Technical Writing Course by Henry Harvin® Writing Academy

What’s New in the World of Technical Writing

Learning a niche skill can be a bit of a gamble. Since demand for certain professions and job roles is limited to certain industries and geographical areas, it is best to understand your core competencies and the socio-economic environment before choosing the type of course or training that one wants to pursue in his career. Technical writing is certainly one of those skills which is relevant to a specific cadre of professionals who have a penchant for using techno lingo while drafting documentation even though the audience could be anyone. For example, a technical writer working for Samsung might be responsible for drafting a product description about its latest flagship phone, however, the audience that it will address could include those who have no understanding of the technical features of a phone. Hence, a technical writer should be able to produce write-ups that are clear, concise and not open to multiple interpretations by a wide set of audience.

Even the best educational institutes are mindful of these aspects while designing a course for technical writers. Henry Harvin ensures that its curriculum for Technical Writing Courses is taught in a way that students learn to write complex literature reviews, research papers, and surveys in a clear, concise, and easy to understand manner. With that being said, technical writing is one of those professions which is extremely challenging, yet highly lucrative and respected, irrespective of the organization one joins and works with.

Ways in which technical writers can outshine from the competition is as follows:

• You need to inculcate a learning attitude: In-fact, it’s not just about having an attitude to learn, it is also about being willing to do so from the heart and mind. Even a layman can become an expert technical writer if he/she is broadminded and has the urge to understand complex theories and systems that create such writers. As the old saying goes, “Creativity spawns from curious minds”.
• You need to master the art of being a simple writer of complicated stuff: Yes, indeed! As discussed earlier briefly, a technical writer might be given an assignment or a project where he has to use complex systems or topics such as flow charts, machine manuals, quantitative research statistics, new theories, or specific studies. Even then, the hallmark of a great technical writer would not be in his writing prowess but more in his ability to deliver a write-up that resonates with the heart and mind of the audience and readers. A scientific study or research paper prepared by a technical writer might need to be written in very simple language with a complete explanation of technical jargons if the audience comprises members that have no background in scienctific research.
  It is worthwhile to mention here that a good technical writing course teaches students to write clearly with plausible logic flow amid the technical terminology. Students are taught to use their own objective understanding to back-up any factual data which needs to be expounded. It is also important to train yourself to be resourceful and be aware of the right source of references and citations, which may need to be acknowledged in the final document. Simple is the best way to get understood and develop a wider reach.
• Choosing the appropriate document and image processing tool: Presenting your ideas and figures graphically can greatly enhance the appeal of a writing piece in front of its intended audience. Visio, Adobe Photoshop and Flowchart Maker are just few of the popular tools which can act as partners for writers to create compelling technical documents, which can positively influence the interest level of your target audience. Many of the above applications are available via freeware hosting sites or from the market at an affordable price tag. However, even if you are not willing to spend any money on such tools, you can hone this skill on your own to present writing in the form which is appealing to your intended audience.
• Be interactive with people from the specific industry: This is especially helpful when a writer does not have any technical background or lacks technical knowledge in the field for which he is preparing the documentation. For example, writing a white paper for a scientific team might require you to sit with scientists to understand their studies and gather accurate updates and ideas on the subject matter. Therefore, some institutes providing Technical Writing Courses in India like Henry Harvin also conduct refresher sessions for students post-course completion and these sessions are usually held by professionals working as technical writers in different organizations.
• Learn from other technical writers: It is extremely beneficial if a writer has connection with someone in the technical writing field to whom he can look up to and get inspiration and motivation. Reading and understanding another writer’s style of writing, especially seasoned writers in top organizations, help in better presentation and articulation of your work as a writer.

Conclusion

Technical data just cannot be created out of thin air. Any data which is being written and subsequently explained requires a very agile mind to present it in simplified and easy-to-understand language and tone. Still, there is no doubt that it takes more than intelligence to make everything work according to how data and information are best interpreted which implies that it is certainly much more than a mere text (choice of words and phraseology) and graphics choice.

Logical and sequential flow is at the very core of technical writing skills around which all other aspects revolve and amplify.

Lastly, a good Technical Writing course can provide proper knowledge of the various tools required for effective technical writing that can help you out in honing writing skills, and thus help build a technical writer’s reputation for drafting and creating technical documents that are compelling, reliable and supported by facts.

About Henry Harvin

Henry Harvin is one of the world’s premier training institutes that runs Technical Writing Courses in India in selected cities and through live online training, where students learn and improve their technical writing skills along with gaining knowledge on how to communicate technical writing details to a non-technical audience.