Excellent Technical Writing: Beware Of Your Editor/really like Your Editor
出典: くみこみックス
Your editor must be an integral element of your writing team. Do not believe of him/her as a judge, but rather as a resource to support you in all phases of the writing project. This report will aid you overcome any fear of your editor, and how to effectively use your editor throughout the writing procedure.
Beware of Your Editor
Some of the adjustments that an editor may suggest could make the User Document much more challenging for your Reader to realize.
Enhancing You...
Overview
Your editor really should be an integral element of your writing team. Do not think of him/her as a judge, but rather as a resource to aid you in all phases of the writing project. This write-up will clicking here support you overcome any fear of your editor, and how to successfully use your editor throughout the writing approach.
Beware of Your Editor
Some of the modifications that an editor may recommend could make the User Document far more challenging for your Reader to recognize.
Enhancing Your Writing
Once your editor has gotten past the basic mechanical editing tasks of:
* grammar
* punctuation
* spelling
* editing to a Style Sheet,
he/she might perform on "improving your writing."
Your editor may possibly think that a single way to make the writing much more intriguing is to use synonyms when you refer back to something. Therefore you may well call something a "chip bin" in one part of your text, and your editor may well recommend using a diverse term, such as "waste trap," later in the document. This ought to make your writing "much more intriguing."
You do not want interesting writing in your User Documents! You want clear, simple, really effortless to comprehend writing. If you make your writing a lot more interesting by utilizing the synonym ("waste trap") then you force your reader to have to assume about regardless of whether or not these are the identical thing. I suggest that you use the exact very same wording every single place in your User Document where you are referring to the very same thing. No synonyms right here!
If your Reader wanted to be entertained or have his/her thoughts provoked, then he/she would be reading a novel.
Don't let your editor make source your writing far more interesting or far more clever if these efforts tends to make the material tougher for your Reader to understand.
Erudition
Another spot to beware of your editor is "erudition." That is, when an editor that tries to make your User Documentation sound much more formal. Other than disclaimer, legal, and safety details, the User Document should sound friendly, with a conversational tone.
For instance, an editor may recommend altering contractions (such as "don't") into their far more formal form ("do not"). Do not do it! Contractions are conversational and they ought to not be avoided.
If you assume about it, most individuals reading the User Documentation for any item are under some form of tension:
* they either want to get on with utilizing the solution, or
* a thing has gone wrong.
A formal document will place the User off. The document ought to not be silly or flippant however, it really should provide the info that the User wants in a conversational, easily understood style. The necessary info ought to be effortless to locate.
Even though most word processor grammar checkers are woefully inadequate, several of these checkers can be made to supply a readability score (you may have to set an choice to enable this function). Editing really should help increase the readability (indicated by a reduce in the reading grade level) of the document. If editing increases the reading grade level, ask your editor why that score has changed.
What to Do
Provide your editor with the data that will enable him/her to do the finest job. Right here are some things to inform your editor:
* The intended audience for the User Document
* Tell your editor that you want an informal style of User Document
* What style manual or guide to be used in editing
* Scheduling and progress of the project
* Format for sharing and editing the text (make confident the editor can read your electronic documents -- do this when you employ the editor)
(Whenever you are dealing with a person outside your organization, you need to have a signed non-disclosure agreement. This is in addition to any other contractual items between the outsider and your organization.)
Get to Know Your Editor
Your editor is NOT your school teacher. In your school days, your teacher-as-editor was a judge. Your goal was to impress your teacher with your writing. You had been working for a grade. Thus you might have come to fear your editor.
Modify your thinking! Now, your editor is on your side. Your editor will function with you to create the finest possible writing. You will not have to worry excessively about grammar. You goal is to get the data "on paper" as clearly and totally as you can. Your editor will suggest changes to polish the text.
So do not fear your editor. Make your editor component of your writing team.
Adore Your Editor
Hire Your Editor Early in the Project
Hire your editor early in the life of the project. There are at least two advantages to hiring the editor early:
* 1st, your editor will be prepared for the editing task. He/she will have had time to get to know the item, target audience, and your organization's style guide.
* Second, your editor can aid you with your writing, as I describe beneath...
Let Your Editor Support You
If you run into issues about how to write something, call on your editor. Most likely your editor can provide an successful wording to get you around your block. That is one purpose why you got the editor on the project early. Here's yet another...
A Recommendation
I suggest that you perform on small pieces of the User Document, and circulate these modest pieces (rough drafts) to the development team for comments. Then use their comments to increase the writing, and re-circulate the enhanced material. Continue this for a few cycles. I call this "Iterative, Interactive Writing." This is an efficient strategy for writing rapidly and accurately.
If you feel uncomfortable about circulating rough drafts to the item development team for assessment, here's a resolution. Have your editor carry out a swift edit of the rough draft just before you circulate it for comments. Your "drafts" will appear fairly excellent, and the development team will concentrate on the content material, not the wording or grammar (and comments about content are you want from the team).
The Bottom Line
Do not think of your editor as an enemy helpful resources lurking at the end of your document production path. As an alternative, understand that your editor can be a useful member of your writing team, and is on your side. He/she must:
* Be brought onto the writing project early
* Be kept conscious of the status of the writing project
* Be utilised as a writing, as properly as an editing, resource
TIP: It is significantly far more enjoyable for the writer (you) to function with "marked-up" electronic documents, rather than marked-up printed documents. Investigate your word processor's "several reviewers" capability. To employ this capability requires that you and your editor use the same or compatible word processing software program.
NOTE: I am not an editor, nor do I represent any editors. But as a writer, I worth editing.
