Technical Writing For Dummies, 2nd Edition

Chapter 3

Completing a Technical Writing Brief

IN THIS CHAPTER

Feeding a Martian

Getting to know your learners

Slicing and dicing the Technical Writing Brief

I can’t write without a learner – it’s like a kiss, you can’t do it alone.

—JOHN CLEEVER, AUTHOR

The key to writing a technical document is to have an in-depth understanding of your learners. You must understand who they are, the level of detail they need, how they process information, and how they’ll use the information. If you don’t gather that information, your document will be as ineffective as foreign language instructions that come with do-it-yourself (DYI) projects. The Technical Writing Brief is your key to unlocking this knowledge to creating usable, valuable content.

How to Feed a Martian

This is an exercise I use when I present technical writing workshops. At first, participants think I’m outrageous, even wacky (and you may too), but it proves a critical point. Please stay with me here.

Imagine this scenario: It’s the year 2500, and business is conducted intergalactically. You have a hot deal pending, and it’s ...