Dear Internship Supervisor,
There has been much controversy and confusion when it comes to
properly defining technical writing. Many professionals attempt to define this
field only with the small success of constricting its discipline. The following
below will help indicate a clearer understanding of what technical writing is
and by creating a new position for a technical writer will bring benefits to
this company in multiple ways.
The best definition to describe technical writing is better shown
through the analogy that David Dobrin explains. He describes the simplicity of
this particular art form and how it does not cover itself in beautiful writing
but rather recognizes this in an objective standpoint. That is where the science
aspect comes in. The art lies in by making writing seem simplistic. He
goes on further to say that it carries the "care of a scientist, the
humility of a saint, and the clarity of the bugle call."
By interning as a technical writer for a small business, it is
true to say that technical writing is certainly the unspoken hero. From the
smallest manuals to train employees to the well-designed forms they must
follow, its effectiveness is shown when workers use a technical writers work
without the struggle of understanding their directions or getting lost in the
communicative process. For a small business, making sure an advertisement is
worded correctly, social media communicates to its audience clearly, or a
business website carries a professional look that is appealing to its
customers.
A technical writer adds value to any workplace because of their
versatility in knowledge and skill that become highly dependable in the end. To
create professional brochures and grants, a technical writer can make sure
that whatever the company produces in writing, is presented in a professional manner while communicating its message directly to its
employees or customers. This position can wear many hats from the management to
the marketing department. For a manager, this is beneficial because cutting
down costs and increasing profits is the overall goal and a technical writer
makes everything more efficient.
A professional writing degree is a field that can expand in any
discpline. It is needed everywhere. In this case, it perfectly fits in the
business world. As long as business is growing, so technical writing will parallel
that growth. By having a technical writer, they are already trained in how to
present the company professionally and can learn the skills of other parts of
the company such as management and that will decrease the possibility of having to hire another employee. Hiring a technical writer is a smart investment in the long-run with many benefits the our company.
Sources:
Elizabeth Tebeauz: Let’s Not Ruin Technical Writing, Too: A
Comment on the Essays of Carolyn Miller and Elizabeth Harris. College English, 41(7), 822-825. Miller,
C.R. (1979). Carolyn Miller responds. Collge
English, 41(7), 825-827.
What’s technical about Technical Writing? By David N. Dobrin
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