What you need to learn
Field-specific knowledge⎹ English, perhaps?⎹ Communication and teamwork⎹ A lot of new tools⎹ A bit of coding⎹ You Are Gonna Learn It
Field-specific knowledge
What we mean by “field-specific” here are two things:
- Basic concepts, standards, and practices in tech comm.
- Knowledge of the industry you will write documentation for.
As for the first point, this guide alone should give you a decent background. At the very least, you will get an idea of what topics there are to explore. These shouldn’t be too exotic, considering your experience. Tech comm is mostly about content, just like translating – but the focus is wider. You will need to zoom out to include things such as user experience, accessibility, or information design, among others.
Don’t train for a specific industry at this point. There are too many sectors you could work in. You will most likely apply for junior positions, and for those the key is to be open-minded and willing to learn.
However, tech comm is heavy with computer science. If this is the specific industry you had in mind, then yes, by all means, do learn this one.
You’ll need IT knowledge for software and API documentation, but it will help regardless of your area.
For other products, you may still use version control systems, code editors, and markup languages. Writing in authoring tools involves dealing with variables, conditionals, attributes, values… all your typical CS jargon.
Don’t worry, though: it sounds much worse than it is. You will learn a lot as a side effect of HTML and other tools on our list. Just stay curious and don’t neglect the theory. Those “textbook definitions” may come in handy when least expected; for example, when your recruiter asks you to explain some concept.
❝Theory is when you know something, but it doesn’t work. Practice is when something works, but you don’t know why. Programmers combine theory and practice: Nothing works and they don’t know why.❞
— Programming Wisdom
English, perhaps?
This depends on your translation pairs. Many ex-translators in tech comm happen to be English majors, English native speakers, or have otherwise worked in English.
If you are not one of them, don’t worry. As a language professional, you should catch up quickly. You’re already doing fine, at least on the receiving end. You’re reading this guide, for one thing.
Now, to write in English comfortably, you might want to look under the hood; see how the grammar and punctuation work.
No, we are not going to draw parsing trees. Instead, I have a few resources to help you polish your English:
- Skim through the grammar part of Advanced Language Practice by Michael Vince. It’s a staple for learners. If someone considers themselves advanced yet struggles with Vince, they might have fallen victim to some naughty imp!
- Start lurking the English Stack Exchange.
- Check out Jakub Marian.
- Read Grammarly.
- Follow a style guide, such as the Chicago Manual of Style.
Communication and teamwork
As a translator, it is likely that your job has been rather lonely. If so, prepare to adjust, no matter how sociable you’ve been off the clock. You may not have the final say in your text any more, and working with unresponsive SMEs can be tough!
A lot of new tools
The range of software in tech writing can cause a headache. Depending on the company, you might be using anything from MS Word to Photoshop. In IT, you will share environment with developers, write in code editors, and track changes in version control. Publishing tools can get scary too.
In the end, though, learning a tool or two for each task should be enough. For software in the same category, implementations may vary, but underlying concepts are similar; once you get the basics, you should adapt to new tools easily.
A bit of coding
Even for physical products, much of documentation is published online. This is why job requirements include markup languages like HTML and XML. When writing API or other developer-side documents, you might need basic programming skills (JavaScript, Python), though more in terms of understanding rather than developing.
You Are Gonna Learn It
Also known as YAGLI. If my terrible pun flew over your head, let me explain. YAGNI stands for You Ain’t Gonna Need It. In software, it means adding new functionalities only when absolutely needed. The intended result is lighter code and a less cluttered product.
Think of YAGNI as an analogy of your learning capacity. If you study something just because you predict you will need it, you might be wasting your time. Forrest would tell you here that landing a job is like a box of chocolates.
Imagine this: you start learning technical drawing and CAD software just because you saw it mentioned in a job offer. Then you try for another interview, get hired, and end up documenting a language learning app. Sure, studying is always good, but you could have allocated your time better.
For now, focus on the basics and don’t obsess over details. You can’t learn everything. Instead, be ready to adapt and learn when necessary. If your company needs technical drawing – you will catch up!
Next section: Learning the basics