Ann Scanlan, 31
Title: Technical writer
Salary range: $35,000-$65,000
Q. What does a technical writer do?
A. My expertise is in the information technology field. I write hardware and software installation guides, including hard copy and online how-to user guides, and even documentation for programmers.
There are other fields such as medical technical writing, which can include documenting drug trials or how to use medical devices. Technical writers also are used in manufacturing or electronics, both for documenting how to use components and how to install components.
Q. How did you get into this field?
A. I fell into it. I’d always been afraid of computers, but after getting a degree in political science at Ohio University I tried law school–a year at Albany in New York State and at Rutgers, where I lasted till spring. It wasn’t for me, so I took classes at Cleveland State University in computer programming. Through them I got an internship at General Electric, working for their Information Services, which no longer exists. I got exposed to HTML and Visual Basic, which is a computer programming language.
Q. What was your big break?
A. It was with a company that makes statistical analysis software, around the time that the technology boom was going on. I learned so much. I was able to review design documents and also help test applications. I also learned enough about how to write for Webmasters and network administrators to get my next job. But that only lasted 10 months, because they took an infusion of venture capital money and were trying to go public around the time that the tech bubble burst.
A couple of jobs followed that helped me build my knowledge base more, though after Sept. 11 there were more cutbacks. I was laid off from my last job because they no longer had a need for a technical writer.
Q. What advice would you give to someone interested in this area?
A. It seems to be a rough time for technical writers in the software industry. In the computer field, it used to be if you were bright and understood computers they’d take you. Now it’s getting a lot more difficult. The philosophy in the software industry is to get by with less, to combine jobs, cut the technical writer and let others pick up that part.
Q. People spend years learning the kind of technical information you’re expected to explain. How is that possible?
A. You don’t need to know how to do the things you write about. You just need to understand how someone who does the job does it. I couldn’t drive a truck, but I under-stand in theory how to drive a truck.
Q. Describe an average day.
A. Most people don’t know that technical writers only spend 35 percent of the day writing. The other part is filled with a variety of activities, like researching and interviewing subject-matter experts.
Q. What’s the best thing about the job?
A. Learning about new topics. I was the kind of kid who asked why. I’ve always been curious about how things work, but I wasn’t a take-it-apart-kind of kid.
Q. What’s the worst thing?
A. I often felt my job title should be called managing without authority because technical writers are so dependent on others for information. You have to manage the process of developing documentation without the authority to get people to cooperate. If someone is busy or having a hard day you might not get what you need. It is a universal problem for technical writers.
Q. What qualities does it take to be a good technical writer?
A. You have to be a quick study, but you also need a sense of your audience. When I wrote for end users with no experience I would imagine that my mother would be reading the instructions. If they were clear enough for her, than I’d feel pretty comfortable that a novice could use them.
