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Get a first draft from a blank page

Turn a short brief or messy bullets into a usable v1, so your work starts with editing instead of staring.

Stage: Copilot Chat · For: End user · Level: Starter · Time: 5 min

When to use this

You know the point you need to make, but the blank page is slowing you down. Use Copilot Chat to turn a short brief, bullet list, or rough outline into a structured first draft that you can edit, challenge, and make your own.

What you'll need

  • M365 Copilot license with Microsoft 365 Copilot Chat in Teams, Outlook, Word, or the Microsoft 365 Copilot app
  • A few bullets, notes, or a short brief with the facts you want included
  • The format, audience, and outcome you want from the draft

Try it now — the prompt

Open Microsoft 365 Copilot Chat and paste:

Create a first draft of a [document/email/Teams post/blog post] from these notes.

Audience: [who will read it]
Goal: [what the reader should know, decide, or do]
Tone: [clear, concise, persuasive, friendly, executive]
Length: [short, 500 words, one page, three paragraphs]
Must include:
- [fact or point 1]
- [fact or point 2]
- [fact or point 3]
Avoid:
- [jargon, claims, topics, or details to leave out]

Structure it with a clear opening, logical sections, and a strong next step.
Use placeholders where facts are missing instead of inventing details.

Why this works: it gives Copilot the audience, goal, source bullets, and guardrails. That turns vague drafting into a structured output you can evaluate and improve.

Step by step

  1. Open Copilot Chat in Teams, Outlook, Word, or the Microsoft 365 Copilot app. No agent or setup is needed; this is just a prompt in chat.
  2. Paste the prompt and replace the brackets. If your notes are messy, keep them messy. Copilot should return a coherent first draft with headings or paragraphs.
  3. Scan for missing facts and invented details. Replace placeholders, remove anything unsupported, and check that the draft matches your goal.
  4. Refine the structure before polishing wording. For example: 
    Rework this so the recommendation comes first, then give three supporting
points and a final call to action.

Screenshots

We deliberately don't ship screenshots that go stale — the Microsoft Copilot UI changes often. Follow the numbered steps above, which we keep current. Maintainers can regenerate fresh captures with the Playwright tool in tooling/screenshots/.

Make it better

  • Give me three alternative openings: direct, story-led, and executive summary.
  • Turn this into a one-page memo with headings and a decision section.
  • List the assumptions you made and the facts I still need to confirm.
  • Make the next step more specific and easier for the reader to act on.

Watch out for

  • A first draft is not a final draft. Treat Copilot's output as a starting point, then edit for accuracy, voice, and judgement.
  • Give it enough facts. If the prompt is empty, Copilot will fill gaps with generic wording or placeholders.
  • Ask for placeholders, not guesses. This keeps missing facts visible instead of hidden inside polished prose.

Where this leads (the ramp)

When the same draft depends on recurring context from meetings, documents, or email threads, move to Stage 2 and delegate the repetitive gathering and first-pass drafting to a first-party agent.

Next: First-Party Agents → Delegate recurring first drafts

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