Using Claude for Writing, Research, and Document Analysis
Analyze a project brief, create an evidence-backed summary, and edit its style without changing the facts.
Overview
For learners who want to complete this practical exercise with inspectable sample data and explicit checks.
- Separate document facts from inferences.
- Use short source excerpts to check an analysis table.
- Rewrite for two different audiences.
You will build: A facts-and-questions table and a manager-facing project brief.
Prerequisites
- A Claude account and browser; a small TXT file or text-paste access.
Use text chat. File access and document limits depend on the account; paste the sample if upload is unavailable. Web search is not required.
Step-by-step tutorial
Step 1. Create a bounded source document
Save the sample as UTF-8 brief.txt, or paste it between BEGIN SOURCE and END SOURCE. Avoid scanned PDFs for the first exercise because text extraction can corrupt numbers.
PROJECT ORION — INTERNAL TRAINING EXAMPLE
Goal: test an FAQ prototype with 12 volunteers.
Scope: five FAQ topics; English text only.
Milestone: prototype review on 18 November 2026.
Decision pending: who will maintain answers after the pilot?
Constraint: the pilot must use fictional support tickets.Step 2. Analyze before rewriting
Using only the document, create a table: fact | short supporting excerpt | unresolved question. Distinguish goals, scope, milestones, and pending decisions. Do not invent pilot results or effectiveness measurements.Verify that 12 refers to planned volunteers, not completed test participants. If Claude confuses these, correct both the table and the associated conclusion.
Step 3. Write two versions with the same facts
Create (1) an 80–100-word management summary and (2) an implementation checklist. Preserve 18 November 2026, five FAQ topics, and the English-only scope. Both versions must retain the content-maintenance question.Step 4. Identify limits and research questions
Ask for three questions to resolve before implementation. Research external facts separately and save supporting URLs and passages; an uploaded brief is not evidence for claims outside it. When working with a PDF, check page references against the PDF viewer.
Verification
- Every number and date in the rewrite matches the sample.
- There is no claim that the pilot has succeeded or improved productivity.
Troubleshooting
The document will not upload
Cause: The file type or account limit is unsupported.
Fix: Use a small TXT file or paste text; consult the official supported-file guidance.
A quoted passage is missing from the file
Cause: A paraphrase was presented as a direct quotation.
Fix: Locate the passage in the original; use a labeled paraphrase when an exact quote is unavailable.
Exercises & extensions
- Add a scope change and request a before/after comparison.
- Continue to Perplexity for questions that need web evidence.
Document support does not guarantee accurate extraction of every table, figure, or context. This exercise assumes no particular paid feature or quota.