Technical writing is a lot like teaching. In a very broad sense this document you are reading now could be considered technical writing because it offers End user assistance on how to write technical documents but possesses neither the formatting and contains some simplified terminology. The thing to remember about technical writing is that it is meant to teach and instruct both clearly and concisely. You could write an article telling me about the wireless internet in my area, but if the formatting is too complicated or I can’t, in any way, follow what’s being conveyed to me, then you’ve failed.
That’s why I say technical writing is a lot like teaching. You have to teach whoever is reading your technical document and they have to be able to take what they’ve learned and use it for the task they have before them. That’s where the three C’s come in. The three C’s of good technical writing are: Clear, Concise and Complete.
You must be clear about what you’re writing which requires an understanding and maybe a little research on your part. You must be concise; you’re not writing a novel here. And, finally, you must be complete in your work, accomplish what you are trying to convey to the reader. If you follow these steps, you’ll be well on your way to a possible career and future in technical writing.