Lesson 4
Checking Its Work
Sort a draft into copied facts, worked-out numbers and additions with nothing behind them, and check each the right way before you send it.
Good at drafting, bad at knowing what it made up
Kemi’s energy bill used an estimated meter reading, and it is far too high. She has a dated photo of her meter. She gives an assistant the bill, the photo and a short brief, and asks for a complaint to her supplier. Thirty seconds later she has a firm, polite letter.
Every line of it reads the same. Underneath, a draft like this has three kinds of line:
- Copied facts: details lifted from what you gave it, such as a date or a reading. Check them against the source.
- Worked-out numbers: figures it calculated from those facts. Redo the sum.
- Additions: claims with nothing behind them at all. Cut them, or confirm them yourself.
The assistant won’t tell you which is which. That is your job, and it is quicker than it sounds.