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What does a freelance technical writer do?

A freelance technical writer takes complex, technical topics and crafts easily digestible, readable content in the form of blogs, white papers, user guides, medical writing, case studies, and product instruction manuals. This career path is centered around producing clear and concise technical information. Most clients requiring the skills of a technical writer leverage insight and information from engineers and other highly technical professionals.

Most highly technical professionals struggle to convey information in a way that makes sense for others not as well versed in their field. What’s needed is someone who can take that complex information from technical professionals and craft content that’s relatively easy to understand.

Freelance technical writers often collaborate closely with technical professionals in order to glean complex information and accurately translate it into content that communicates clearly to the client’s intended audience. Technical writers can be found working with organizations in a number of highly technical and complex industries, such as aerospace, IT, high-end manufacturing, engineering, energy, and the medical field.

What skills do I need to become a freelance technical writer?

In addition to possessing education and experience, the most in-demand technical writers exhibit a balance of left-brain and right-brain characteristics. On one hand, a technical writer must understand complex and technical concepts. On the other hand, the writer must also be proficient at crafting content that is easy to read while conveying the complexities of the topic at hand.

Most freelance technical writers should should possess the following:

• An ability to easily understand complex and technical concepts
• Excellent critical thinking skills
• Excellent writing and communication skills
• The ability to creatively distill complex topics down to easily understood content
• The ability to communicate effectively with clients, subject matter experts, and specific target audiences
• A thorough understanding of the industry and the target audience for which the content is being written
• Problem-solving and troubleshooting ability
• Excellent research and investigative skills
• The ability to meet deadlines
• The ability to collaborate with others
• Advanced organizational skills

What are the core freelance technical writer job responsibilities?

There are a number of tasks freelance technical writers are responsible for as they work with clients, other tech writers, subject matter experts, and other stakeholders. While responsibilities will vary across organizations, industries, and projects, there are some common responsibilities technical writers should anticipate taking on.

They include:

• Write and edit technical documents, including white papers, reference and product manuals, user guides, and blogs and articles
• Collaborate extensively with engineers, programmers, project managers, and other stakeholders in the technical field to understand concept details
• Research and investigate solutions important to the target audience
• Create and adhere to a content calendar, including research, draft, review, and publications processes
• Work directly with graphic designers and other artists to develop clearly understandable illustrations designed to help convey complex topics
• Receive feedback from technical stakeholders as well as clients in order to course-correct accuracy of the content

Should I get a degree or certification to be a freelance technical writer?

For those hoping to become a technical writer, the optimal education and experience is similar to that of many other professionals who write for a living. In these instances, it’s best to obtain some form of formal education, usually from an accredited university or college.

Technical writers must also earn experience writing for a variety of technical organizations and within complex industries. This provides practice and the ability to develop research and critical-thinking skills in a live environment.

Popular degrees or certifications recommended to become a freelance technical writer include:

• Associate’s, bachelor’s, or master’s degree in English, journalism, marketing, computer science, and communications from an accredited college or university
• Certified Professional Technical Communicator—offered by the Society for Technical Communication
• Medical Writer Certified—offered by the American Medical Writers Association