John Steinbeck is my favorite American author. He’s not everyone’s cup of tea, but the aesthetic of his writing, his fundamental philosophy and the compassion for humanity in his written work appeal to me. When I started writing fiction, I worked very hard to write descriptive prose like he did. Though my work was not as nice as his, I did nail the craft of descriptive writing. Not so easy to do. And it maps well to tech writing.
But Steinbeck taught me something that carries over into any type of writing, including technical writing. Pick an actual person and write to them. That is what Steinbeck did. If you read Journal of a Novel: The East of Eden Letters, what you will read are things Steinbeck wrote to his longtime editor and friend, Pascal Covici, as he warmed up before the day’s writing. (I recommend this book to any writer who feels intimidated at sitting down to an empty page. You are not alone. Even towards the end of his career and all the acclaim, he felt insecure and nervous when faced with a blank page.)
And, ultimately, that is what you are doing anyway, communicating with individuals. I think a lot of writers forget about that. They forget that, when they are successful, they have communicated with and connected with individuals, not an amorphous blob called The Audience.
How this applies to tech writing is very straightforward. First, define the audience for the document you are about to write. Next, select someone you know who accurately represents that audience. That can be a friend, a family member, someone in the office. Anyone. Then, write the document directly to that person. Keep them in mind as you work, as if you were sitting across from them and explaining the product or service and how to use it.
When necessary, ask yourself, “What would <insert appropriate person’s name here> need to know to understand what I just wrote?” Answering that question will help you sort out the underlying items that will provide context for your readers and facilitate effortless understanding. It also helps uncover assumptions you bring to the writing process.
Writing to an actual person also goes a long way to eliminating jargon and fancy words that just confuse readers or unnecessarily send them to the dictionary. It makes the work easier for everyone. So, find someone to write to.
Leave a Reply