Here are the links, which will help you get acquainted with Technical Writing. The main and the obvious would be the wikipedia page:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Technical_writing
The external links section on this page is really useful. Especially, the link to Docsymmetry. This site is my personal favorite, and I ensure I suggest it to one and all. Here it is for you:
http://www.docsymmetry.com/
Once you go through the docsymmetry articles, you can take up the Level 1 and Level 2 courses on wikiversity. Again a good site, and a free resource. :)
http://en.wikiversity.org/wiki/Technical_writing
The Level 1 course is sufficient to land up in a technical writing job. The Level 2 course will make more sense once you have a mentor in Technical Writing.
Tools also form an important part of a Technical Writer's job. Let us keep advanced tools, such as FrameMaker and RoboHelp, for a later stage. Let us start with MS Word. You must learn to use MS Word as an expert. Take up online tutorials, and play with each feature of MS Word. Try to use style sheets and templates, play with character and paragraph styles, use different headers and footers for sections, and generate an index and a TOC.
Once you do these things and get a hang of technical writing principles, start with some online exercises. (You can ask me for those links. I will analyze your need, and suggest the exercises.)
I guess this is a heavy dose for a beginner. However, you will get to know what to expect in this job. There is so much to do in this field, so much to learn and explore. Though we say only language skills and aptitude for technology can get one into technical writing, there is much more that lets one sustain and grow here.
I hope it proves to be an enjoyable ride for you, the way it has been for me! :)
All the best!!
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Technical_writing
The external links section on this page is really useful. Especially, the link to Docsymmetry. This site is my personal favorite, and I ensure I suggest it to one and all. Here it is for you:
http://www.docsymmetry.com/
Once you go through the docsymmetry articles, you can take up the Level 1 and Level 2 courses on wikiversity. Again a good site, and a free resource. :)
http://en.wikiversity.org/wiki/Technical_writing
The Level 1 course is sufficient to land up in a technical writing job. The Level 2 course will make more sense once you have a mentor in Technical Writing.
Tools also form an important part of a Technical Writer's job. Let us keep advanced tools, such as FrameMaker and RoboHelp, for a later stage. Let us start with MS Word. You must learn to use MS Word as an expert. Take up online tutorials, and play with each feature of MS Word. Try to use style sheets and templates, play with character and paragraph styles, use different headers and footers for sections, and generate an index and a TOC.
Once you do these things and get a hang of technical writing principles, start with some online exercises. (You can ask me for those links. I will analyze your need, and suggest the exercises.)
I guess this is a heavy dose for a beginner. However, you will get to know what to expect in this job. There is so much to do in this field, so much to learn and explore. Though we say only language skills and aptitude for technology can get one into technical writing, there is much more that lets one sustain and grow here.
I hope it proves to be an enjoyable ride for you, the way it has been for me! :)
All the best!!
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