A technical writer is a skilled writer who is good at converting hard to understand text to friendly and easily understood content. They work in the engineering, medical or technology fields which mostly consist of hard terms. This is because most terms used in these fields are hard to grasp to normal people hence they get hired to interpret it in simpler terms. Most technical writers have educational backgrounds in the fields they are good at writing which include computer science, engineering, information technology.
The role of technical writers includes: They need to research and write easy to understand content for the users. Design charts, PowerPoint documents, graphics that are easy to understand and interpret. They need to be good communicators and have good grammar to deliver quality content understood by users.
So how does one become a technical writer?
Have a High School Certificate. This is a must certificate for the technical writers as it shows one has a good understanding of the English language. The English language is mostly used in writing content in the technical field. Most employees will employ technical writers with degrees, a degree might be in medicine, Computer Science, or Engineering. A person who has a good understanding of the terms used in those fields is better at simplifying the content.
Try diversifying in other technical fields and understand what is current in the technical, engineering, or medical field. This can easily be done by taking short courses, attending seminars, networking, and writing well-done research work and samples. Have a certification. A degree yes will get you employed but having a certification course makes you stand out. Certification means you have specialized in a certain field and might be more knowledgeable than someone who has a degree. A degree is not bad it’s a start but having a certification makes you stand out.
Practice your research and writing skills by producing quality and original samples. These samples are then used to pitch or apply for jobs when required. It’s wise to have unique written samples to send to employees as this will give them confidence that you are good at what you do.
Meeting with other Technical writers. Networking is a good way of putting yourself out there as a Technical writer. Join a professional association of technical network groups, attend events held for technical networks to socialize and network with others. You can also volunteer to expand their knowledge in the field they are in.