A practical reading method
Mark Evidence the Author Labels Speculative
Anchor the reconstruction and copy only the uncertainty signal, such as may, perhaps, likely, or cannot know. Record the evidence the author cites and the gap that remains. Label the conclusion as documented, inferred, or speculative using the author’s own boundary.
Use this in history, science, biography, and true crime when the prose shifts from records to possibility. A memorable scene can outlive the qualifier that introduced it. Saving the uncertainty word with the claim prevents later overstatement.
Use case
When this method helps
Use this in history, science, biography, and true crime when the prose shifts from records to possibility.
A memorable scene can outlive the qualifier that introduced it. Saving the uncertainty word with the claim prevents later overstatement.
Method
Build the note
1. Anchor the reconstruction and copy only the uncertainty signal, such as may, perhaps, likely, or cannot know.
2. Record the evidence the author cites and the gap that remains.
3. Label the conclusion as documented, inferred, or speculative using the author’s own boundary.
Example
See the boundary in practice
If a biographer writes that a meeting ‘may have changed’ a decision, do not save the note as ‘the meeting changed the decision.’
Quality check
Before you trust the note
Your wording must be no more certain than the source wording.