To say that "structured authoring" is applying structure to documents doesn't really quite get that answer we need, does it? Essentially, structured authoring is a way of defining a document into chunks of content. For example, in this blog I'm writing now, I can identify two paragraphs, both structured identically as basic body paragraphs (and then a third paragraph below, etc.)
Of course, our products (mainly print books now but moving very quickly to a variety of digital outputs) are more complex: bulleted lists, step lists, notes, questions, answers, exercises, etc. Each of these is definable, and by defining them using Word styles or XML tags provides a structure that creates portability.
This portability answers the "important" question. Think of this: We have a dozen biology books, each with questions and answers for students to answer. We can add structure to that content to indicate they are questions and answers. And now we create a software testing program that captures and delivers questions and answers based on user-inputted criteria. So the user inputs "mitosis" and the program goes and captures only those questions that are defined as being about mitosis. If we had not created structured documents to begin with, this task must be done when inputting the questions and answers into the software program. But if it is done during the authoring process, the program can leverage existing work not only in one particular set of content but across a spectrum of content.
Structured content allows for more efficient transformations of our content into a variety of formats, including but not limited to ePub, Safari, XML transforms, InDesign, Quark, and so on. And getting this content structured is a good, necessary, even vital practice we need to implement. WriteRAP is an important tool in developing that practice.
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