How to Become a Freelance/Telecommute Technical Writer and Start Tech Writing for Clients
Are you someone who's naturally inclined towards the field of science and technology? Can you talk about medical science with a passion, and are you willing to participate in scientific inquiries? Do you have sufficient knowledge to define technical terms and express them in a way that the greater majority can understand? In a nutshell, these are the very pre-requisites needed in order for you to become a freelance technical writer.
On being a freelance technical writer
True to the scientific method, technical writing requires someone with an objective attitude and an inquisitive mind. It helps when you're naturally curious and industrious about finding real answers to real questions.
Speaking of industry, there are certain industries which require a lot of technical writing, and they're willing to pay a high price for it! These industries include medicine, healthcare, biotechnology, electronics, aeronautics, robotics, engineering, and finance. On a professional level, you can charge as much as $20-$30 per article or at least $10 per hour.
The specialty and its challenges
Before you advertise yourself as a freelance technical writer in your resume, know what qualifications you're supposed to meet. Some job posts require you to have a degree in Journalism or English. Others stipulate that you must have finished a course in information technology or computer programming.
Fortunately, there are cases wherein the criteria are more lenient on the degree and more focused on the ability. Here's when you can put your best foot forward through excellent writing and editing skills. You can emphasize on your ability to read a wide range of material and conduct a thorough research. Most of all, here's where you can prove your ability to deliver a project and complete it with superior quality!
On becoming good at what you do
Step 1: Assess the project.
The first, most crucial step would be to make an initial assessment. Evaluate what type of technical writing it basically is and which approach best suits it.
For instance, you could be faced with a project involving repair guidelines, troubleshooting procedures, or assembly instructions for a new TV or PC. You could be writing a scientific report or medical disclaimer for a recently-introduced medication or drug. You could be rewriting standard operating procedures and training materials for the revised edition of a company manual.
Because these projects each have a specific readership, you must adjust your approach to meet the level of your audience.
Step 2: Simplify the jargon.
In the first place, it's your role to eliminate jargon from the language. Your goal is to simplify terms and concepts in such a way that all your readers would understand.
Therefore, more than just being an informative piece, your writing style will be more of instructional in a manual or descriptive in a brochure.
Step 3: Balance your content.
Remember: Your writing must be designed for the lay person and not the specialist. You are the specialist – or at least you hope to sound like one. Thus, to communicate the message right, you ought to deliver a wealth of material which qualifies as good content!
To achieve this, you have to strike a balance within the content. Although technical terms can't help but be mentioned, they should be supported by further explanations. Especially when they involve successive pages on procedures, the entire process should be explained in a how-to or step-by-step format.
(C) WritingBids.com
On being a freelance technical writer
True to the scientific method, technical writing requires someone with an objective attitude and an inquisitive mind. It helps when you're naturally curious and industrious about finding real answers to real questions.
Speaking of industry, there are certain industries which require a lot of technical writing, and they're willing to pay a high price for it! These industries include medicine, healthcare, biotechnology, electronics, aeronautics, robotics, engineering, and finance. On a professional level, you can charge as much as $20-$30 per article or at least $10 per hour.
The specialty and its challenges
Before you advertise yourself as a freelance technical writer in your resume, know what qualifications you're supposed to meet. Some job posts require you to have a degree in Journalism or English. Others stipulate that you must have finished a course in information technology or computer programming.
Fortunately, there are cases wherein the criteria are more lenient on the degree and more focused on the ability. Here's when you can put your best foot forward through excellent writing and editing skills. You can emphasize on your ability to read a wide range of material and conduct a thorough research. Most of all, here's where you can prove your ability to deliver a project and complete it with superior quality!
On becoming good at what you do
Step 1: Assess the project.
The first, most crucial step would be to make an initial assessment. Evaluate what type of technical writing it basically is and which approach best suits it.
For instance, you could be faced with a project involving repair guidelines, troubleshooting procedures, or assembly instructions for a new TV or PC. You could be writing a scientific report or medical disclaimer for a recently-introduced medication or drug. You could be rewriting standard operating procedures and training materials for the revised edition of a company manual.
Because these projects each have a specific readership, you must adjust your approach to meet the level of your audience.
Step 2: Simplify the jargon.
In the first place, it's your role to eliminate jargon from the language. Your goal is to simplify terms and concepts in such a way that all your readers would understand.
Therefore, more than just being an informative piece, your writing style will be more of instructional in a manual or descriptive in a brochure.
Step 3: Balance your content.
Remember: Your writing must be designed for the lay person and not the specialist. You are the specialist – or at least you hope to sound like one. Thus, to communicate the message right, you ought to deliver a wealth of material which qualifies as good content!
To achieve this, you have to strike a balance within the content. Although technical terms can't help but be mentioned, they should be supported by further explanations. Especially when they involve successive pages on procedures, the entire process should be explained in a how-to or step-by-step format.
(C) WritingBids.com