Technical Writing, a form of technical communication, is a style of formal writing and business communication, used in fields as diverse as computer hardware and software, chemistry, the aerospace industry, robotics, finance, consumer electronics, and biotechnology. Good technical writing clarifies technical jargon; that is, it presents useful information that is clear and easy to understand for the intended audience.
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Growth Prospects for a Technical Writer
Are there practical chances of growth and scope for learning/improving oneself while working as a technical writer?
Kamath, Gurudutt R. IT People (2004). Careers>Writing>Technical Writing>India
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A Guide to Careers in Technical Writing
Contrary to what many assume, working as a technical writer involves much more than sitting alone at your PC. The job requires plenty of contact with technical professionals, from programmers and project managers to machine operators and medical technicians. Solitary? Not quite. Collaborative? Most definitely.
Hoffman, Allan. Monster.com (2007). Careers>TC>Writing>Technical Writing
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Guidelines for Technical Writing
The rules here apply to all classes in the Chemical Engineering Department at Ohio University. Most of them will apply in 'the real world', too, although your employer may have some specific format requirements.
Young, V.L. and K.J. Sampson. Ohio University. Reference>Style Guides>TC>Technical Writing
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Guidelines for Writing English-Language Technical Documentation
In 1999 the member societies of INTECOM recognized there was a need to help technical writers in all countries who have to write English-language technical documentation for products that will be sold worldwide. If they are writing for an audience solely in the UK, the Scandinavian countries, Australia, New Zealand, and South Africa, then British style is appropriate. Similarly, if they are writing for an audience solely in North and South America, the Philippines, and many Asian countries, then US style is appropriate. But if they have to write a single set of documentation for use in all countries, then a difficult decision has to be made.
Intecom (2005). Articles>Writing>Technical Writing>International
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Guidelines for Writing Technical Documentation for an International Audience 
A guide to help technical writers in all countries who have to write English-language technical documentation for products that will be sold worldwide.
tekom (2003). Articles>Documentation>International>Technical Writing
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Pointers to information about research and writing, intended primarily for computer science.
Zobel, Justin. JustinZobel.com. Resources>Writing>Technical Writing
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A weblog of a California technical communicator interested in the Society for Technical Communication, programming, software, software standards, United Methodism, theology, genealogy, puns....
Haas, Guy K. TypePad.com. Resources>Writing>Technical Writing>Blogs
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Hall of Technical Documentation Weirdness 
Lists wacky, bizarre, surreal and otherwise strange examples of technical documentation, particularly illustration.
Barefoot, Darren K. Hall of Technical Documentation Weirdness (2005). Humor>Writing>Technical Illustration>Technical Writing
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Review: Handbook of Technical Writing 
As with previous editions, the editors have done a marvelous job. This is the type of book that every writer should have. As I stated before, it is not a how-to-write book, but more of a 'tools for writing' book. I find myself referring to it often when I'm thinking of how to pronounce a specific word or how to go about putting together a proposal, abstract or white paper, or even how to interview an engineer or programmer for information about a product I'm documenting.
Hawley, Todd. Technical Communication Online (2004). Articles>Reviews>Writing>Technical Writing
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Harry Miller's Technical Writing Blog
Podcasts about documentation, technical writing, and technical editing.
Miller, Harry. Microsoft. Resources>Writing>Technical Writing>Podcasting
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This recommendation is based on the American ANSI Z535 standard. I am not aware of any other similar standards from other standardizing organisations. If you know of such standards, please e-mail me, and specifically tell me if and where it differs from the information given below.
Ring, Peter. Peter Ring Consultants (1997). Articles>Writing>Technical Writing
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Next to writing an enthusiastic thank you note for socks received as a birthday gift, the most difficult task for many writers is creating a help wanted ad that succinctly defines the requirements of the position while encouraging only perfect candidates to apply.
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Helping Chinese-American Professionals To Develop Their Technical Writing Skills
Three components of American English create great difficulty for Chinese-American college students and professionals trying to improve their technical writing. They are the articles ('a,' 'an,' and 'the'); prepositions; and verb tense. This paper reveals key reasons for these difficulties and explains how to ease them. It is meant to assist teachers, editors, and the Chinese-Americans who write for them. As a starting point, teachers and editors need to know how the Chinese language differs from English in its treatment of these three components. So informed, they can take appropriate actions to bring about improvement.
Mazzatenta, Ernest D. STC Proceedings (2004). Articles>Language>Writing>Technical Writing
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HelpScribe Technical Communication offers tips on writing technical manuals, help authoring, software documentation, and managing a TC career.
HelpScribe (2008). Resources>TC>Technical Writing>Blogs
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Hidden Factors of Documentation Quality -- Part 1
The first impulse of many documenters is to turn our work over to editors and graphic designers, or to form committees and develop style guidelines. All of these measures are useful, but none can assure us of quality when there are basic problems with the way we go about producing documentation.
Sesnovich, Bruce A. Boston Broadside (1993). Articles>Documentation>Quality>Technical Writing
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The Hidden Power of the Online Manual
Writing software manuals is boring, isn't it? We often think, "My software is easy to use. The user interface is intuitive. Why should I waste so much time writing documentation which nobody will read anyway?" Sometimes it's true. I've never read the WinZip or Internet Explorer manuals. Everything seems clear enough without further explanation. Nevertheless, even if your manual isn't being helpful to your software users, it may be helpful to you. Publish your manual online and turn its hidden power into a real benefit for your business.
Crane, Dennis. Dr. Explain (2006). Articles>Documentation>Online>Technical Writing
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The Hidden Relationship Between Project Managers and Technical Writers
Want to know the secret to better quality documentation and improved software design? Will Kelly outlines how the key is an effective relationship between project managers and technical writers.
Kelly, William T. TechRepublic (2003). Articles>Collaboration>Project Management>Technical Writing
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The remarkable growth of the information technology industry has created a tremendous opportunity for people with skill putting words on paper. Technical writers, once a rare and highly skilled position, are now as common as fruit flies—though they take up a lot more space. Yet the pay is pretty good considering how little work they actually do, so young English-major weenies desperate for employment continue to swarm around IT companies, hoping for a bit of rotting fru—er, looking for a plum position.
PlainLanguage.gov (2005). Articles>Writing>Technical Writing>Minimalism
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Hiring Contract Technical Writers
When you finally get the approval to hire a contract technical writer you'll want to go about it the right way in order to avoid problems and ensure success. This article provides insight on what you need to do before you start looking for a contract technical writing professional and how to go about finding one suitable for your project.
Hartmann, Scott. Writing Assistance (2006). Careers>Interviewing>TC>Technical Writing
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History of Modern Technical Writing
Technical writing has been around since the first technical writer, Cro-Magnon man, was drawing on cave walls. However, most experts would agree that the golden age of technical writing started with the invention of the computer. Here are some of the major milestones in technical writing history over the past 60 years.
ProEdit (1996). Articles>Writing>Technical Writing>History
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Hockey Sticks and User Assistance: Writing in Times of Resource Constraints
If you have all the resources you need, do the very best job you can in all respects. But if your resources are tight, ask yourself whether you are writing the essential stuff at a level of quality users will notice. Also, ask whether the value of the documentation you are producing aligns with the economic pressures on your company.
Hughes, Michael A. UXmatters (2008). Articles>Writing>Technical Editing
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As you might expect, salaries vary considerably based on location. I’ve looked over various surveys and believe the following are representative of salaries currently being offered.
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For many technical writing companies the issue of how to manage all the associated 'non-writing' costs can be a sensitive area. Do I charge for every email? Every phone call? Where do you draw the line? What do you charge for, besides the document you produced?
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How Can I Become a Successful Technical Writer?
The best thing you can do to develop your skills and ability with technical writing is to actually do some technical writing. Find an open source project, such as WordPress.org or Pligg, and write some documentation for it. Most open source projects have poor documentation, so they provide excellent opportunities.
Johnson, Tom H. I'd Rather Be Writing (2008). Articles>TC>Writing>Technical Writing
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How Important is the Writing Part of Technical Writing?
Writing documentation isn't merely the act of pounding out dry prose. There is some creativity involved which comes from how you present the information, both textually and visually. The writing, though, needs to be easy to read, complete, concise, and to the point.
DMN Communications (2007). Articles>TC>Writing>Technical Writing
