Tips on Technical Writing and Editing by Wordsworth Writing

Writing Tips from Wordsworth

Improving Your Technical Writing and Editing

Here are just a few of the tips on technical writing and editing that we provide in our style guide for engineering, architectural, and surveying firms. See the next article for how to obtain your own copy of our style guide.

Active and Passive Voice

“Don’t use passive voice,” is probably one of those red-ink English teacher comments you sometimes saw but that was never explained. Active voice is preferred because it is easier to read and to understand, so it is especially important in technical material. Basically, in the active voice, the subject comes first. Another way to look at it is that the subject does the acting.

· ACTIVE: The contractor evaluated the data.

In passive voice, the subject is acted upon. The reason this is a problem is because it is wordy and harder to follow.

· PASSIVE: The data were evaluated by the contractor.

Be Specific

Technical writers should be as clear and specific as possible, avoiding vague language. Therefore, if you are seeing words like “many, some, a few” in a document, it probably needs revising. Instead of writing “a very high concentration,” for example, give the exact measurement. Give the depth of a test pit rather than just calling it “shallow” or “deep.” Instead of merely saying something is “contaminated,” provide the reader with the amount by which the standard is exceeded and specifically name the compounds involved. Instead of writing that something is satisfactory, state exactly which standards or regulations it meets.

Keys to Getting Started Writing

Here are some tips that may help you get started in writing your document. An English handbook also provides many ideas for beginning the writing process, outlining your ideas, and organizing your material. So if you have “writer’s block,” it might also be useful to look through those sections in a handbook. Here are steps to take before you begin writing:

1. gather information and data (think about what you want to say)

2. identify and refine your document’s purpose (consider why you are going to say it)

3. identify your audience (determine who you are going to say it to)

4. organize your information and ideas (decide how you are going to say it)

For Step 4, it is useful to make an outline. Your outline can be changed, of course, but it will often lead you to knowing your headings and subheadings and where to put specific material in your document. A writer might find it easier to write the outline as a Table of Contents page.

The next step is actually writing the draft. You can write sections out of order, if needed. Do not worry about grammar, punctuation, and style at this point. Just get something down.

After you have your draft written, go ahead and do your revisions. If you have time to set it aside a day, go ahead and do so. As you revise, aim to clarify, strengthen, and condense your message. Also, check the overall organization. This is also the time to go back and write the introductory material, such as the Transmittal Letter and Executive Summary, if needed in this report.

As you revise, here are some questions that might assist you:

· Does the reader know what the report, section, or paragraph is about? If not, make sure you have the topic sentences or main ideas listed first. Example: “This section evaluates the data collected from the three well sites.”

· What does the audience most likely want to know? Check any materials you have (bid packet, report guidelines, previous reports, original proposal) to make sure you have provided the necessary information.

· How well organized is the document?

· Are there any gaps in logic or information?

· Is there enough supporting material (i.e., figures, tables, graphs)?

· Did you use transitional words and phrases (therefore, furthermore, for example, however, in fact, also, first, second, finally, consequently, in addition, on the other hand, next, in conclusion, as a result, in the same way, in other words, in contrast, most important, further, to summarize)?

· How well did you say it? Do you have awkward sentences? Have you checked for the following problem areas (this is also done by the technical editor): sentence structure, sentence variety, subject-verb agreement, passive voice, wordiness, misuse of pronouns, misplaced modifiers, faulty parallelism, poor organization, and poor formatting? Use your handbook or your style guide for suggestions on improving these areas.

· Did you leave anything out that is essential to fulfilling the requirements of the document?

· Did you include information that is not relevant?

· Did you use specific, concrete language? Can a nonexpert read your document?

· Did you avoid jargon, clichés, and wordiness?

· Did you use enough headings and bullet lists to add to readability?

Jargon

One of the main goals of technical writers is to make text clear and simple. One of the ways this is done is by replacing jargon with simple, clear language. Jargon is technical vocabulary, and it is often not necessary. One of the best things to happen to technical writing in the last 20 years is the elimination of jargon and the increase in readability of documents. Writing jargon or extra words (such as this example from APA: “monetarily felt scarcity” instead of “poverty”) prevents readers from understanding the text. Here is an example from another company’s style guide:

Winston Churchill, facing Hitler’s armed forces in 1940, said to Americans, “Give us the tools, and we will do the job.” He did not say, “Supply us with the necessary inputs of relevant equipment, and we will implement the program and accomplish its objectives.

ABOUT CLICHÉS

Avoid clichés like the plague; they are overused expressions that have lost their meaning. Even if you are blind as a bat, you can see a cliché for what it is: nothing.

For more tips, go to our writing and editing tips web site by clicking here.

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