Re: Caring about good writing...
If someone was to name the top 3-10 things that make for a GOOD tech writer,
what would they be?
There are prabably as many answers to your question as there are techwriters. So, these are the things that I think make ME a good writer:
1. I know that, if I ask enough questions and try really hard, I will eventually figure out how the product works, regardless of how stupid and ignorant I feel about it right now.
2. I know that most audiences want to know:
-what the product does
-how to install it
-how to configure it
-how to use it
-how to respond to alarms and notifications
-how to maintain it
I therefore know what documents I have to write before a contract begins, and I know what these documents look like and what they contain, which ensures that I don't tell people how to clear alarms in the Product Description.
3. I design my documents so that, if I am hit by a bus on my way home from work, someone else can take over my job and complete it with ease.
4. If I don't understand something, I don't write about it until I do.
5. I read the standards and RFCs that the product is based on.
6. I believe that my ability to describe the product will be compromised by poor grammar and imprecise vocabulary.
7. I try to think like Spock.
8. I don't use MS Word.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Lyndsey Amott
www.docsymmetry.com
Winnipeg, MB R3G 2J3
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References:
Caring about good writing...: From: Lucero, Peggy A. NMIMC Contractor
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