Technical Writing: No Room for Egos

When you are a technical writer or you want to be one, the first rule is this: It's not about you! But if you balk at this, you'll be sorely disappointed. And honestly, technical writing isn't for you.

Not All Writers Are Equal

 
Technical writing is a writing role where you are there to serve others. You are not writing something that emanates from your muse or your inner author. If you want to do this, then move on to creative writing. No slight at authors. I have great respect for some authors. I enjoy their works and learn from them. They can craft masterpieces, which is something I don't think I can do. My hat goes off to them. But these authors, as far as I know, are not technical writers. They do their thing. I do mine. We are just different. There's no comparison. As writers, we just have our own place in this world.

Writing For Others

As a technical writer, you are documenting something for another person.  It's about using your writing abilities to help them. You put your desires and agendas aside for your audience.

One of the first steps to writing a document is understanding who is your audience. Knowing your audience is the foundation in technical writing. If you don't serve your audience well or don't care at all, then the document will reflect that. Technical writing wouldn't exist if we had no audience to serve.

As a technical writer, you get no credit from the audience or even from the organization you are writing for. Almost always, there's no byline. You are basically a ghostwriter for the organization who wants to reach out to their audience. You do the work and they get the credit. That's how it is. Is it unfair? Yes. But remember: It's not about you!

I'll get into this more later on.

This Reluctant Calling Changed My Thinking

But first, I have a confession: I hated the idea of being a technical writer. Many years ago, I tried my hand as a journalist. I was told numerous times by editors journalism wasn't for me. They said I would be better suited as a technical writer because I wrote in a dry and matter-of-fact prose.  When I heard this, I was insulted. But this "insult" made me take a look into the mirror as to why I was writing in the first place. Unfortunately, I was writing for the wrong motives. I wanted my name out there and wanted to glorify myself. But God had other plans. After my fruitless pursuit in journalism, I reluctantly went into technical writing and the rest is history.

It used to bother me that I didn't see my name on a user manual or a brochure. It wasn't until I realized technical writing wasn't about me. It's about others. When I realized I wanted to help others through my writing, I was able to fully embrace this, quite frankly, weird form of writing.

Wear This Freakish Badge with Honor

Authors, such as Kurt Vonnegut, had keen insight about technical writers. Vonnegut aptly describes this strange form of writing:

"... technical writers are trained to reveal almost nothing about themselves in their writing. This makes them freaks in the world of writers, since almost all of the other ink-stained wretches in that world reveal a lot about themselves to the reader."

Though you don't reveal anything about yourself when you write, you use your writing to impact countless lives. You help those you may never meet by showing them or how to do something or informing about them some vital (maybe life saving) information. You may never know who you helped but you've helped them nonetheless. So wear this freakish badge with honor. And, stay humble as you write along.
 

Abandon Greatness and Seek a Servant's Heart

This may be contrarian when I say this: But to be a good technical writer, you must abandon any hopes of greatness. Rather, seek a servant's heart. Greatness and technical writing don't go together. When I mean by greatness, I don't mean great work. You should definitely strive to write a document well. What I mean by greatness is the potential prestige and fame like of a best-selling author or some well-known journalist. Sorry, it just doesn't happen with technical writing.

Technical writing is neither prestigious nor great. It's hard work where you get no substantial recognition for it. Others, like the big-wigs, get the credit or the fame while we remain in the shadows, faceless with our heads down typing away. And that's okay, let them bask in the glory. (Besides, if something goes wrong, they will get the brunt of the dissatisfaction.)

We are simply here to serve others. But don't forget: If you do this well, your writing has lasting, helpful effects on others more than the fleeting praises of fame and momentary pats on the back.

So which is better? Knowing you made a difference somewhere to help someone (maybe even saved someone's life) or hoping to get recognition and fame from others.

Knowing human nature, why would anyone want to fall prey to the Sirens called Fame, Recognition, and Prestige. One moment, the people sing you praise, heartily pat you on the back, and place you on a pedestal. The next moment, when you're enchanted with their song, they wedge a sharp, ugly blade deep into your back, twist it, and break it off at the hilt, and howl for your downfall. Then, proceed to slap you off your pedestal, where you fall to the ground and shatter into pieces. Then for the big finish, they jump on the shattered bits till you're nothing but powder.

I'd rather seek a servant's heart. For myself, I know God sees this and others get help they need, even though I rarely get a thank you for it. It gives me satisfaction I helped somebody, even if they don't know who I am. And if they saw me, they may say who's this schlub but that's okay. It's not about me. So, let me leave you with a snippet from the Gospel of Luke about how this world has it upside down.

A dispute also arose among them as to which one of them was to be regarded as the greatest.  But he [Jesus] said to them, “The kings of the Gentiles lord it over them; and those in authority over them are called benefactors. But not so with you; rather the greatest among you must become like the youngest, and the leader like one who serves.  For who is greater, the one who is at the table or the one who serves? Is it not the one at the table? But I am among you as one who serves."  — Luke 22:24-27 NRSV

Count All the Steps

When you read a set of instructions or a user guide and it doesn't make sense, you might be thinking someone is just writing a step-by-step so how they can screw this up. Well...you can.

When you create a set of instructions or a manual, you can easily overlook how many steps it takes to perform an action. This is especially true if you do something constantly. Whenever you're doing something all the time, you don't really think about the actual steps that go into it. I'm amazed how many things I miss before I get it right whenever I'm documenting something, including things I do all the time.

Whenever you have to write instructions, remember this: There's a lot more steps than you think. But this deceptively easy task isn't hopeless. You can document all the steps if you remember to count all the steps.

Here are some tips I found helpful when doing some good ole technical writing.

Write How You Naturally Do Something

If you're documenting how to do something, especially if it's something you do over and over, then just relax and simply write out the steps involved. This gives you a good starting point when you're writing a set of instructions or a manual. The keyword phrase to remember is "a good starting point."

Stop and Think

Once you've written out the steps, it's easy to move on. Don't! Stop and think. Ask yourself did I document all the steps needed. Forcing a mental pause will determine the difference between a great set of instructions where you actually help people to do something and ones people get frustrated with and toss to the side to try to figure it out for themselves.  They're coming to us for help when they read a manual. We have let sloppy instructions go out for far too long. This needs to stop.

Check Your Steps  

Once you made a mental pause, it's time to check your steps. To do this, simply go back to the first step and take it from there until you get to the last step. I have found when I go through each step, I end up adding a few more steps or revising ones what I wrote. And, there are even times when I have taken out some unnecessary steps. 

Keep going through the steps until you have documented everything. But how will you know when it's done? Well, if you wrote out every step and went through them, you will accomplish what you were intending to do. You should be able to assemble that product, installed that software, or performed that certain action. The point of steps to get the reader to the desired destination.

Pretend You're the Reader

Once you checked your steps, it's time to become the reader. Well...didn't you do that when check you the steps? Yes and No. You may have looked at the individual steps but not the whole picture of the document.

When you become the reader, take it from the top and ask yourself two questions. One, is this right information for me? Two, are these instructions helpful?

Am I (as the reader) a technical professional or a layperson? This helps knowing what kind of steps or information should be in the document.

Even though you should ask yourself who are my readers before you put pen to notepad or keystroke to keyboard to create a document, you need to ask yourself this question again as you're reading to make sure you didn't miss the point of the document. This should be the first question you should ask yourself.

Once you do that, you can ask yourself if these instructions are actually helpful. Are the steps easy to follow? Are they accurate? Does the document easily flow from one topic to another? Are the graphics in the instructions easy to see or they fuzzy or overwhelming? Is the font easy on the eyes? These things play into the fact to ask yourself if these instructions are helpful.

Also, if you can, try reading out the steps and text out loud. When you do this, you'll be surprised at what you catch. If it sounds awkward, you can make whatever changes you need.

If the steps you wrote don't address the right kind of readers or are not helpful, then this document is nowhere close to going out. Make sure you fix this before you publish them. 

The world doesn't need another set of unhelpful set of instructions or a hard-to-understand user guide.

Brewing Coffee 

Okay, I have done enough talking about this. Now, let me show you a set of instructions on how to do something seemingly simple but actually involves quite bit of steps—Brewing coffee. I didn't realize how many steps were involved until I wrote them. Please check the document below.

A Piece of Paper Doesn't Define You

Oh boy!  I'll probably get into trouble either way in what I'm about to say. But I don't want to shrink back from it. So, here it goes: As a writer, you're not defined by the piece of paper(s) you hold. As a writer, you're defined by your ability to write.

In other words, you don't need a permission slip from a group of academic and professional elites after you've done their rituals of listening and genuflecting before them to perform the craft that you feel called to do. You just need to write and be willing to learn on how to get better.

Best Advice I Got

The best advice I ever read to become a writer, which ironically was when I read a book during my college days, was "If you want to be a writer, then write." That's it! If you really want to write, then just write. It doesn't matter how. You just do it.

What about....

Now, some may instantly object and say, "You can't just write in a notepad or on a device and expect to live off that. What about X, Y, and Z." Of course, there are some crucial steps you need to take when you're trying to make a living off writing. I'm not saying you should just leave your writing within the pages of your notepad, a tucked away manuscript, or on your device. That would be beyond utterly ridiculous.

But, if you're just writing for yourself, or for fun, or it's just a part of the many tasks for your job, you don't need to worry. You just need to keeping writing. Keep it up. In some ways, you're in a better place than many writers. You don't have to carry the burden many writers wear when this is all they have to make a living.

What I'm saying is none of the business aspects, educational requirements, or certifications matter if you can't write or you're not willing to write.

Getting a college degree in some kind of writing doesn't make you a writer. Talking about becoming a writer, especially ad nauseam, doesn't make you a writer. Reading about writing and getting all the books about it doesn't make you a writer. Knowing how to use certain software or programming language doesn't make you a writer. What makes you a writer is that you just write. If you want to write, then write. Yes. I'm aware I'm repeating myself but I'm stressing a point.

Hang On

I'm also not saying you shouldn't go to college. For some forms of writing like being a medical writer, science writer, or even some forms of technical writing, you need a good education in the field(s) you're writing about. But it's not about the writing at all. It's about do you have actual knowledge, training, and experience in such and such area of expertise. Sometimes, having this education and training is a difference between life or death. So, you can't be someone who only went to high school but decide one day you really want to write medical and scientific reports. It doesn't work that way. You can't be anything you want by whim. But don't let those limitations stop you from writing.

What I'm saying is you don't need to go to college to become a writer.

Move Forward Despite Limitations

If you've decided to be a writer but you don't have the time nor money to further your education or it would be utterly irresponsible to do so, you can still go for it. Write. Despite some real limitations, there are plenty of ways to break into this. You might not be able to getting into certain fields of writing but there are plenty of other things you can write about. With writing, the possibilities are probably endless. 

Don't Compare

To writers who have a college degree, don't look down on writers don't have any. To writers who don't have a college degree, don't feel less than or feel like a fraud.  You're worth more than that. I believe you're made in the image of God just like every human being on this planet. But also don't look at those who have degrees with envy or with disdain. You don't know how difficult the journey was for that writer to pursue that degree. We need to embrace each other as writers, regardless of background.

Also, don't feel like just because you don't hold a candle to such and such writer, then you're no good. Ridiculous! You're not to going to be like that writer because you're not that person. We are all different. How boring would be it if we all wrote the same way.

Comparing ourselves is not only pointless but destructive. I kept making this mistake till I had to stop with the nonsense.

Not an Either Or Choice

Writing also doesn't have to be an either or choice. For example, you can still be a tradesman or service worker and be a writer. Don't quit your day job if you need to put food on the table for your family and just writing isn't going to cut it. Keep your day job, even if you have to put writing on hold to make ends meat. You can always pick it up at a better time. Also, your experiences, including your day job, can help you with writing.

Dedication is the Key but Seek Wisdom

Writing is a skill you get better at it the more times you do it. Free writing in a notepad constantly will really help you. Writing's like exercise or learning martial arts. If you want to stay in shape, you must do the exercise. If you want to get better as a martial artist, then you must go to the dojo as much as you can and constantly practice what you've learned from your teacher. You need to approach writing the same way. It's about dedication.

If you need help, especially with writing nonfiction, seek out some good resources. If you need writing fiction, you can try Writer's Digest or you can try this approach, which I think is very helpful.  (I'm not a fiction writer. I'm a technical writer. So my knowledge on where to go on fiction writing is limited but I hope these resources can help you.)

If you're able to, try connecting with other writers out there. Take some writing courses, if you can. Finally, if you're looking for freelance writing work, then go to some good job boards. But a word of advice, stay away from content mills. From personal experience, there are not only exploitative but a big waste of your time.

Practice. Practice. Practice. Write. Write. Write.  Read. Read. Read. This is what you need to do. The next steps will take care of itself.

Strange Creatures

People are truly strange creatures. They will disappoint you. They will turn on you. They will abandon you. They will unfriend you, using FB terms, even if you've done nothing to hurt them and have been there to support them.

However, there are those who will be there for you even when you don't expect it. The truest friends may be people you pass by each time and not give a second thought. Maybe they are different from you but will stand shoulder to shoulder with you when you need it. And those that are like you will leave you in the dust. Maybe the people you have dismissed already will actually be someone you can trust. Or, maybe some you thought you can trust ends up dismissing you.

You never know with people. People may surprise you whether for good or for bad.

And if you're married, the friendship you need to seek primarily is your spouse. He or she must be or become your best friend. Your spouse is your true confidant, your true partner, your friend who will be there all the other "friends" vanished into the ether. Friends will be there for a season. Your spouse will be for life. And, God will there be for eternity. 

Going back to others, people may drift apart because either one or both friends change. Or, maybe it has nothing to do with you but they have circumstances they are going through. Major life changes and shifts in direction greatly affect things. Or, it is simply the case that some people just don't click with each other. It is unfortunate but that's life. Who knows.

In any case, we need to be graceful and understand that people are just that, people. They are flawed and messy. And we are too.

Understanding this can help us understand why things we create are flawed and need refinement from time to time. This includes documentation. We can have a clear, well-written, and accurate document but it's not perfect. Guess what, it won't be.

The human experience is truly strange one indeed.

Putting Placeholders in your Life

There are times when you need to put a placeholder or two in your career. What I mean by that is when you're experiencing dry periods, it's time to take a job or two that may not be technical writing. Now I'm talking to those who are freelancers, independent contractors, or in between jobs. 

If you don't fall under these categories, that's okay. Feel free to follow along or just skip this post. If you do fall under these categories, it's a choice that you may need to make. It doesn't mean your career is over. It just means it's a stop-gap from going hungry.  Now here are some things that might help.

Don't be too proud

First off, don't be too proud to take any job. If months have gone by and you're not getting a bite, it's time you need to take a job to have food and shelter. If you think you're above it all, you won't get a job with that attitude. Be confident in your abilities but don't be arrogant. Attitude is a key factor in getting a job. 

Interviews may be determined on the tone of your voice and how you present yourself. Who wants to hire a pompous jerk? Sorry for being strong here. But seriously, who wants that except for other pompous jerks. However, I think pompous jerks can't even stand each other, so no luck there. 

If you think you're too good for a lowly service job, then you should stop reading and write me off as a hack. I can tell you this: arrogance doesn't help a writer grow. Having a humble and teachable heart does. 

But if you have a humble yet professional mindset, it will go a long way in landing a job.

 

Find a job that can use your abilities

If you need to find a job, then it would make life easier and more enjoyable if you find a job that uses some of your abilities. Brainstorm and come up with a list of jobs you would like to apply to. I'll give you a couple of examples.

Content writing is something you can easily take on since it's writing. If it wouldn't be hard leap to take, especially if you're writing technical content. The only problem with content writing, based on my experience, is that a lot of it is low pay, because there's a lot of content mills out there. 

I don't take a hard stand against content mills, because I write for them on occasion. A little money is better than no money. The issue I have with content mills is the amount of time you need to spend belting out an article or short for low pay. If you can find higher paying content writing gigs, go for it. If you do decide to go with content mills, than trying finding articles that won't take much effort or time to do. Remember your time and efforts are more important than money.

Another example is merchandising. Merchandising is similar to technical writing. They both are aiming to target a customer or an audience. They both have a process in organizing materials to create something orderly and easy-to-use. Merchandising uses an planogram to organize products or build a Point of Purchase (POP). Technical writing typically uses an outline to create documents. They both are detailed-orientated. They are both aim to foster relationships with the customers. They both use writing in some capacity. The big difference is that merchandising uses writing to create notes for internal use. Technical writing uses writing to create documents for external and internal use. 

The point is to search for a job were your skills are transferable. Not to mention, brainstorming of ideas helps you as a writer.

Don't take it personally, just be grateful

If you haven't gotten a technical writing gig in a while, don't take it personal. It's hard not to because it feels like nobody wants to hire you.  But there are other factors that we can't see like maybe companies are having budget problems or maybe they are unrealistically picky.

If you have a placeholder of a job, then don't think it's all you can get. This is just a season in your life. Just be grateful what you have. It's better than having nothing at all.

Work on honing your craft

Write. Write. Write. Writing anything during this time. This could anything from working on your cover letter or resume to starting a blog or a newsletter. Write a diary or a book if you want to.  In any case, your efforts aren't in vain. Your efforts are building up your craft, especially in the area of engaging your audience. The more you write, the more you hone your abilities as a writer.

New opportunities

Finally, take this dry period as a way to explore new opportunities. Maybe you can unlock your inner blogger or novelists during while you're working at the placeholder of a job. Or if you enjoy the placeholder job, then find writing positions in that field.

The point is to not see dry periods as just dry periods but opportunities to explore new avenues. 

Don't dare to compare

Whatever you do, don't compare to yourself to others as a technical writers. It doesn't matter whether you're trying to see if you're better or if you believe that you don't measure up to others, just don't do it. It will imprison you mentally and might affect your writing. Not to mention this is a waste of your time and energy.

There was a point in my career where I felt like a phony or a horrible technical writer because I don't have a BA. Due to some circumstances in my life, I couldn't go further in my higher education. So I settled for an AA, which I got after I became a technical writer.

When I saw other technical writers with a BA or MA, I felt very inadequate. This would get reinforced when I tried for other technical writing jobs but couldn't get them. It got worse when I saw other writers and focused on how they could write far better than me. And to top of it off, I would have some engineers who challenge me on grammar and style. I felt hopeless.

I would go to my office with my head down and would crouch in fear of engineers and others. My voice got shaky and uncertain. I was a mess for a while all because of these supposed points against me. Many times, I considered giving up not just technical writing, but writing all together.

Things were bleak until this Scripture verse came to my mind.

We do not dare to classify or compare ourselves with some who commend themselves. When they measure themselves by themselves and compare themselves with themselves, they are not wise. -- 2 Corinthians 10:12 NIV

As I kept thinking about this passage, I realized what I was by comparing to others was stupid and a waste of my time and energy. I realized I was my worst enemy. Other writers may write better than me. But so what? That's fine. Good for them. I'm not them and they are not me. And why was I assuming they are better? It could be their writing is just different. And that's good. It would be a very boring world if we all wrote the same way.

Writing is a thought process and we all think differently. The truth from this piece of Scripture started to break some light through the dark cloud over me. But the cloud was still there.

The next thing that made this dark cloud thin out was a book called Grammar Snobs Are Great Big Meanies by June Casagrande. This book was freeing for me. It showed that grammar and style are not always clear cut. Thanks June for writing such a much-needed book for us writers!

So whenever an engineer tried to challenge my editorial decisions, I wasn't threatened anymore. I would thank them for their feedback. I would change things if they were right or just simply better. If they were plain wrong or unnecessarily dogmatic, I would show them gently why I chose a certain way of saying things.

I may be a writer and know some principles of good grammar and style, but I don't know everything about it. I've even been wrong on things. Guess what? That's okay with me. As a writer, especially a technical writer, you have to be willing to learn and be humble about things.

The dark cloud was thin but still there. The last stronghold of my inferiority complex was my lack of a higher degree. It didn't lose its grip until others helped me see that my premise was faulty and nonsensical.

The dark cloud over me dissipated. I was free to pursue this simple adage: If you want to be a writer, then write.

A degree doesn't make a writer. It's what they write that makes them a writer. You can't trade experience for a piece of paper that says you're well-educated. In my humble opinion, real-world experience is more valuable than a degree.

Now for those of you who have BAs and MAs, God bless you. No one can take away the hard work and perseverance you put into getting that degree.

I have no regrets except one: the amount of days, weeks, months, and years I spent beating myself.

Technical Writer, a misnomer

Here goes my rant about technical writing:

What is a technical writer? A writer who writes about technical things? I guess. I don't know. It seems that what considered technical writing is a complete misnomer. Why do I say this? It seems based on the many years of experience I have, I do very little original writing. At very best, it seems I can get write in the holes to make up for missing content. Most of the time, it just seems I am spending designing documents, proofreading, editing or rewriting muddied content.

Maybe I'm being picky but when I think about technical writing, it should be about writing technical content from scratch. This should be done by research, or interviewing SME, or both. But the fact that most of time, I don't get to write original content most of the time really calls into question the moniker known as "technical writer."

And if you want to write original technical content, then you need to be a programmer or an engineer. If that's the case, then these SME should write, revise, edit, design, and publish their documents themselves. Other than proofreading, rewriting the content, if needed, and designing the document, what do they need us for?

I wonder half the time, if I'm an actually a writer or a technical typist with style (now, there's a job title). But at the end of the day, it doesn't matter. I get paid to do what I do, when I do it.

I'm not being a crybaby for not writing original content most of the time. I don't mind doing what I do. I actually enjoy it. I'm merely calling in question the label "technical writer."

Maybe other terms like "content auditor" or "technical rewriter" would be better terms. I would be fine with using terms that exists already like "document designer", "technical editor," or "documentation specialists". I think these are better terms to describe to what we do, but the term technical writer, I dunno.

Maybe you're experience is different than mine. If you have written original technical content, then great. I have written ghostwritten original tech content as well. But to most, it wouldn't be considered technical writing. I'm just saying, unless you're writing original technical content, I think it's time to rethink this job label: technical writer.