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Technical writers deliver important and complex information with clarity. They take complicated concepts and long procedures and make them digestible for the regular person. They are typically well-versed in their field, but not always.
When a company needs to explain something to a general audience or create a concise guide for employees, they turn to technical writers to get the job done.
There is a learning curve to technical writing, but it can be a lucrative and fulfilling career.
Here’s what you need to start a career in technical writing.
Education And Training Required for Technical Writing
Getting a bachelor’s degree in journalism, writing, or anything related to language will help you on your journey toward technical writing. However, it’s not a requirement.
Many technical writers have a STEM (science, technology, engineering, math) degree with some communications training. Others often have communications or writing degrees with STEM training.
But once, again, these aren’t requirements—different employers may have different education requirements for different technical writing jobs.
Writing is as much a language to learn as it is a skill to hone. Technical writers not only understand grammar and how to use language, but they write concisely.
Learn how to start writing better by attending courses offered by the REDC. The Introduction to Technical Writing course will teach you all you need to know about writing strategies, templates, and tools to make your technical writing better.
Skills Required for Technical Writing
Skilled writers know how to use language well. They can craft sentences to properly convey meaning and boil down concepts to their basic meaning. The skills needed by technical writers include:
- Attention to detail
- Flexibility and adaptability
- Audience analysis
- Time management
- Research
- Collaboration
- Communication and writing skills
People aren’t born with these skills. They’ve learned and grown over time.
Courses in advanced grammar will certainly help you get ready for a career in technical writing. However, how information is structured and the clarity of the content is considered a higher priority to people working in this field.
Understand Style Guides
Style guides inform writers on how to write about specific topics. This includes grammar guidelines, how to structure content, what terminology is best, and how to cite references.
There are style guides for just about everything. It’s helpful to acquaint yourself with some of these guides. However, the style guides you’ll be using will change depending on what you’re writing for.
Before getting into technical writing it’s important to understand how style guides work and how to write according to one.
Career Paths for Technical Writing
Career paths are ever-changing. Unless you have incredible insight, drive, and a bit of luck, your career path will most likely change over time. However, it’s a good idea to understand where to start in technical writing and where to go.
Technical writers either start as writers or start in a specific technical field like:
- Software development
- Construction
- Engineering
- Aerospace
When you get started, you’ll likely enter as a junior technical writer. You’ll also be working in a team and possibly with a lot of guidance.
After cutting your teeth for a while you’ll be able to move up from a junior position into overseeing teams of writers. However, many technical writers eventually break out of writing and into other fields or executive roles. Especially the field they are writing for.
Find Your Niche
Most technical writers have specific niches in which they work. They may have found their niche through formal education or through years of experience.
Finding your niche as a technical writer may take time, but you should consider any interests you have in:
- Software and technology
- Healthcare and medicine
- Engineering and manufacturing
- Finance and accounting
- Education and training
- Cybersecurity and data science
- Aerospace and the automotive industry
Each of these categories needs technical writers. If you have any training, education, or interest in any of these fields, that’s a good place to start.
Networking For Technical Writers
When getting started in any career it’s important to get connected. Most jobs get filled by people who know someone. Get to know people.
There are always some kind of event happening in the tech industry. Get connected to the people you’ll be working with by attending as many events as possible. This includes:
- Workshops
- Keynotes
- Conferences
- Local Chamber of Commerce meetings and events
- Job fairs
While attending these events, put yourself out there and meet new people.
The REDC organizes and sponsors many events including job fairs, expos, and career connecting events. Check out our events page to see what’s coming up next. Not sure about the how-tos of networking? Check out our Networking for Success course.
Gather Writing Samples
Creating writing samples kills two birds with one stone:
- You’ll be getting better at writing
- You’ll be building a portfolio to show potential employers
Build up your resume with sample guides, white papers, and standard operating procedures. You may not be able to write a complete guide on how to fly an airplane, but you can choose smaller things you’ve done in real life.
You can create a technical writing portfolio without any experience by writing about things you’ve done or finding independent developers that could use help with documentation. Examples of technical writing samples include:
- How to set up a modem and router
- A guide to sideloading custom applications onto Android devices
- A tutorial on a hobby
- Documentation for bug fixes for an application
You’ll get bonus points with hiring managers if your samples are related to the industry you want to work in.
Learn the Types of Technical Writing
Technical writing is used for a lot of things in a lot of different industries. There is not a single approach and it can be adapted for various industries. When you start a career in technical writing, you won’t need to know how to write for each of these categories, but you should at least know how these work.
While building out a portfolio and considering what niche you want to fill, consider these different types of technical writing.
Standard Operating Procedure (SOP)
SOPs explain how to perform a task or procedure. This includes medical procedures, construction instruction, communication guidelines, and new-hire training.
Having an SOP in place helps businesses stay consistent, compliant, safe, and efficient.
When writing an SOP, it’s important to write concisely and follow a step-by-step format. Any excess language should be cut so readers can easily access the steps they need to follow.
White Papers and Case Studies
White papers inform readers about a problem and provide a proposed solution. These papers are usually created to inform potential customers about how a business can fulfill its goals.
These are important for thought leadership and showcase a business’ expertise.
Case studies are similar to white papers, but explain how the businesses found solutions for a client.
Business Proposals
Business proposals try to convince potential clients to purchase a product or service. They can also be used to pitch new business ideas to investors.
These documents are typically very structured and include:
- An executive summary: What the plan will cover
- Problem statement: Challenges or issues the business is proposing to address
- Solution: How the business plans to address the problem
- Project overview: Cost, scope, and timeline of the project
- Pricing: How much the project would cost
A business proposal is important for bringing new clients to businesses. As a technical writer, it’s your job to make sure the business is being conveyed correctly and concisely.
Technical Documentation & End-User Instructions
Technical documentation is vital for developers. It explains how a product, service, or application works, how it was created, and what to use it for. It also explains the architecture of complex systems.
This kind of documentation can also include release notes, troubleshooting guides, and setup processes. A big category of technical documentation includes software development and application programming interface (API) documentation.
End-user instructions are important customer-facing documentation that explains a product or service. It’s important that these documents are well-written and easy to read. The end-user might not be well-versed in the product.
Writing good technical documentation can be challenging. A good place to start is by reading technical documentation and online guides.
Reports, Studies, and Research Results
There is a lot of data floating around the business world. Technical writers are often tasked with taking that data and presenting it in a clear and understandable way.
Technical writers aren’t typically involved in the creation of surveys, experiments, or data collection. However, they should be heavily involved in the process so they can present the findings in a distilled and structured way.
These projects are big undertakings and may require months of work. The writers may be asked to incorporate graphs, build appendixes, translate complex jargon, and include data analysis.
Get Prepped for A Career in Technical Writing at the REDC
Knowing how and where to start a technical writing career is not easy and it’s always beneficial to have some help in your corner.
The Regional Economic Development Center (REDC) at Yavapai College is here to help local job seekers get prepared and find work as technical writers. Utilize our vast course catalog, events, and career services to prepare yourself for a fulfilling career.
Contact career services at the REDC and find the resources you need.