Description
Introduction to Technical Writing
Duration:
1 day
You Will Learn How To:
- Write effective technical documents, manuals, and white papers;
- Assess your audience and develop documents to meet their needs;
- Build effective sentences and sections that explain information clearly;
- Employ diagrams, tables, charts, and other graphical tools effectively;
- Create informative content that your readers will understand and use.
Course Content:
Section 1: Understanding Technical Writing
1.0: Understanding Technical Writing
1.1: Surveying Your Attitudes Toward Writing
1.2: Knowing Your Audience
Case Study 1: Analyzing an Audience
Exercise: Evaluating Effective Technical Writing
1.3: Understanding the Writing Process
Exercise: Thinking About Your Writing Process
1.4: The Five C’s of Report Writing
Section 2: Developing the Technical Document
2.0: Developing the Technical Document
Case Study 2: Thinking Argumentatively
2.4: Procedures
2.5: Long Documents
Exercise: Collecting Model Technical Documents
Section 3: Editing the Technical Document
3.0: Editing the Technical Document
3.1: Organization
3.2: Style
3.3: Correctness
Exercise: Identifying the Seven Deadly Errors of Technical Writing
3.3.1: Pronoun-Reference Agreement Problems
3.3.2: Subject-Verb Agreement Problems
3.3.3: Vague Pronoun Reference
3.3.4: Dangling Modifiers
3.3.5: Overuse of Passive Voice
3.3.6: Inappropriate Comma Use
3.3.7: Inappropriate Semicolon Use
3.4: A Note on Editing
Section 4: Conclusion: The Importance of Technical Writing
Appendices
Appendix A: Building a Community of Technical Editors
Appendix B: Word Processing for the Technical Writer
Appendix C: Technical Writing and English as a Second Language
Appendix D: For Further Reading
