The ABC’s of Technical Writing: 4 Traits Technical Writers Need to Know

Writing a technical report is often a real challenge for many technical professionals. Research, investigation or design is the reason you’re doing what you love to do… but then you have to write a report. And that has the potential to be the weak link. But there are some characteristics of technical writing that are essential, whatever your field or organization. I like to remember them as the ABC’s of technical writing: precision, brevity, clarity, and simplicity.

1. Accuracy: accurate reporting of your findings; accurate presentation of the facts; accurate representation of your findings, according to the methods you have used. Be sure to clearly state where you have expressed an opinion, rather than a particular result of your research. To the extent possible, please provide specific information rather than generalizations.
2. Brevity: Try to keep the document as short as possible – readers short on time will appreciate it. Consider placing background and supporting information in an appendix, footnote, or reference at the end of the note. As much as possible, keep sentences short (15-20 words work well for most readers), with only one idea expressed in each sentence.
3. Clarity: Use familiar vocabulary and constructions (make sure you have thought about who will read your report and be prepared to explain potentially unfamiliar words, perhaps as a glossary, footnote, or endnote). Be consistent with your terminology, abbreviations, and presentation of figures, tables, illustrations, etc. Consider using tables, figures, graphs, illustrations to prove your point… as ‘they’ say, a picture saves a thousand words. Remember that jargon (specialized terms used in your field) excludes those who are not familiar with those words. Use precise words: Your readers don’t like having to decide if a word has a slightly different meaning in different contexts. A useful technique is to use bullets or numbered points to express complex ideas (if your discipline or organization allows it).
4. Simplicity: It is about expressing your thoughts with simplicity, not about simplifying your work. Remind your readers: you want to show them the value of your work, not how good a writer you are. Content is more important than fancy writing. Verbosity makes it difficult for your readers to understand. Make sure you have thought about the logical progression of your report. Plan the structure of your document so that you lead your readers to the conclusion you have reached. The simplicity inherent in the use of plain English (active voice, sentences of reasonable length, clever use of specialized terms, no verbosity) will come in handy.

Familiarize yourself with the ABCS of technical writing. Remember that you are writing for your readers to say, ‘This is excellent work,’ not ‘This is good writing, but I’m really not sure what it is about.’