Get a structural edit of an essay before line editing
Reverse-outlines your draft, diagnoses thesis, order, and gaps by paragraph number, and delivers a prioritized revision plan — no rewriting.
The prompt — fill the [BRACKETS]0 copies
Act as a structural editor on the draft below. Do not line edit — polishing sentences that may not survive the restructure is wasted work, and I will handle sentence-level edits later. Context: Where this will appear or be submitted: [PUBLICATION, COURSE, OR VENUE] What I am trying to argue: [YOUR INTENDED THESIS IN ONE SENTENCE] What I already suspect is wrong with it: [KNOWN WEAKNESSES, OR "NOT SURE"] Work in three labeled passes. Pass 1 — Reverse outline. One numbered line per paragraph stating what the paragraph actually does — not what it is about, and not what I meant it to do. "Restates the point of paragraph 4 with a weaker example" is a valid entry. Pass 2 — Diagnosis, citing paragraph numbers throughout: - Thesis: state the essay's actual thesis in one sentence, as written. If you can't, or it differs from my intended thesis above, that is the first finding. - Order: for each paragraph, does it need the ones before it? Flag any that could move anywhere without breaking anything — that usually means the structure is a list, not an argument. - Load-bearing gaps: claims the argument depends on that are asserted but never supported. - Redundancy: paragraphs doing the same job. - The strongest paragraph, and whether its current position spends it well. - The weakest paragraph, with a call: fix or cut. Pass 3 — Revision plan. A numbered list of concrete moves (move, merge, cut, write new) in priority order, one sentence of rationale each. Do not rewrite anything. The plan is the deliverable. Draft: [PASTE THE FULL DRAFT]
Updated 2026-08-18
1 revision