Transcript Professional Writing - Middle Tennessee State University

Presented by the UWC
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Goals
What is Technical Writing?
What is not Technical Writing?
Common types of Technical, Business Writing
Steps for Technical Writing and Revision
Audience Analysis
 Prioritizing Concerns
 Tone
 “HATS” (Headings, Access, Typography, Space)
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Understand what Technical, Business Writing
is and how to use it.
Determine what types of situations require
Technical Writing, and which do not.
Understand the most common types of
Technical Writing and how to produce them.
Understand how the UWC can help you with
your Technical, Business Writing.
What additional goals do you wish to achieve
in this session?
TECHNICAL WRITING IS:
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Planned, researched (if
necessary), drafted and
revised
Persuasive and
rhetorically aware
Concise
Easily understood
Goal oriented
Useful
TECHNICAL WRITING IS
NOT:
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“Off the cuff” or thrown
together
Obvious or unimportant
Ambiguous
Use Big Words or
Jargon
“Jargon refers to technical terminology used
inappropriately for an audience. Whenever you use
technical terms unfamiliar to all or some of your
audience, you are using jargon. Second, whenever you
use a pretentious or unnecessarily complex word
because you want to impress someone or because you
want to make yourself feel more important, you are
using jargon” (Jones 120).
• In the first case, you’ve lost or confused your audience, in the
second, you’ve damaged your credibility.
Jones, Dan. Technical Writing Style. Boston: Allyn and Bacon, 1998.
Print.
Technical Terminology or Jargon?
•Jargon- avoid unless writing for colleagues or peers
•Technical terms- if needed, define or choose a common word
Jargon
Definition
Alternate Word
Canon
English/Literary Studiesdescribes a group of texts.
Collection
Acute Myocardial
Infarction
Medical professionals- describes
death of the heart muscle
Heart attack
Mens Rea
A legal term used to refer to a
person’s mental state.
State of mind
Cutline
Journalism –describes text that
accompanies a graphic
Caption
Let’s Practice!
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Resumes
Curriculum Vitae
Business Letters, Cover Letters, Memos, Sales
Letters
Report Abstracts
White Papers
Email, Listserves, Discussion Boards
What other situations can you think of that
may require the use of technical writing skills?
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Audience Analysis
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Prioritization of Concerns
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Use of Proper Tone
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HATS
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Development Stage
Primary author (you)
 Secondary author (a technical expert within your organization)
 Secondary author (a budget expert within your organization)
 Gatekeeper (your supervisor)
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Reading Stage
Primary audience (decision maker, primary point of contact, project lead, etc.)
 Secondary audience (technical expert within audience’s organization)
 Shadow audience (others who may read your communication)
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Action Stage
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Stakeholders (people who may read your communication, but more
importantly, those who will be affected by the decisions based on the
information you provide)
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Adapted from The OWL at Purdue
http://owl.english.purdue.edu/media/pdf/20061101102119_629.pdf
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Focus and Purpose
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Audience
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What should this document accomplish?
Is your document user-centered
Does your document employ the proper tone?
Organization and Document Design
Does your document move from general to more specific
information
 Is your document organized in order of importance to the
audience?
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Development
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Have you included all necessary information to validate
your document without providing needless information.
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"Tone in writing refers to the writer's attitude
toward the reader and the subject of the message.
The overall tone of a written message affects the
reader just as one's tone of voice affects the listener
in everyday exchanges" (Ober 88).
Ask these questions to ensure your
communications have the proper tone:
Why am I writing this document?
Who am I writing to and what do I want them to
understand?
 What kind of tone should I use?
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Ober, Scott. Contemporary Business Communication. 2nd Edition. Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1995
Use HATS to create documents that are easy to
access, easy to navigate, easy to remember:
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Headings – to promote easy navigation
Access – to promote the finding and understanding
of information
Typography – to promote ease of reading and clear
levels of information hierarchy
Space – to promote effective document design
To Recap – Ask these questions when using
HATS:
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Headings – Are there enough headings? Do they
reflect a clear hierarchy?
Access – Is important information easy to find? Is
the information easy to digest? Does the method of
presentation enhance readability and clarity?
Typography – Does the document use the most
appropriate typefaces, size, styles, and alignment
for both body text and headings?
Space – Does the document have appropriate white
space to make it inviting and easy to read?
adapted from William H. Baker’s “HATS: A Design Procedure for Routine
Business Documents,” Business Communication Quarterly V. 64, no. 2 June 2001.
What additional questions do you have
about Technical, Business Writing?
University Writing Center
James E.
Walker Library
362
615-904-8237
For more writing assistance,
please don’t hesitate to make
an appointment at the Writing
Center!
1. For more information, visit us
online at www.mtsu.edu/uwc