Technical reports. Audiovisual scriptwriting. Technical translation. Document coordination. Technical editors. Sample job advertisements. Large vs. small companies- Opportunities tor advancement. Importance of teamwork. | 1 The Field of Technical Writing Different forms of writing have been used to relay information since ancient times. People have communicated facts lore data news science wisdom and entertainment in writing using methods ranging from ancient cave drawings and hieroglyphics to the latest bestseller computer manual or blog. Writing can be broadly classified into two categories fiction and nonfiction. The novelists short-story writers poets screenwriters and playwrights who produce fiction manipulate words and language to create scenes moods and effects so readers can feel as though they are unobserved passive participants to the events described. Nonfiction writers present facts and data in a variety of formats including magazine and newspaper articles books textbooks biographies how-tos self-help travel guides and more booklets reports brochures memoirs manuals journals newslet- 1 Copyright 2008 by The McGraw-Hill Companies Inc. Click here for terms of use. 2 Opportunities in Technical Writing Careers ters advertising copy and even the text inside the pages of the phone book. What Is Technical Writing Technical writers write edit and prepare publications in many fields of technology science engineering and medicine including articles for technical and scientific journals both in print and online. The publications may be technical reports instruction manuals articles papers proposals brochures and booklets and even speeches for technical meetings and conferences. Technical writers must remain objective and factual about the subject matter they are dealing with. Their sole function is to write dispassionately about facts and objects and to relate useful relevant reliable information that readers can understand. The language they use must be simple and direct and contain a minimum of nonfunctional descriptive adjectives. Their verbs must be in the active rather than the passive voice to eliminate any doubt about what the writing means or implies. Any writing that .
