Chapter 12 Final Touches

The final touches to the proposal are more than grammar check or add a cover page. It's the final chance to reinforce your ethos, through inventing front matter (Letter of transmittal, cover page, executive summary, table of contents), Back Matter (Personnel's resumes, glossary of terms and symbols, bibliography, formulas and Calculations, related reports, prior proposal, FYI information), and reconsidering the rhetorical situation, the problem or opportunity, the rhetorical elements.

Sometimes we may be worn out after writing the draft, but it's important to keep working on the draft at that point, because revisions make perfect. Probably, go to bed early at night, get up with an energetic mind in the next morning, bring up the proposal draft after a nice breakfast, and think everything you've thought when you first wrote it:

"What's (are) your point(s) now? Does the proposal make you point(s)?"
"Who is your reader now? Will they be satisfied with the current work?"
"How is the current physical and political situation? Does the current version fit into that situation?"

After all the work, your points may have a little change based on your research. You may have found a better approach to address the issue. Thus, the purpose statement will need to be revised to some extent. On the other hand, after working on that proposal for 1-2 months or even longer, the physical or political situation may have changed, which need to be taken into your consideration during the revision process.

Besides, it is also important to rethink about some rhetorical details, such as content, organization, style and design. Details matter. The point of refining is to make it "feel right." Make things as good as you can, letting the readers feel yours is the right choice.