How to Be a Technical Writer

Technical writers are in high demand due to this constantly growing industry. All those high-tech products have supporting documents that accompany them and many software companies publish their own product documentation. While not strictly necessary, it is helpful to have a degree in English and some technical knowledge. But with or without those credentials, it is possible to become a technical writer.

Instructions

Difficulty: Moderately Challenging

1. Get a degree in writing or, at the very least, learn writing and grammar skills. Take a class or buy some books such as "Painless Grammar" by Rebecca Elliot or "The Associated Press Style Guide."
2. Learn basic technical writing and terminology. Take courses online or through community colleges.
3. Write a resume highlighting your experience. Include all of your writing skills and any experience with high-tech products.
4. Put together a collection of writing samples. Include any how-to, technology or science articles and/or training materials that you have written.
5. Start looking for work on job-hunting websites, such as Journalism Jobs, Media Bistro or Monster. An employment recruiter or "head hunter" is also a good source.

Tips & Warnings

• Basic technical knowledge is a plus.
• You may want to take a technical writing class at your local college.
• Technical writers with skills in writing online help tutorials using software such as RoboHelp are in high demand.
• A resume with grammatical errors speaks volumes about your writing ability. Don't even think about sending out a resume with typos and grammar errors in it.