Collaborative Writing: Tasks of Collaborative Writing Group Members

Collaborative Writing

Tasks of Collaborative Writing Group Members

Informal progress report
Subsequent informal progress reports
Editing strategy
Information plan
Formal progress report or updated revision of the information plan
Review draft
Proofreading
Final project
Evaluation of each team member

At the first group meeting, members present their backgrounds and what they are most interested in doing for this project. At the end of the meeting, the team writes a group progress report, identifying each person’s background and desired roles, briefly describing the group’s technical writing/editing and production environment, and listing any questions, problems, or bright ideas that emerge.

It is a good idea to submit informal progress reports. When the project started and when it is due will determine how often those reports are needed. However, weekly reports should be sufficient. One person should act as recorder for the group during your discussion and take notes for the progress report. The recorder role should be rotated equitably among the group members.

To plan for reviewing and revising the final draft, your team must think of ways to evaluate and edit your team writing. Address the needs of hard-copy as well as web formats if you are doing a web project. Your editing strategy should do the following:

identify the project’s readers, purpose, and uses
check citation style formatting
identify the ways in which both substantive and copyediting problems will be resolved

present a schedule for reviews and editing
describe how the final changes will be implemented

In essence, your team has to anticipate many of the pitfalls of writing your project.

An initial planning tool, this information plan includes the following:

purpose definition
scope definition
audience analysis
objectives

statement of purpose
tentative outline by section
production and distribution plan
tentative schedule for completing each project piece
list of specific tasks assigned to each group member

Discuss and write this plan as a group. Your team can use the information plan to request your instructor’s final approval of your project or recommendations for changing the concept and scope of your project.

Remember that your information plan is intended to help you plan the writing process and can be adjusted as you actually write the project. The more detail you have in the plan, the more likely your project will prove to be well designed.

This draft includes each section of your assignment with an example of the final project design and any graphics. If you have not yet completed a section, make space for it in your draft and describe what will be in that section, how you will implement the content, and when you think it will be finished. Include a sentence or two to indicate what has yet to be finished in that section. Based on this draft, your instructor can approve your draft, make recommendations, or both.

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