Writing that’s as smart as you’re thinking.
SecondDraft is your Cardinal40 consultant—asking the right questions, drafting in your voice, and pushing the piece from fine to finished. The same tool our team uses every day for some of the biggest names in business and government.
Why we built it
Cardinal40 writes for some of the biggest names in business and government—speeches, keynotes, shareholder letters, op-eds in major publications. Over the years our process became clear: the gap between a first draft and a finished piece isn’t more words. It’s the interview, the structure, the voice.
We built SecondDraft as an internal tool. Our consultants use it daily. Then a client asked…
Have you considered making a version for us?
How it works
Think of SecondDraft as a Cardinal40 ghostwriter sitting next to you. Three steps—the same three our consultants take with a client.
- IStep
First draft
You bring the starting point—a draft, a brief, an outline. The thing most writing tools either refuse to read or rewrite into mush.
- IIStep
Interview
A structured conversation pulls out the substance—your ideas, examples, point of view. The same questions our consultants would ask in a working session.
- IIIStep
Second draft
A draft with a thesis, a spine, and a shape—in your voice. You iterate with the tool to push the piece from fine to finished.
When to use it
SecondDraft is built for the writing where the stakes are high—where the words have to do real work, and sounding like yourself matters. It is not built for everything.
- 01Shareholder & annual letters
- 02Keynotes & speeches
- 03Op-eds & long-form commentary
- 04White papers & reports
- 05Corporate narratives
- 06Founding statements
- 01Quick emails
- 02Social posts
- 03Internal Slack messages
- 04Anything where "good enough" is good enough
Join the waitlist.
Tell us who you are. If SecondDraft is a fit for what you’re writing, we’ll be in touch.