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We're all Tech Writers Now: Three Steps to Clear Writing for the net
from web site
Take some tips from technical writing which will make your opinions clear and persuasive in the brand new reading environment of the net.
Print media puts the reader in the passenger's seat. Imagine if you do not want a character to die? Imagine if you don't like the direction the story has had? Traditional reading is linear--you start at chapter one and you also visit the end, without detours in between.
Instruction manuals have always been different. Who reads instruction manuals from starting to end? Instead you dip involved with it, try something, and if that doesn't seem to work, flip a few pages backward or forward and try again.
Now the internet has turned into a huge manual where the reader can move around at will--technology has stolen authorial control. You must expect your readers to jump around. To be successful, whatever you write for the net has to follow exactly the same three rules that technical writers use:
Write in Chunks
Readers pick and choose. Understand that your audience isn't expecting a story--they have specific goals. Points have to be self-contained and clearly marked to greatly help them find what they're looking for and move on. Respect your reader's time--don't make sure they are eat the sundae when all they want is the cherry.
Follow a Structure
You can structure your content by category, rank, location--but there has to be a structure. By organizing your information you're giving your reader an instrument that lets them find what they're looking for and skip what they don't really need. If you cannot look for a structure that works, you should define your points more clearly.
Connect it Together
You can't force your reader to check out the road you've set for them, nevertheless, you can give them access to information that supports your message. Don't be afraid to link, both to resources outside your document and to pages inside it. Your role would be to help them achieve their goals; point them towards resources that help them do that.
Like technical writing, the web is approximately helping people find information. Adopt write for us technology of the principals of technical writing in your own work to create it get results.
Print media puts the reader in the passenger's seat. Imagine if you do not want a character to die? Imagine if you don't like the direction the story has had? Traditional reading is linear--you start at chapter one and you also visit the end, without detours in between.
Instruction manuals have always been different. Who reads instruction manuals from starting to end? Instead you dip involved with it, try something, and if that doesn't seem to work, flip a few pages backward or forward and try again.
Now the internet has turned into a huge manual where the reader can move around at will--technology has stolen authorial control. You must expect your readers to jump around. To be successful, whatever you write for the net has to follow exactly the same three rules that technical writers use:
Write in Chunks
Readers pick and choose. Understand that your audience isn't expecting a story--they have specific goals. Points have to be self-contained and clearly marked to greatly help them find what they're looking for and move on. Respect your reader's time--don't make sure they are eat the sundae when all they want is the cherry.
Follow a Structure
You can structure your content by category, rank, location--but there has to be a structure. By organizing your information you're giving your reader an instrument that lets them find what they're looking for and skip what they don't really need. If you cannot look for a structure that works, you should define your points more clearly.
Connect it Together
You can't force your reader to check out the road you've set for them, nevertheless, you can give them access to information that supports your message. Don't be afraid to link, both to resources outside your document and to pages inside it. Your role would be to help them achieve their goals; point them towards resources that help them do that.
Like technical writing, the web is approximately helping people find information. Adopt write for us technology of the principals of technical writing in your own work to create it get results.
