Technical Writing Tips

Technical writing is a specialized field which not only- Ask someone to proof read your material who
demandsan in depth knowledge of the subject onrepresents thereading audience.
which you are writing,but also a good command of the- Add a glossary if necessary for your technical terms.
written language. A common maingoal is to translateOrplace short explanations of the terms in brackets
tec-speak into everyday familiar jargon forthe averagewithin thepiece.
reader. In other words, your content needs to- When possible, incorporate examples and illustrations
beunderstood.toget your points across.
To help keep technical translation plain and simple, here- If your data is complicated use graphs, diagrams and
aresome tips:or flowcharts to make it visually expressive.
- Plan ahead. Determine the main focus, i.e. what the- Experiment with different software to enhance
readersneed to learn from your content. Ask yourself,yourpresentations. For example, add audio / video.
what are theirexpectations from the article?There are excellent technical writing books out there.
- Take care to match your content to the level ofCheckwith your local public library for some and on
knowledge ofthe audience. Dont underestimate yourAndbroaden the scope of your projects with good
audience and write downto them. But do watch thetechnical writingskills.
level of your tec-speak.You can also head to Content Propulsion Lab.