: Every number in the final version is in the original.
  • Check:Every fact is still said and nothing was added: All seven facts are still said, and nothing was added.
  • Check:It starts with what the reader needs and avoids words they do not know: It opens with what happens to the doors and then says what to do; no word like firmware, controller or credential is left.
  • For your read:You read it as the reader would: Would a colleague on the annex site know what to do on Saturday morning?

Runs and scores

Sample

Claude, Sonnet model

October 4, 2026, typical sample

  • Check:Every quote is really in the original

    Seven facts listed, each quoted word for word from the original.

  • Check:Every row has something written in both columns

    Five rows, each written in both columns.

  • Check:No number was added or changed

    Every number in the new version is in the original.

  • Check:Each fact is marked kept, changed or missing

    All seven facts are marked kept.

  • Check:No number in the final version is new

    Every number in the final version is in the original.

  • Check:Every fact is still said and nothing was added

    All seven facts are still said, and nothing was added.

  • Check:It starts with what the reader needs and avoids words they do not know

    The message opens with what happens to the doors and then says what to do; no technical word is left.

  • For your read:You read it as the reader would

    Would a colleague on the annex site know what to do on Saturday morning?

Fixed: Nothing needed fixing: every check passed on the first pass.

Met 8 of 8

1 of these is for your read: the tool hands it to you.

ChatGPT, GPT model

October 5, 2026, tricky sample

  • Check:Every quote is really in the original

    Six facts listed, each quoted word for word from the original.

  • Check:Every row has something written in both columns

    Five rows, each written in both columns.

  • First pass failed:No number was added or changed

    The first version said "a fall of 4.3 points" and "about 8 in 100", and neither number is in the original.

  • Check:Each fact is marked kept, changed or missing

    All six facts are marked kept.

  • Check:No number in the final version is new

    Every number in the final version is in the original.

  • Failed:Every fact is still said and nothing was added

    The final version leaves out that the comparison clinic also improved, which the original says may make the true effect smaller.

  • Check:It starts with what the reader needs and avoids words they do not know

    It opens with whether the reminders worked and ends with the recommendation; the words confidence interval and p-value are gone.

  • For your read:You read it as the reader would

    Would a board member know how sure the team is?

Fixed: The rewrite step ran again once with the numbers restated and came back using 18.4% and 14.1% as written. The facts list had left out the comparison clinic, so the compare step could not catch the gap. The fix step ran again once and the check still failed, so the run stopped there and flagged it for you.

Met 7 of 8

  • Not met:Every fact is still said and nothing was added: The comparison clinic is still missing from the final version.

1 of these is for your read: the tool hands it to you.

n8n, import format 2.20

October 6, 2026, easy sample

  • Check:Every quote is really in the original

    Four facts listed, each quoted word for word from the original.

  • Check:Every row has something written in both columns

    Four rows, each written in both columns.

  • Check:No number was added or changed

    Every number in the new version is in the original.

  • Check:Each fact is marked kept, changed or missing

    All four facts are marked kept.

  • Check:No number in the final version is new

    Every number in the final version is in the original.

  • Check:Every fact is still said and nothing was added

    All four facts are still said, and nothing was added.

  • Check:It starts with what the reader needs and avoids words they do not know

    It is a few short lines with the printer problem first; no slang is left.

  • For your read:You read it as the reader would

    Is there anything in it you would not want to say to the whole office?

Fixed: Nothing needed fixing: every check passed on the first pass.

Met 8 of 8

1 of these is for your read: the tool hands it to you.

The steps, and the check on each

  1. 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.

    Hands back: A numbered table of the facts that must stay, each with its exact words from the original.

    Check:Every quote is really in the original

    A plain rule. If it fails, run the step again (the n8n file does this for you).

  2. 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.

    Hands back: A short table of what this reader needs and what that means for the rewrite.

    Check:Every row has something written in both columns

    A plain rule. If it fails, run the step again (the n8n file does this for you).

  3. Step 3: Write the new version

    Rewrite the text for this reader, keeping every fact and writing numbers exactly as they were.

    Hands back: The text rewritten for the new reader.

    Check:No number was added or changed

    A plain rule. If it fails, run the step again (the n8n file does this for you).

  4. 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.

    Hands back: A table that marks each fact as kept, changed or missing in the new version.

    Check:Each fact is marked kept, changed or missing

    A plain rule. If it fails, run the step again (the n8n file does this for you).

  5. 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.

    Hands back: The final text for the new reader, with every fact back as the original had it.

    No separate check on this step.

After the last step

  • Check:No number in the final version is new

    A plain rule. If it fails, run the step again (the n8n file does this for you).

  • Check:Every fact is still said and nothing was added

    A second look by the AI. If it fails, run the step again (the n8n file does this for you).

  • Check:It starts with what the reader needs and avoids words they do not know

    A second look by the AI. If it fails, run the step again (the n8n file does this for you).

  • Check:You read it as the reader would

    You check this one. If it fails, it is flagged for you.

What you need first

  • The text as it is now(needed)

    Paste the text exactly as it stands. A page or two is about right.

  • Who will read the new version(needed)

    Say who they are, what they already know, how they will read it, and what you want them to do afterward.

Ways to adapt it

  • To write for two readers, such as staff and the public, run the template twice with the same original and a different description of the reader each time.
  • The more you say about the reader, the better the fit. Add what they have already seen, how much time they have and how they will read it, such as on a phone, in print or aloud.
  • If the new reader needs a different unit or a rounded number, add it beside the original number in the original text first, such as 1,240 (about 1,200). The number check then accepts it.
  • To set a length, add it to the description of the reader, such as "half a page".

Change any step or check in the Editor, then download it again.

Try it with a sampleSample

A technical notice with several facts and a lot of jargon, going to readers who only want to know what it means for them.

The text as it is now
Subject: Badge reader firmware rollout, Phase 2 Phase 2 of the badge reader firmware rollout covers Building B and the annex. Patch 4.2 resolves the intermittent latency on the access controller, but it requires a controller reboot, so doors on the affected floors will fall back to the keypad override from 6:00 to 8:30 on Sunday, October 18. Badges issued before March will need re-enrollment at the front desk, as the old credential format is deprecated in the new firmware. The helpdesk will hold a drop-in on Friday, October 16 from 12:00 to 15:00. Contractors on the annex site are out of scope for this phase and will be covered in Phase 3 in November. Please direct queries to the facilities queue.
Who will read the new version
All office staff in Building B and the annex. Most of them are not technical. They want to know whether they will be locked out and what they have to do. They read on their phones, so keep it short and friendly.

The scoring guide

Sample

One criterion for each check, marked met or not met. (The guides in Quality rate a whole piece of work on three levels.) Under each one is how the three sample runs scored.

Download the scoring guide (Markdown)

  • Every quote is really in the original

    A plain rule

    Meets:Every quote in the facts table is found word for word in the original.
    Does not meet:A quote has been reworded or shortened, or is not in the original word for word.
    Claude:Met
    ChatGPT:Met
    n8n:Met

  • Every row has something written in both columns

    A plain rule

    Meets:Every row says what the reader needs and what that means for the new version.
    Does not meet:A row has a blank in either column.
    Claude:Met
    ChatGPT:Met
    n8n:Met

  • No number was added or changed

    A plain rule

    Meets:Every number, date and time in the new version is written as the original writes it.
    Does not meet:A number was added, rounded or rewritten, such as 3 pm for 15:00.
    Claude:Met
    ChatGPT:Met
    n8n:Met

  • Each fact is marked kept, changed or missing

    A plain rule

    Meets:Every fact is marked kept, changed or missing, and nothing else.
    Does not meet:A fact has another word, such as partly, or no mark.
    Claude:Met
    ChatGPT:Met
    n8n:Met

  • No number in the final version is new

    A plain rule

    Meets:Every number in the final version appears in the original.
    Does not meet:A number in the final version is not in the original.
    Claude:Met
    ChatGPT:Met
    n8n:Met

  • Every fact is still said and nothing was added

    A second look by the AI

    Meets:Every fact in the list is still said with the same meaning, and the final version adds nothing the original did not say.
    Does not meet:A fact has changed or gone, or a line has been added that the original never said.
    Claude:Met
    ChatGPT:Not met
    n8n:Met

  • It starts with what the reader needs and avoids words they do not know

    A second look by the AI

    Meets:The final version starts with what the reader most needs, and every word they would not know is explained or gone.
    Does not meet:It starts with background, or a word the reader would not know is left in.
    Claude:Met
    ChatGPT:Met
    n8n:Met

  • You read it as the reader would

    You check this one

    Meets:You read it as the reader and would know what to do next, and the tone feels right.
    Does not meet:You would have to stop and ask, or the tone does not suit them, and you fix those lines.
    Claude:For your read
    ChatGPT:For your read
    n8n:For your read

Claude: met 8 of 8 (including 1 for your read)

ChatGPT: met 7 of 8 (including 1 for your read)

n8n: met 8 of 8 (including 1 for your read)

Learn how it works:Writing the prompt for a stepAdapting a template

Practice:Check it yourself

Which one fits?

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Last run
October 6, 2026: n8n, import format 2.20 (sample run)
Tools and versions
Claude, Sonnet model; ChatGPT, GPT model; n8n, import format 2.20
What was checked
The files, against each tool’s import format, and 3 sample runs, each check’s finding recorded.
Version
1.0
What changed
First release.

Report a problem with this templateHow we test