Tag Archives: Career

Career, Technical Writing

The Technical Writer’s Struggle in Office Space

Posted on by Fionn
27
Jun

In the movie Office Space, Tom Smykowski (played by Richard Riehle) writes technical manuals for the software company. His job as a technical writer becomes a point of discussion in the film, particularly when he tries to justify his role in the company by explaining that he takes the specifications from the customers and brings them to the software engineers.

If you’re a technical writer, you’ll relate to Tom’s dilemma. For Tom the struggle wasn’t the nature of his job, rather how to explain the value of his writing activities during HR reviews. So how can you approach this?

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Career, Technical Writing

Do you have a technical writer’s personality?

Posted on by Fionn
25
Jun

10 Signs you have a technical writer’s personality
If you’re thinking of moving into tech docs, here’s a list of things to consider.
There’s no priority to the items I’ve listed here. For me, these are some of the traits you’ll need to enjoy a career in technical writing.

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API, Career, CHAT-GPT, Technical Writing

Why AI is creating a growing demand for Technical Writers

Posted on by Fionn
22
Jun

If you’re considering a career in technical writing, specializing in AI documentation offers promising career opportunities. I’d recommend that you create 30-day plans to go deep into the technologies to give yourself and edge over other writers and carve out a lucrative career in this area. Here’s how to get started.

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Career

Who Makes More Money? Technical Writers with Language or IT Skills?

Posted on by Fionn

Kai raised an interesting point about which skill (writing/technical) takes longer to master. Knowing how to structure and present information to users? Or knowing how to use a product or application? That got me thinking. If you want to make money as a technical writer, which area should you focus on? Sharpen your writing skills or deepen your technical knowledge, for example, learning how to document an API?

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Technical Writing

Stephen King Can Make You A Better (Technical) Writer

Posted on by Fionn

Scott says, “If you want to improve as a writer, you not only need to write. You need to read. Writing and reading are two sides of the same coin. You need to do both to achieve your potential.” I head downtown most weekends and buy 2 or 3 books, mostly business, history and some fiction. Every so often I run out of options (we’re in Beijing) and get something I usually wouldn’t buy, for example, Iain M Banks. Reading outside my comfort zone stretches me. I encounter writing styles, opinions, and information that I usually side-step.

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Career

A Day in the Life of a Home-Based Technical Writer

Posted on by Fionn

Thinking of starting a career as a Technical Writer? I’ve worked in Technical Writing for over fifteen years, mostly as a freelancer. Here’s an outline of a typical day when working from home. FYI – I wrote this last thing at night, so the grammar may not be perfect. But, it will give you an […]

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Career, Content Management, How To

How Technical Writers Can Move Further Up The Food Chain

Posted on by Fionn

Do you feel loved? Many technical writers feel unloved. They feel they don’t get the respect they deserve. I hear this on LinkedIn and Facebook: “people don’t respect the work I do.” Well, if that’s the case, here are a few ways to get more respect and move into a more rewarding career.

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Career, How To, Jobs

Who Makes More Money – Technical Writers with Language or Technical Skills?

Posted on by Fionn

Which of these would you hire to join your Technical Writing Dept? Someone with great writing skills but little technical knowledge or, for example, a Computer Science graduate with deep technical knowledge but average writing skills? We’ve been talking about this on LinkedIn and here are some thoughts.

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Career

7 Ways for Technical Writers to Re-invent Themselves & Demonstrate their Value

Posted on by Fionn

You’ve just being fired. The Technical Writing dept is closed. What do you do? This is a fact of life for many people today. Indeed, there is now a real fear that US technical writers will continue to lose their jobs to offshore companies, e.g. India & Poland. And it’s true; it’s the shape of things to come, I’m afraid. But rather than moan about it, let’s look at what you can do to re-invent yourself and find new, lucrative opportunities.

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Career, How To, Jobs

How to Interview Technical Writers Even If You're Not a Technical Writer

Posted on by Fionn

Yes, I’m that terrible person who interviews technical writers and asks those awkward questions. Here are some of the things I’m looking for when I interview people. First, companies expect that graduates will have the same (more or less) writing skills – that’s a given. So, what they’re looking for are other qualities.

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