Author Topic: Any techical writers here?  (Read 3747 times)

Bartleby_the_Scrivener

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Any techical writers here?
« on: February 08, 2016, 08:23:14 PM »
I keep hearing here and elsewhere that I should consider technical writing. After exchanging e-mails with a technical writer at an engineering firm (he told me about his day-to-day responsibilities), I am pretty confident I could learn the job well. If anyone here has experience in technical writing (especially in hiring technical writers) and would like to share, I'd be appreciative.

  • Do you have any general tips for breaking into the field?
  • I see that the Society for Technical Communication has a certification program. Is that worth spending roughly $500 to obtain?
  • Some local colleges, including the community college near me, offer basic courses in technical writing. Would that be worth the money?

Again, I am grateful for any perspective people have to offer. My other thread, although it led me away from coding, was really helpful in determining where to spend my time and resources.
« Last Edit: June 13, 2019, 08:43:05 PM by Bartleby_the_Scrivener »

gliderpilot567

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Re: Let's try again: any techical writers here?
« Reply #1 on: February 08, 2016, 08:42:47 PM »
Following. this question would help me as well. I write plenty of technical reports, manuals, test plans, etc in the course of my day job, and would be interested in technical writing as a part time or freelance endeavor.

Parizade

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Re: Let's try again: any techical writers here?
« Reply #2 on: February 09, 2016, 04:07:26 AM »
I started my career life as a technical writer, my degree is in Scientific and Technical Communications. As I grew in that profession I slowly morphed into business analysis, which suits my personality even better and pays more (Forbes identified it as one of the highest paid work from home positions).

Technical writing is a good career, business analysis is better IMHO

2Cent

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Re: Let's try again: any techical writers here?
« Reply #3 on: February 09, 2016, 05:44:15 AM »
You could gain demonstrable experience and visibility by contributing to open source projects. Most of those are run by programmers who don't like to write documentation.

boy_bye

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Re: Let's try again: any techical writers here?
« Reply #4 on: February 09, 2016, 01:04:11 PM »
I started my career life as a technical writer, my degree is in Scientific and Technical Communications. As I grew in that profession I slowly morphed into business analysis, which suits my personality even better and pays more (Forbes identified it as one of the highest paid work from home positions).

Technical writing is a good career, business analysis is better IMHO

This is exactly what I did, though I went through tech writer, QA, support, and implementation before I got to BA.

I don't have any certifications ... but I do have the ability to quickly understand problems, to think through solutions deeply, and to communicate my thoughts. Getting hired as a tech writer is a great way to get to know a domain and a project team, and if you catch on quickly it's easy to expand from there.

Lanthiriel

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Re: Any techical writers here?
« Reply #5 on: February 09, 2016, 01:13:14 PM »
I've given this advice before, but you should look into professional services marketing for the architecture/engineering/construction industry. There are tons of journalism and English majors in this profession. Very few people know about this field, so there is often a dearth of decent applications. I am hiring a Marketing Coordinator for my firm right now, and I would hire anyone who came in with a decent writing background and a working knowledge of desktop publishing. If you want to know more, PM me or Google your local Society for Marketing Professional Services (SMPS) chapter.

TrMama

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Re: Let's try again: any techical writers here?
« Reply #6 on: February 09, 2016, 01:14:31 PM »
I'm a tech writer, though I kind of fell into it. Although I really like the career, I didn't make an intentional decision to pursue it, so I'm not much help with advice on "breaking in". It's a career that pays moderately well and didn't require any extra schooling beyond my BSc.

To answer your questions:

I wouldn't bother with the certification. IME companies hire tech writers because their clients demand documentation. Otherwise, most wouldn't bother with the expense and they don't think much about what makes a good tech writer. As long as you can produce the documents that the client wants, your employer won't care about what certs you have. My impression is that the certs are just cash grabs. Showing that you are self-motivated and can work with the absolute least amount of supervision/direction are more important.

Yes, take some tech writing courses. This actually will help you produce good documents. You need to know both how to write, how to get info out of subject matter experts and how to use the various tech writing applications. Since you already have a journalism degree, I'd focus on that last one.


Parizade

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Re: Let's try again: any techical writers here?
« Reply #7 on: February 09, 2016, 01:49:48 PM »
I've looked at all of the colleges near me that have anywhere near affordable tuition, but none of them offers a specific degree in technical communications. Are there any online programs worth looking into?

Business analysis sounds interesting, but I don't have currently the skills to succeed in that field, whereas I do have a lot of experience writing about complex topics for generalized audiences.

A journalism degree is an excellent foundation for technical writing, if you can take a class that is specific to technical writing that should be sufficient education to get started. By all means join STC for the networking, and if it's really only $500 for certification I would consider it if you are having trouble getting that first job. But go to the meetings and volunteer for anything, and tell everyone you meet there that you are looking for an entry level opening. The networking will be more valuable than the certification.

ImCheap

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Re: Any techical writers here?
« Reply #8 on: February 09, 2016, 01:58:38 PM »
For the love of god, anyone wanting to become a technical writer please learn the topic you write about first.

Having working in the construction engineering field for 25+ years I can tell after about the first 3 pages of a 600 page specification if the writer has a clue. To add insult to injury that 600 page specification could be cut to 300 pages and save everyone a pile of time and trees as half the crap does not apply as the writer is just clueless so they leave it in. I would say about 10 years ago it started to show its ugly head, does not seem to be getting any better.

At one time a person would spend 5+ years drawing plans before they even let them look a spec book, again I'm looking at this from a building construction perspective, other fields may differ.

cambridgecyclist

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Re: Any techical writers here?
« Reply #9 on: February 09, 2016, 02:56:29 PM »
   I have experience hiring technical writers. One of the teams I manage does documentation and training.


  • Do you have any general tips for breaking into the field?


   As a hiring manager, I'm looking for a degree in communications, English, journalism or equivalent work experience. If you have no prior experience, then I need to be looking for an entry level candidate first and foremost. If you have similar experience that could be applicable, then my job opening should be for a junior or low intermediate position. Also, I need to assess how close your similar experience is to the core responsibilities of a technical writer so that I can evaluate how much more ramp-up time you'll need as compared to someone who has a firm foundation in technical writing. I'd balance this against other strengths you may bring to the position that a technical writer generalist might not have. For example, if the material we're documenting is software-related, and you have a journalism degree but have been writing for software journals, I'd weigh that industry-specific experience in your favor against the possibility that it might take you a little longer to ramp up on the finer points of manipulating the English language.
  After reading your original post in this thread a few times, I can't determine what your field your previous experience between getting your degree and secondary education was. However, if you have experience as a teacher, that is a strong point in your favor if you will be producing training documentation, especially if it is related to the field you were teaching in. I would not discount any experience you have, even volunteer experience, if it can be connected to the job opening.
  In contrast to a previous post I wouldn't expect a technical writer to have experience in the field they are writing about. That would be a unicorn. Also, if someone has substantial experience in a technical discipline they are normally not foregoing the higher salary from an advanced position in a technical field to seek out a job in writing.
  Apart from all of this I need someone smart and curious. An inherent and established interest in figuring out what makes the world tick is a core skillset for a technical writer. They must be constantly driven to learn new things.
  Finally, expect to be asked for writing samples. Provide high quality writing samples that are representative or related to the type of documentation you'd be producing.
  And please, please make sure there are no typos or grammatical mistakes in your resume, cover letter or writing sample. That is an automatic rejection.

  • I see that the Society for Technical Communication has a certification program. Is that worth spending roughly $500 to obtain?

  No.

  • Some local colleges, including the community college near me, offer basic courses in technical writing. Would that be worth the money?

  Maybe. I'd consider economically priced courses that fill skills gaps that would be obvious to a hiring manager. Taking a course doesn't count as much as real world experience but it does provide better footing.
  I also suggest looking for volunteer writing opportunities, perhaps in local journalism, or self-publishing a short e-book, or producing a newsletter for a local community organization. These are good ways of getting some writing experience that have a low barrier to entry.

o2bfree

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Re: Any techical writers here?
« Reply #10 on: February 09, 2016, 04:53:49 PM »
I've been a tech writer for some 20 years, and have a degree in Scientific and Technical Communication. Probably could have done this job without the degree, but may not have gotten hired at the company I wanted to work for. Over the years, the company has had a couple writers without TW degrees who've moved from technical or marketing jobs, either because they wanted to move or because their old job was eliminated and they wanted to stay with the company. One technical guy ended up getting fired, partly because he was careless and ignored processes, causing extra work for others who had to deal with his files, and partly because he was difficult to work with. The marketing guy did fine, eventually retiring from the writing position.

I think a journalism degree is a great background for tech writing. It shows that you enjoy researching and explaining things, and that you care about expressing yourself clearly. You might benefit from some tech writing courses to see different ways technical material can be organized and presented to suit intended audiences. That'll give you some material for your portfolio, too.

You probably have some DTP experience, but if you've worked mainly with a word processor, I'd suggest you get comfortable with a DTP application such as FrameMaker, InDesign, or QuarkXPress.

Something else: Many tech writing jobs involve dealing with translations. This involves knowing how to write and lay out material for translation into different languages, how to prepare files for translation, deal with translation agencies, and work with translated files. I work for an international company, and on most projects spend at least a quarter of my time dealing with translations. Larger companies may have a separate position for this, but it's still useful to know what it entails so you can help keep translation costs down by writing easily-translatable English.

Also, many tech writing jobs these days require some programming skills, for example, in HTML, XML, and Cascading Style Sheets (CSS) if you'll do online help for apps. It might help if you're at least familiar with these.

Tech writing is a great career with lots of opportunities. Hope you find a position that works for you!

GreenQueen

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Re: Any techical writers here?
« Reply #11 on: February 09, 2016, 08:32:16 PM »
Thanks for all the helpful information.

BFGirl

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Re: Any techical writers here?
« Reply #12 on: February 11, 2016, 10:00:51 PM »
I've considered trying to get into technical writing when I retire.  I have an English degree and a law degree so I have a lot of writing experience.  I considered getting a Master's in technical writing, but went to law school instead.  Think I'd have a shot?