Get Organized by Listing Your Reader’s Questions

When you’re wondering what to cover in a message, how to organize your thoughts, and what to leave in and out, forget about what you have to say. Instead think about your reader: What does your reader want to know? What are your reader's questions?

It helps to imagine a conversation with your reader. For example, if you are writing to announce a meeting, imagine telling someone face-to-face about the meeting. That person would ask:

    • Why are we meeting?
    • When is it?
    • Where?
    • What’s the agenda?
    • Who will be there?
    • Do I have to attend? What if I can’t?
    • Do I need to prepare? How?

List all the questions your reader may have. Then consider the order in which your reader would ask them. If you have listed any of the questions in a different order, rearrange them to meet your reader’s needs.

Now, one by one, write the answers to your reader’s questions. For example:

    • Why are we meeting?
            We are meeting to decide whether to hire a
            part-time permanent employee or a summer
            intern to work on the winter marketing campaign.

    • When is it?
            The meeting takes place on Monday, April 25,
            at 2 p.m. for no more than 45 minutes.

Go through each one of your reader’s questions and answer it. When you’re finished, you’re not only finished organizing—you’re finished writing! Just edit, proofread, and send.

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