The Dark Side of Technical Writing

Every profession has its high points and low points. Technical writing is no exception. While I find technical writing fun, and sometimes even pretty exciting, there are times when I ask myself, "Why am I a technical writer?" Those hard times can really put a damper on your enthusiasm, especially when you're not expecting them. So, I present this article for your perusal. It includes the following topics:

"Technical What?"
"The Docs Guys Only Formatted It"
"This, Again?"
"I Don't Have the Time Now"
"I Think We Should Spice It Up a Bit"
"We've Got Another Project"
Wrap Up

"Technical what?"

Technical writing is not a glamorous job. When you tell people you're a technical writer, their first reaction is usually, "Technical writing? What's that?" Their second reaction, usually brought on by the answer to first reaction, is usually "Oh...that's...um..interesting. I think I hear my spouse calling me." Okay, so that's an exaggeration, but it has a kernel of truth. If you're looking to see your name in print, get published, and be famous, technical writing is the wrong profession. It's not a high-prestige career either.

"The docs guys only formatted it"

Technical writing has traditionally been one of those "unofficial" careers. Job descriptions for technical writers were vague. There still isn't a consensus on the title a technical writer should have.

Companies generally didn't know, and sometimes still don't know, where the technical writers fit into their product. I've heard of technical writing departments being in development, customer service and even marketing/sales. Worse yet, some companies don't see a need for technical writing. They feel their product can stand by itself and it doesn't need a third party to explain it.

On top of this, there has been a general notion that technical writers are nothing more than glorified secretaries. I've heard of at least one instance where technical writers were thought of as a hindrance and a drain on company resources. This attitude can really make a technical writer's job difficult, if not impossible. It can also hit your self esteem pretty hard if your not expecting it.

"This, again?"

Repetition is good for the soul. Um, sort of. As I mentioned previously, technical writing isn't glamorous. The actual writing really isn't all that creative. In fact, it's repetitive and it can get pretty boring. If your department uses a style guide that defines how you should write certain descriptions, you have even less chance of being creative. In fact, you're creativity will be suppressed to promote consistency within a project.

The problem of repetition really becomes apparent when you're creating online help. It involves a lot of brainless work that will leave you craving any sort of mental challenge by the end of the day. Worse yet, because of the repetitive motions you will find yourself putting your mouse through, your hand will cramp up and you'll sustain "hotspotting finger."

"I don't have the time now"

Technical writers rely on the relationships they form with their SMEs for the information they need for their documents. It's guaranteed that you will run into an SME who doesn't have the time to talk to you. It's also guaranteed that you will run into an SME who doesn't want to talk to you. You may have to resort to any number of tricks to get the information you need. This includes, but is not limited to, bribes, brown-nosing, embellishment and even going over someone's head in the worse-case scenario.

This problem can be either a minor annoyance or a major setback depending on the company's attitude towards technical writers, the SMEs' attitude toward technical writers, your attitude towards the SMEs, and any of a number of other little situations that could arise in a work environment. This problem is also fertile ground for "political" issues that can directly affect your ability to complete your work.

"I think we should spice it up a bit"

I make no secret of my distaste for marketing in technical documents. It really annoys me when I'm trying to figure out how to use a product and all I can find is an in depth article about how it will bring about the next paradigm shift in bleeding-edge elucidation partnership solutions. Sure, that stuff interests me when I'm looking to buy something, but it's just a hassle when it's included in material that is supposed to teach me how to use it.

From what I understand, a lot of documentation departments are under the marketing department. This means that the spin doctors usually have final say over the content of the documentation. I've been told on several occasions that I should "spice things up." Perhaps the worse (in my opinion) suggestion I ever got for a revision from the marketing department was to change the phrase "These tutorials will teach you" to "These tutorials will empower you with new knowledge."

I readily admit that most people aren't as steadfast (read: pigheaded) as me in their belief that marketing has no place in documentation . So, this problem may not be an issue to some people. I can live with that. No, really. I can. :-)

"We've got another project"

Technical writers often work on multiple projects at a time. I've had up to five different projects going at different stages of completion. It can be overwhelming. Combine multiple projects with short deadlines, and you can really get stressed out. This problem by itself may not be that big of a deal, but if you compound it with other problems, you can find yourself spiraling towards total melt down. I've never reached that point, mostly because I like juggling multiple projects at one time. It keeps my job interesting. But, even I have my limits. :-)

Wrap up

The intent of this article was to point out some of the bad aspects of technical writing. It's not meant to discourage anyone from becoming a technical writer. In fact, I highly recommend technical writing as a profession. While it can be all of the bad things I've discussed and more, technical writing can also be interesting, educational, rewarding and creative. Yep, that's right, it can be creative. Like any career, you should expect good times and bad times.