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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The gaps in your documentation aren’t there because you haven’t consider a particular level of user; the gaps in your documentation are there because you haven’t considered how one level of user becomes another. How DO you get from Beginner to Expert?
McLean, Gordon. One Man Writes (2008). Articles>Documentation>User Centered Design>Technical Writing
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Ghostwriting has a lot to offer the young (or not-so-young) writer or editor with the right personality, professional skills, and appetite for variety and adventure. But it's not for everyone. You can make money, have fun, learn new things, and meet interesting people. You can also get horribly ripped off unless you know your value and how to use it. If you put someone else's name on your work or push someone else's favorite cause or ideas, do it so you come out a winner. Below are a few suggestions and observations gleaned the hard way.
Briskin, Dennis. Editorial Freelancers Association (1994). Careers>Freelance>Writing
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Give Your Testimonials More Credibility
I think that the people who give the testimonials do so for the additional exposure they receive for their own names, sites and businesses. I also think they do some mutual back-scratching, and hype each other's products and services. In other words, the testimonials are just additional sales text. They have no credibility as outside, third-party endorsements.
Usborne, Nick. Excess Voice (2006). Articles>Writing>Web Design>Marketing
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Giving Feedback or Writing Reviews of Bad Stuff
Some book reviewers say that when they don’t like a book, they simply don’t review it. I’d love to take the easy way out, but when I think about it from a reader’s perspective… I want to know when a book sucks.
Evans, Meryl K. Meryl.net (2005). Articles>Writing>Publishing
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Go from Brochureware to E-Care
Online brochures don't attract return visits or serve your customers, so turn your Web site into a customer interaction center.
Writing that Works (2003). Articles>Business Communication>Marketing>Writing
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The Goddard Library: Writing and Presenting
This Subject Guide is intended to provide pointers to references and information resources which should be helpful to anyone involved in writing scientific journal articles and papers, technical reports, or other technical documentation, or in preparing conference presentations and poster sessions.
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Going Beyond $1 a Word: Syndication
With the recent downturn in the economy, newsrooms, newspapers, magazine and Web outlets are letting staff writers go, and are looking for cheaper content alternatives. Buying content from syndicates is becoming more popular for these publishers. Watch for this trend to continue.
Price, Lisa. Communication Circle, The (2001). Careers>Freelance>Writing
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Going Beyond $1 Per Word: Getting Paid on the Internet
Paying by the word comes from the print publishing world. Web editors have continued this model.
Price, Lisa. Communication Circle, The (2001). Careers>Freelance>Writing
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Going Global with Technical Writing 
Despite your best efforts, it is not uncommon for mishaps to occur when attempting to localize documentation. Learn how to align your technical writing and localization processes and how to optimize the solution you choose for this alignment.
Hill, Nicholas. Intercom (2006). Articles>Writing>Technical Writing>Localization
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Going Global: The Challenges of Writing for International Audiences
Because of strong global markets for software and its documentation, information is often translated into several different languages, and read by users worldwide. Writers who create source information in English now face the challenge of communicating to a global audience. These writers must reconsider the following: defining their audience, controlling their terminology and style, creating text for graphical user interfaces (GUIs), and creating examples and scenarios for use in conceptual and instructional material.
Heximer, Erin and Lisa Wu. STC Proceedings (2001). Articles>Writing>International
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Writers can increase the value of their documentation by visiting customers where the customers work and seeing what they are doing. It's easier to write targeted topics when you know what readers need. Ann Beebe, User Education manager for Visual Studio, gave me two examples of writers who went into the field and discovered how the customer's experience can be very different from the experience in the development team.
Miller, Harry. Microsoft (2006). Articles>Writing>Technical Writing>User Centered Design
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Sometimes we focus so much on tools and technologies that we forget the underlying theory of basic, good technical writing. Yes, there are basic laws of technical writing which remain intact despite the constant changes in the way we produce documentation or the way users access it. Whether you are writing a printed user guide, an online reference manual, or context-sensitive online help, these same basic laws apply. I call these basic laws my 'golden rules' for producing effective user documentation and eliminating sloppy habits. This workshop covers each rule in detail, plus provides practical tips for applying them.
Guren, Leah. STC Proceedings (1998). Articles>Writing>Technology>Technical Writing
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Good Communication: Seeing the Forest While Managing the Trees
Effective communication, which often appears effortless, is actually the result of a lengthy and surprisingly complex journey—a journey during which you can easily lose your way. Staying focussed is the key to retaining a clear picture of how to convey information to its intended audience.
Vasdi, Peter. Writer's Block (1997). Articles>Writing
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Every new medium brings with it the need to develop an appropriate way of writing. Writing a speech involves different words and organization from writing a report. A television show does not use the same script, word for word, as a radio broadcast. A documentary is not word for word the same as the history book on which it is based. A brochure, white paper, and advertisement may share some words, but the organization, headings, and many of the words will be different. Writing everyday documents that are destined to be read on-screen and not printed out means different words and organization than the same ideas written to be printed out on paper. You can't take what you wrote for paper, paste it into an HTML editor, mark it up with a few tags and call it an on-screen document. You need to write specifically for the screen if you want to take best advantage of the medium. Early television was a camera pointed at a radio announcer reading the same news as on radio. We don't do that anymore. Early web was taking word processing and putting it up as a long scrolling page. We won't be doing that in the future, either.
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A technical writing/technical communication weblog with tips, tools and templates for technical writers.
Walsh, Ivan. I Heart Tech Docs (2003). Resources>Documentation>Blogs>Technical Writing
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Good Legal Writing: of Orwell and Window Panes
George Orwell once wrote that `[g]ood prose is like a window pane.' What I take Orwell to have meant by that remark is that when people read good prose, it makes them feel as if they've `seen' something more clearly.
Samuelson, Pamela. University of Pittsburgh Law Review (1984). Articles>Writing>Legal>Minimalism
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Good Writing and Editing: Are They Dying Arts? And, Should We Care?
The answer to both questions: "YES!" Like us, you may be dismayed by the growing quantity of poor writing that bombards us. We see it everywhere, in publications, web sites, newspapers and corporate materials—writing that is not just full of grammatical mistakes and misused words, but is also poorly thought-out, unclear and contains downright confusing language.
Canavor, Natalie and Claire Meirowitz. Communication World Bulletin (2004). Articles>Writing>Editing
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Good Writing on Your Web Site: How and Why You Should Ensure the Quality of Your Content
Discusses the importance of writing well and some simple methods for ensuring your content is well-written and then move on to ways clever content-management systems can make your life easier.
Mercurytide (2005). Articles>Web Design>Writing
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Google: The Ultimate Web Writer's Style Guide
Forget that Google is a search engine. Just for a moment, imagine it is a style guide. A very different kind of style guide.
Usborne, Nick. Excess Voice (2005). Articles>Web Design>Writing
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Don't you think that it is a tragedy that 95 percent of the people who desire to be technical writers have a poor command over the language? I am sure all of us make a mistake or two, once in a while. But to make it in every sentence and paragraph shows utter disrespect for readers.
Kamath, Gurudutt R. IT People (2003). Articles>Editing>Grammar>Technical Writing
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Grammar, Punctuation, Spelling
The Web abounds with sites teaching grammar, punctuation, and spelling. Not surprisingly, most of these sites are provided by educational institutions, teachers, or business-writing consultants, presumably to make up for the lack of grammar teaching in so many school systems for the past several decades. Some are tutorials (masquerading as style guides) for technical communicators. Here are a few sites that I have found useful or that other people have recommended to me.
Weber, Jean Hollis. Technical Editors Eyrie (2002). Articles>Style Guides>Writing
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Normal rules of English grammar are often violated in technical writing, sometimes with good reason. However, writers are often not aware of these violations. This guide identifies some of the rules that are most commonly violated.
Author's Guide (2001). Reference>Writing>Grammar
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A collection of links to grant resources for educators.
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GRApES: Group for Research in Applied English Studies 
GRApES is a group of applied linguists and rhetoricians in the English Department at ISU who meet regularly to discuss their various research pursuits, looking for areas of mutual interest in terms of methodology and theory. As you will see below, the group is quite diverse in interests and expertise. Our goal is to collaborate on joint research projects. Feel free to contact any of us about our research.
