We are independent & ad-supported. We may earn a commission for purchases made through our links.
Advertiser Disclosure
Our website is an independent, advertising-supported platform. We provide our content free of charge to our readers, and to keep it that way, we rely on revenue generated through advertisements and affiliate partnerships. This means that when you click on certain links on our site and make a purchase, we may earn a commission. Learn more.
How We Make Money
We sustain our operations through affiliate commissions and advertising. If you click on an affiliate link and make a purchase, we may receive a commission from the merchant at no additional cost to you. We also display advertisements on our website, which help generate revenue to support our work and keep our content free for readers. Our editorial team operates independently of our advertising and affiliate partnerships to ensure that our content remains unbiased and focused on providing you with the best information and recommendations based on thorough research and honest evaluations. To remain transparent, we’ve provided a list of our current affiliate partners here.
Language

Our Promise to you

Founded in 2002, our company has been a trusted resource for readers seeking informative and engaging content. Our dedication to quality remains unwavering—and will never change. We follow a strict editorial policy, ensuring that our content is authored by highly qualified professionals and edited by subject matter experts. This guarantees that everything we publish is objective, accurate, and trustworthy.

Over the years, we've refined our approach to cover a wide range of topics, providing readers with reliable and practical advice to enhance their knowledge and skills. That's why millions of readers turn to us each year. Join us in celebrating the joy of learning, guided by standards you can trust.

What Is Collaborative Writing?

By G. Wiesen
Updated: May 17, 2024
Views: 6,887
Share

Collaborative writing is typically a process by which more than one person is responsible for the creation and revision of a particular piece of writing. This usually surpasses the use of an editor, as two or more people are involved in the planning stages of such writing as well as the execution and revision of the writing. Such writing introduces a great deal of complexity into the writing process, since collaboration can be difficult, but can also result in a much richer and more rewarding end result. Some people also consider collaborative writing to include any writing in which more than one person’s work is used, which could include written works that cite the research or works of other writers.

Also called collaborative authoring, collaborative writing typically begins with two or more people coming together to plan out a piece of writing. This is where such work surpasses the use of an editor for a work written by a single person, since such editing usually occurs only during revision. The planning stages for collaborative writing often include the potential for debate and argument over the subject, how this subject is explored, and how work may be divided between collaborators.

Depending on how the collaborative writing is performed, the group may elect a single person to write the actual document or may divide the work among the group members. When a single writer is selected, he or she then writes the document and the group may work together to edit or revise afterward. Collaborative writing in which the entire group writes usually involves splitting the work into pieces and giving each group member an assignment. They may then work together to assemble the individual pieces together and they may all revise and edit as necessary once complete.

The process of collaborative writing can add both difficulty and greater reward to the writing process. Some collaborators may find it difficult to work together on a project, and many writers prefer to maintain greater control over their work than such collaborations afford. Multiple perspectives and voices within a written work can ultimately improve a project greatly, however, and such collaboration is common for research projects that include information beyond the scope of an individual researcher. Creative works may also benefit from more than one voice in the writing, though this often requires just the right combination of writers.

There are some people who consider any work with more than the content of a single individual to be collaborative writing. By this definition, then, any work that includes data, research, quotations, and ideas from another writer should be categorized as collaborative work. This can be the source for some debate, however, since the ideas utilized or cited in a work may be so radically challenged or interpreted that they no longer resemble the context in which they were initially presented.

Share
WiseGeek is dedicated to providing accurate and trustworthy information. We carefully select reputable sources and employ a rigorous fact-checking process to maintain the highest standards. To learn more about our commitment to accuracy, read our editorial process.

Editors' Picks

Discussion Comments
Share
https://www.wisegeek.net/what-is-collaborative-writing.htm
Copy this link
WiseGeek, in your inbox

Our latest articles, guides, and more, delivered daily.

WiseGeek, in your inbox

Our latest articles, guides, and more, delivered daily.