Technical Writers and Editors

Make writing a daily activity. Writing is a skill that develops over time and through practice. Keep journals, join writing clubs, and practice different types of writing, such as scriptwriting and informative reports. Sharing writing with others and asking them to critique it is especially helpful. Comments from readers on what they enjoyed about a piece of writing or difficulty they had in understanding certain sections provides valuable feedback that helps to improve writing style.

Reading a variety of materials is also helpful. Reading exposes you to both good and bad writing styles and techniques, and helps to identify why one approach works better than another.

Experience can also be gained by working on a literary magazine, student newspaper, or yearbook (or starting one of your own if one is not available), or starting a blog (visit Blogger.com and WordPress.com to start your own blog). Both writing and editing articles and managing production give the opportunity to learn new skills and to see what is involved in preparing documents and other materials.

Students may also be able to get internships, cooperative education assignments, or summer or part-time jobs as proofreaders or editorial assistants that may include writing responsibilities.