Many companies got a taste of a pandemic-induced distributed workforce. As we know, many have opted to make it a permanent part of working life. There are various responses to this. Tech writers are uniquely suited to successful remote work. “Businesses don’t need a physical office space with four walls to create a company culture.” …
As a tech writer, have you written a pillar page? The first time I heard the term, it was called something else. Pillar pages and their sub pages have a lot of different terms, but no matter what you call it, in this post I’ll discuss what it is, how long it is, and how …
As I went through both professional certification for technical communication and then a master’s degree program early in my career, I learned that a lot of specialized skills make a good tech writer. A well-rounded tech writer is going to be agile in all forms of communication, including project management, visual displays of information, and …
Writing and editing are two different functions. Many tech writers can do both — I know I’m not alone in being able to move between both roles as a professional. I have worked as a technical writer and a technical editor at different times. Both tech writers and editors can belong to the Society for …
What makes a good case study? I’m often asked to put together a case study with starting information that varies. I might have a solution that was provided by a company, but not the starting question. I might have a good opening statement, but not a result. As I say often, every document depends on …
Technical writing is about communication, which is also the foundation of graphic design. I’ve long been a follower of Edward Tufte’s work, which discusses the nexus of technical communication and good design. Some of the best examples are in Tufte’s book Visual and Statistical Thinking (Graphic Press LLC, 1997) in his chapter, “Displays of Evidence …
Often I’ll see job postings for technical writers that prefer them to have engineering degrees. I recently saw an article on what makes an ideal tech writer offer this advice: “Have at least a bachelor’s degree in a technical field such as Computer Science or Engineering. Or, if you have a degree in a non-technical …
A solution brief is a marketing-oriented document that skates the line between a technical and sales document. It’s a highly useful document for the right audience. Solution briefs are often confused with case studies or the more broadly termed “sales sheet.” And it’s also sometimes called a white paper. First things first The first thing …