Abstract: The specification teaches a structured text processing system for use by such people as bank tellers and insurance agents who work at computer controlled work stations connected together in a network of computers. A draft document in the form of a work in progress (WIP) document is disclosed. The WIP document allows the system to efficiently transmit drafts of highly controlled documents such as loan applications and customer letters from one computer to another in the network for approval or additional information without losing control of the standard form text. The standard form text originates as a shell document having defined variables, the text values of which are entered by tellers at work station screens having prompt messages defined by a related shell detail data set. The variable text is stored into a variable response data set. The shell text and the data sets are made part of the WIP document and therefore are available at other computers in the network for use in revising the WIP document.