A Good Site for Technical Writers

There is a common perception (especially among managers) that technical writers are just wordsmiths and almost anyone can write documentation. While writing skills are important (and rare), so are technical skills, especially in a software development. In one of my later performance reviews, my manager told me "I didn't realize how technical your job is." I'm glad he said that, but I wish he'd figured it out a few years earlier. 

Although I've been retired for more than five years, I'm still interested in developments in the technical writing field. Recently, I came across a new (just over a year old) web site aimed at technical writers called Technically We Write. As you might guess form the name, it's aimed at writers who have a technical orientation although the articles cover more than just tool use.

Recent articles include:

Structured writing in Microsoft Word. "Let your document structure speak for itself by using Outline View."

The job's not done until the documentation is complete. "Which came first, the program or the documentation? It's both."

How to transition into technical writing. "Technical communication is an exciting career opportunity for everyone."

High academic and low academic. "How we write is as important as what we write."

A look back: technical writing with ‘ed’. "Technical writers on early computer systems used this simple but powerful editor." (I remember ed, and not fondly).

I wish this site had been around when I was working.