Technical Writing
How to be a Freelancing Success Story
by Siobhán Ní Chatháin Special to TCC As a technical communicator, are you attracted by the prospect of greater independence and flexibility, but daunted by the prospect of losing security and support, having to find clients, and manage gaps between projects? Freelancing with a service provider could be the sweet spot between full-time employment and…
Read MoreWhat is the Readability Index of Your Writing?
How readable is your writing? Is there a good fit between what you’ve written and your audience? This is a question that must be answered truthfully and precisely by all writers. If your prose is not a good fit for your audience’s education level, then it won’t be understood and remembered easily. Enter: Readability Indexes…
Read MoreShould Technical Writing be Boring? And if Yes, Why?
Should Technical Writing be Boring? YES, TECHNICAL WRITING IS SUPPOSED TO BE BORING. We are bored when there is ZERO VARIANCE. And good technical writing must have zero variance in its description of how-to steps and other components. For example, if we call a procedure “subroutine” on page 2, we have to call the same object…
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Expository Writing vs. Technical Writing – What is the Difference?
There are important differences between expository and technical writing. What is Expository Writing? Expository writing is the process of explaining, describing, or clarifying. It can be done in a number of ways and is not limited to just one form. This type of writing is not just about giving information, but also about persuading readers…
Read More7 Personality Characteristics of a Technical Writer
There are 7 Personality Characteristics of a Technical Writer… First off, a tech writer (TW) should be CURIOUS about the world around her. Without that basic curiosity, there is nothing to explain or document. If you are the type of person who used to break toys and open them up to see how they worked…
Read MoreHi-Tech Low-Tech Technical Writing
Introduction There are two types of customers in technical writing – internal customers, and external (or “end-user”) customers. We create our documents and content for these two types of readers/users when we do any technical writing. I just received a letter from a concerned reader who is asking if he can find a job as…
Read MoreHow to Republish Your Lists as a MS Word Smart Art Infographics
© Ugur Akinci Did you know that you can transform all your ordered or unordered lists into good looking infographics, thanks to MS Word’s SMART ART graphics? If you are sick and tired of good’old traditional lists, try the SMART ART way. Here is an example. Let’s say you have the following list: EVOLUTION OF…
Read More11 Indispensable Concepts of English Grammar You Should Know
Introduction Nobody’s perfect. Nobody knows ALL the rules and concepts of English grammar. But do you know enough not to raise eyebrows when you open your mouth? Do you know enough of the basic terms and building blocks of English to communicate smoothly with an editor, reader, or another writer? 11 Basic Concepts of English…
Read MoreINFOGRAPHICS – Technical Writers Work for…
How to Write a Great Overview Sentence for an Ordered List
© Ugur Akinci An ordered list is one with numbers for each entry. In technical or business writing it helps a lot if each numbered/ordered list is prefaced by an OVERVIEW sentence. Such lead sentences prepare the user/reader appropriately for what is to follow. For example, here is a great overview sentence for the list…
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