If you are interested in getting into technical writing or learning more, this mini-guide about technical writing is made for you. As a newcomer (and still rightfully so) in technical writing, I have made mistakes and would love to share what I have learned so far so that you can get into technical writing! This post will outline the meaning of a technical writer, the skills required, types of technical content they may write, where to post technical work, and other tips to help you get started on your technical writing journey.

Continue reading to find out more, and don't forget the bonus tips at the end!

What is a technical writer?

A technical writer has many jobs, far more than just writing. As a technical writer, you seek to translate and transform information into readable and concise documentation. In addition, some may refer to a technical writer as a technical communicator.

You will gain and build upon your core skillset:

• research

• the ability to break down concepts

• develop technical knowledge

• improve communication and writing skills

And much more.

Some may feel you have to be an expert to write about a technical topic. I want to bring a different perspective: not knowing everything allows you to ask good questions.

We have all been in a room with someone more technical than ourselves who assumes we know just as much as they do. Unfortunately, people in tech (including myself) think everyone knows rather than asking first! When we presume in-person, this can reflect in our writing. Thus, it can weaken the quality of documentation.

Overall, technical writers can break down complex subjects and provide meaningful information to technical and non-technical audiences.

10+ Types of Technical Writing

Below are examples of some traditional and other types of writing projects.

• End-user documentation
• Training Manuals
• User Guides
• Technical Content Audits
• Proposals
• SOPs
• FAQs
• White papers
• Technical Reports and Reviews
• Resumes

Others:

• Technical Copywriting
• Technical Marketing

Skills Needed for Technical Writing:

Understand Your Audience and Meet Their Needs

To write for your audience, you need to understand what they value. To understand the audience's values, you need to know your reader. Knowing this information is the staple piece as you plan and write your documentation.

Technical Knowledge

If you lack the technical knowledge about the subject you were hired to write about, go get it. Technical writers will rely on other sources: primary and secondary sources. For example, a primary source comes from a direct interview with an SME or subject matter expert. A secondary source may be a book of some sort with research about the subject but not directly from the subject. As a technical writer, you will do research and do a lot of it.

Ability to Break Down Concepts

This ability is like a muscle; you learn as you go. The beauty of being a technical writer lies in learning; this is how you will gain those skills needed to explain complex topics to different skill levels seeking to read your documentation.

Use Plain Language

Avoid heavy use of jargon. In fact, with technical writing, we should not aim to make text difficult for the reader. To improve the readability of your technical documentation (this can vary), please refer to W3C's Reading Level Criteria. Remember that readability is not a one-fits-all when writing technical documentation and content.

English Writing Skills

To get started in technical writing, you do not have to have the best writing skills in English; however, it is important to be proficient in English. If you do not feel confident in your English writing skills, work on that by going through an English course. Invest in yourself!

I would highly recommend checking out Vitor Paladini's article that gives excellent English writing tips for non-native English speakers.

Understand that practice and writing drafts are a part of the process. It's called writing for a reason.

Where to Post Your Writing ⁉️

The question often asked: should I post on different writing platforms or create my own blog?

Both.

As someone just getting started, I am a fan of the idea of posting to multiple platforms. The point as a beginner is to gain exposure and practice your writing.

Blogging Platforms:

• Hashnode
• Dev.to
• Medium
• Hackernoon

Or, you can choose to host yourself through GitHub Pages or Netlify!

Writing Topic Ideas ✍🏼

Now, what to write? 🤔

Great question!

Here are some suggested topic ideas:

• Write about a time you struggled with learning new technology.
• Write about your favorite tech tool of the month (ex., productivity tools).
• Write about your desire to get into technical writing and what tools you have used (Hint hint: I am doing this now).
• Write about technology trends in 2022.

Build a Portfolio & Market Yourself 📂

I'll admit that this is the one piece that I struggle with: how do I share my work and what counts as a portfolio (especially if the work I've done is to remain confidential)?

So far, I have created a Notion page that has a gallery of all of my technical writing work available to the public.

What's more important is that you have a diverse portfolio. Refer to the 10+ Types of Technical Writing listed above in this post.

Getting Paid to Write

This section is coming from personal experience as a new technical writer, and it will possibly change over time.

Here is a list of programs that offer paid technical writing opportunities:

• Cold Email (just saying ...)

• Paying technical writers in the range of \$200 to \$600 per article | @The_GreatBonnie

• Who Pays Technical Writers? | @philip_kiely

• Learn How to Go From 0 to Paid Articles | @catalinmpit

⭐️ Quick Bonus Tips for Beginners:

• 🖊 Keep a pen and small notebook on you constantly.
  • I enjoy using notebooks from Moleskine!
• 📁 Create a bookmark folder that keeps track of your writing resources.
• ✍🏼 Create a circle of friends like you --- writers spend time with other writers. Check out the writing community full of talented writers Inked-In and their Discord.
• Use Grammarly or Hemmingway to check basic spelling and grammatical errors.
  • Shout out to Grammarly for helping me with their affordable plan!
• Choose to share what you learn in public --- I made Learning in Public a shared experience for the people that follow me and me.
• ✅ Practice. A lot.
• 📆 Schedule out your writing!
• Build your bio. This does not mean conforming to corporate but it does mean making it uniform. Have all the important information on all sites that you frequent and socialize on!
• Check out Microsoft's Style Guide to improve any technical writing you will do.
• Get feedback and critiques --- it was hard initially not to take critiques personally but remember, it's not about being the best writer; it's about producing helpful content!
• And remember, technical writing is needed in many STEM fields, not just software development!
  • Think Cybersecurity and Information Security as well!

Outro:

Thank you for taking the time to read, and please don't forget to give it a thumbs-up and other emojis! 🎉

Feel free to reach out to me on Twitter! To stay in the loop, sign up for my newsletter, Let's Get Technical

References:

• Technical writing vs. technical content writing

• What is readability, and why should content editors care about it?

• Someone who inspires me greatly, Amruta Ranade | @AmrutaRanade

My Gratitudes:

• To Portia, the one who got me into technical writing and took a chance on me

• To Godswill for inviting me to my first Twitter Space that helped me gain confidence

• To Duane for reviewing the first Hashnode article that I had ever posted

• To Angel, an awesome SWE who has always remained the same in heart and spirit towards me