Technical Writer Developer Salary in 2024

Technical Writer

What Does a Technical Writer Do?

A technical writer creates documents that enable people to use products, or that explain abstract concepts to a general readership. A technical writer may collate information or re-express it in digestible form for a target audience. Depending on the industry they support, they may write instruction manuals, guides, journal articles, or other forms of supporting documentation. Technical writers may be employed by companies that manufacture products, but they could also be employed by copywriting agencies that write technical documents for multiple client companies.

Their task would depend on their specialisation. Here follows a list of specialisations in which technical writers work, and a description of what each type of technical writer does:

• Medicine and Science: A medical or scientific technical writer writes documents for medical and scientific products or research, such as reports for clinical trials and research papers.
• Marketing: This is a technical writer who creates technical artefacts for marketing materials (such as white papers and case studies).
• Software and Technology: A technical writer in this field would likely be writing customer support documents for software and technology products, such as user manuals.
• Business and Finance: A business or finance technical writer writes documents such as contracts, proposals, and financial documents that aid in business transactions.
• Technical Writing: Educational or teaching technical writer – Writes documents for educational or teaching purposes. Creates classroom or learning materials such as training manuals, study guides, resources, workbooks, and textbooks.
• Engineering: A technical writer who specialises in engineering would write instructions for engineering products like user manuals, diagrams, and schematics for engineering products.

Duties and Responsibilities for Technical Writers

The exact duties of a technical writer will depend on the field of work and the specific company for which he or she is writing. Some of the typical duties include:

• Researching and Gathering Technical Information: Technical writers research and work with subject matter experts to gather technical information and ensure that the document is fully developed and technically accurate.
• Establishing the Project: Technical writers must consider who will use the document, and adjust format and mode accordingly for this project.
• Editing and Proofreading: A technical writer edits and proofreads his or her own writing and the writing of other technical writers to make sure the documents they produce are free of grammatical errors and technical inaccuracies.
• Liaising with Clients: A technical writer working for an agency or freelance will communicate with their clients about their needs and standards, as well as respond to client feedback.
• Working on Several Projects at the Same Time: Technical writers can be assigned several projects at one time. These writers must be able to manage their time to meet their project deadlines.

Typical Salary for a Technical Writer

These writers make an average salary of $60,520 a year. Technical writers can be part-time, hourly employees, or full-time, salaried members of a technical writing team. Others are freelance writers who are paid per document by their clients. A technical writer’s salary can be based on the years of experience and credentials they have, as well as the location and size of the company.

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Technical Writer Qualifications

Education Requirements for Technical Writers

A great many technical writers have degrees in technical writing, professional writing or English. Your schooling may include coursework in business writing, nonfiction writing and editing. The more extra-curricular technological courses you take, the better prepared you’ll be for a technical writing career. Or you can get a degree in engineering, computer science, or another technical field and then take coursework in communications and business writing. Most of the time, a four-year degree suffices to get a technical writer job, but many of these writers also have master’s degrees.

Skills for Technical Writers

Technical writers typically have the following skills:

• Writing: A technical writer uses words to explain complicated information in simple terms. Technical writers might also have to write for several hours at a time.
• Communicating: As a technical writer, you might have to collaborate with other co-workers or clients in order to create good material. The ability to communicate with others will ensure that you are able to work with others to write documents.
• Problem-Solving: You may have to first figure out, before you document, how something works; or you may use your problem-solving skills to write up simple documents that describe more complex processes.
• Research: Doing more research can help you write more detailed instructions for someone else. Clients usually give you the information to do an assignment, but you might want to do more research to better understand the concepts.
• Online Publishing: Many technical writers write for websites and other online media. If the company uses online publishing software or a content management system (CMS) to produce web content, experience with that tool or tools will give you a leg up in the hiring process.