Tech Biz Writing

Technical writing and editing are, in today’s world, key skills for information technology (IT). Information technology, by definition, is concerned with the communication of information; technical writing with the presentation of technical information. The two go hand in hand; the one almost impossible without the other. In an integrated world, even the most word-shy of individuals has to get a grasp of the simple principles of writing and editing. Technical writing is not just a small subset of the written universe. In these times, it has become a very large subset indeed.

Technical writing is a complex amalgam of activities that largely arises from a trade (or profession) traditionally known as “technical authorship”. Although the term technical author sounds rather grand to modern ears, especially when reviewing a typical technical manual, it’s still used in many fields. In this course, we shall generally use “author” to describe the writer of a substantial work — a manual, say; and “writer” for the producer of shorter works, such as articles, video scripts &c.

This entry appears in the Shorter Oxford Dictionary:

Author 1. gen. The person who originates or gives existence to anything: a. An inventor, constructor, or founder. b. (of all, etc.) The Creator (Middle English). c. He who gives rise to an action, event, circumstance, or state of things. d. The prompter or instigator — 1656.
2. spec. One who begets; a father, an ancestor (still used in Author of his being).
3. esp. and absol. One who sets forth written statements: the writer or composer of a treatise or book…
4. An authority, an informant.

A satisfactory definition of technical author, however, requires a little more caution. Technical writers rarely instigate the work they perform — though there are exceptions. In the great majority of cases they are asked by a manufacturer or Government department, for example, to produce the supporting documentation for an industrial or military product in its final pre-production stages. The department or organization is the editorial and validating authority, and the author becomes part of the project team.

Occasionally, they may find a flaw in the design logic, or an inconsistency in the maintenance philosophy, but they are still not the authors of the project. A technical author is often an outsider, having been hired or recruited at the last moment. Nonetheless they have their own special part to play, and to the end-user of the equipment, they will be as important as the chief engineer.

Of the dictionary definition which began this introduction, all that remains to a technical writer is paragraph 3: One who sets forth written statements: the writer or composer of a treatise or book. For accuracy we should include the word “technical” in there also.

There are some technical writers who do originate their own material, and who fall into category 4: an authority, an informant. These are the writers of general technical books, educational textbooks, or articles for the scientific press. Our definition should be wide enough to include their work and that of all who engage in the writing of technical and scientific material.

A technical writer, then, may be said to fall within four definite categories:

* A writer working in the technical publications department of a manufacturing company or governmental ministry.
* A writer working for a specialist product support company.
* A freelance technical writer.
* A writer, occasional or otherwise, of technical books, reports, or presentations, who may also be a manager, a student, or an engineer.

This course is written with all these practitioners in mind, and not simply for those in the broad center of technical writing.

Beyond the problems of definition, two other questions may concern the prospective writer:

Firstly, it’s job, not a special calling. Efficiency always precedes inspiration.

Secondly, a writer may meet and deal with a wider mix of the population than many others in more apparently mobile occupations. A list of professionals a writer could have contact with might include:

* Managers
* Designers
* Engineers
* Maintenance operatives
* Technical layout draftspeople
* Tracers
* Printers
* Technical copy typists/processors
* Document copyists and repro staff
* Technical illustrators
* Photographers
* Editors

And last, but never least, that most agreeable of persons, the reader, who may include some, and occasionally all, of the above.

Technical and scientific communication is a very wide subject. So wide it is hardly a “subject” at all. There are, of course, many ways to communicate. Nowadays, words appear in printed material, on-screen: CD ROMs/DVDs, video, the internet etc — or as the spoken word in film, audio-visual presentations &c. The creation of the text is the job of the technical writer and editor. The delivery methods are usually the problems of others, but not always. As most technical texts appear first in print form, however, we take a look at the production process of manuals and books.

Today’s technology also includes the Internet. Technical writers are sometimes asked to provide website content, and are occasionally asked to advise on website design. Some knowledge of writing for the Internet is therefore provided together with basic coverage of website content and context.

Next: 1. Overview of the Field

This entry was posted on Thursday, April 20th, 2006 at 10:03 am and is filed under Technical Writing, Business Writing, Publishing. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.