Taking the first steps

Chapter 3: Writing Technical Documents

There are 5 recognized steps that comprise the "Writer's Checklist". Planning, drafting, revising, editing, and proofreading. As a writer even if you are not purposefully completing these steps you are constantly doing so as you go.

A properly planned writing project will make or break your outcome. This is perhaps where one should spend the most amount of time. Ensuring that you have a good game plan going into writing the document will ensure a better product and save you time in the long run. As with any product, the most important aspect is to know your audience. Who will be reading this? What is their reading level? Will this subject matter gain their attention? What knowledge do I want them to walk away with? The answers will allow you to answer subsequent questions such as: What is the best format to deliver this in, physical or digital? What is my relationship with this audience? Should the document be constructed in a formal or informal matter? Answering these questions to yourself first will set the tone for the rest of the project

Once you have answered the important questions, it's time to get the pen to the paper and start drafting. I find that when I don't have a clear path for conveying my point, it is often helpful to just start by jotting down bullet points of the main takeaways I want to deliver to my audience. Once you realize your main objectives, it is much easier to elaborate upon them.

Be sure that your document is written in an easily legible format that is pleasing to the eyes. Remember if your reader is having a hard time reading it due to font size or absurd font, they will be less likely to read the document.

The next steps may seem similar as they both require looking over the document and making changes to it, but they serve 2 distinct purposes. Revising is the process where you review your draft to ensure that the article still serves its intended purpose.  Are you still speaking to your audience? Is your message clear? It is often easy to get side tracked while writing and muddy your message. Take this time to review and make necessary changes.

"If they can't spell properly, why would I trust 

their findings on more complex topics?"

Editing like revising requires you to review the piece you have written but this time instead of big picture things, you are looking for things like grammar, punctuation, style and word choices. Although your overall message may feel like it overshadows the importance of correct grammar and punctuation, these things can affect the readers view of you as the writer. "If they can't spell properly, why would I trust their findings on even more complex topics?"

The final step is to proofread your finished product. I always like to proofread at least twice and the more important the document, the more it should be proofread. When writing large formal documents or projects that I know will be read by many people, have others proofread for you as well. It's always helpful to have another set of eyes.