What is Technical Writing
Technical writing can be defined as,
“A method of researching and creating information about technical processes or products”.
The main objective of technical writing is to present the hardcore technical information to the non technical people in a way that it is easy to understand and follow.
Uses of Technical Writing
Technical writing is commonly used to create brochures, newsletters, instruction manuals on how to use a specific electronic/chemical product, product descriptions and various marketing and promotional materials Hence it broadly falls into the category and advertising and marketing copywriting.
Technical writing is totally different from essay and creative writing. It is a misconception that technical writing is too stiff and mechanical. However, there are a few basic characteristics of technical writing, which you must understand before making your mind to create technical write ups.
Best Fields for Technical Writers
Nowadays, technical writers are a lot in demand. Due to the constantly emerging new and innovative technological products; websites, blogs and companies require technical writers who could create product manuals and FAQs for their customers.
Best fields for technical writers are technology, product reviews, instruction manuals, online magazine and blog networks.
Types of Technical Writing
Technical writing can be broadly divided into the following kinds:
Legal
Medical
Scientific
Mechanical
Business
Expository
Properties of Technical Writing
Accuracy
One of the essential characteristics of technical writing is maintaining accuracy. If you are writing a review of a newly launched Nokia mobile phone and you miss on one important detail, this will convey the customers that there is nothing special about this product and they would buy another mobile phone instead. Technical writing requires that the information you provide is based on accuracy and quality content.
Clarity
Write the technical document in a layman’s tone so that the customers who are not really techie fans are also able to understand what the product is all about. Try cutting down on the use of jargons because again, this is going to confuse the customers. Keep your language and expression simple and meaningful. Use of complicated words may put the readers in a quandary.
Descriptiveness
Be as descriptive in distinguishing the technical product as you can. More than half of the customers come from a non technical background and they need to have sufficient details otherwise they will not be able to picture the product correctly. If you are creating a manual for an electronic product which explains how to operate it, make sure you cover every aspect of its functioning.
Correctness
Technical writing requires that you use correct grammar and sentence structure. Write down the key features in the form of headings, sub headings or bullet points as this will make the manual easy for the customers to read.
Feisty Ash has written this article. Visit writing tips to read more about characteristics of technical writing.