Design expert Donald Norman has written that when people are anxious, they narrow their thought processes. Conversely when people are happy, they become more creative and imaginative at solving problems. If this is true, it means that one of the best things a technical writer can do is create beautiful content that moves readers to a happier, more adaptive emotional state. Or so I contend.
Tag: technical communication
Best Practices for Content Reuse
For technical writers, content reuse it a great idea---but way more difficult in practice than it sounds. Here are some of my practical suggestions on how to do it in a sustainable way, based on my years of experience implementing it with tools like Confluence and Madcap Flare.
Resources on How Technical Writers Can Support Sales
I just published an article on how documentation can enable sales. Here's an annotated list of the resources I used in my research.
What It’s Like to Work in Technical Writing [Email Interview]
A student from my alma mater reached out to me with questions about the wonderful world of technical communication. Here's a transcript (peppered, of course, with delightful Dilbert comics).
Do Technical Writers Dream of Arbortext Editor?
Arbortext Editor is a software program that lets you do "structured writing"---a special kind of writing in which every piece of content you compose follows one or more predefined rules. In theory this helps writers to develop consistent, high-quality content. The problem is that the tool has a lot of serious shortcomings. Here's my wishlist of things to improve.
My Article from STC Intercom: Designing Wiki Templates for Today’s Web
Last November I published an article in Intercom, a magazine produced by the Society for Technical Communication. It was paywalled at the time, but the exclusive rights period has since expired so I have copied it here. Synopsis: A regular part of the technical writer's job is to design document templates that help others jumpstart the writing process. How do our template design strategies change as more documentation moves from the print medium to web browsers and mobile devices?
Are Technical Writing and Creative Writing Antithetical? No. And Yet, Yes.
They are very different. But how different, exactly?
Love to Write? Get into Technical Writing. Society Needs You.
Most people who have an inkling of what technical writing is tend to view it in terms of strict practicality or outright boredom. But what if I told you it was far more creative than we think, and a key ingredient in solving some of society's toughest problems?
Richard Rabil, Jr. 
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