Document Development Life Cycle

Technical Documentation is not just a process of writing. Before the actual content creation starts there are many phases a writer has to pass through.

Just as Software Development Life Cycle (SDLC), technical writing field also has Document Development Life Cycle (DDLC). There are no unique set of stages in a DDLC. Every organization follows a personalized approach for executing their documentation projects. In general, the following list covers most common stages of information development. 

 Documentation Development Life Cycle Phases



Note: This is one of the most common blog posts amongst technical writers. You will get many variants of the same life cycle. I have created this cycle as per my understanding and experience.

Kick-Off: The customer may have an idea about what documents are required for the project even before the software development has started. Alternatively, the customer might not have any idea whether the project needs documentation or not. In either cases, you as a technical documentation expert should have an idea about the scope of the documentation.

Information & Audience Analysis: During this phase, you must gather the useful information of the project and understand all the user documentation requests. It requires a lot interview sessions and surveys to gauge the exact requirements of the project. It is also necessary to understand the readers of your documents. This process is called audience analysis.

Planning & Estimation: After gathering all the necessary information, you can estimate the amount of time and resources required for completing the project during this phase. Based on the estimation, you can devise a feasible plan of execution.

Content Creation: In this stage, you create the content as per the design. But, content creation is not only about writing. It involves other necessary things such as adding relevant illustrations, images, and cross-references.

Review & Testing: Review is one of the most important phases of DDLC. In this phase, your peer (another technical writer or subject matter expert-SME) reviews the content. Generally, it is advisable to follow a “Writer-Developer-SME” approach in review, i.e. first review by writer, second review by developer and the last review by the SME.

Publishing: Once a document is thoroughly reviewed, it can be sent for publication. The same document can be used for various output formats, for example, print (PDF) and online (web help). So, during this phase, you may use as many publication options as per your distribution requirements.

Feedback & Maintenance: This final stage of DDLC ensures that there is a follow up on the documents that are delivered. A proper feedback should also be taken and in case of any discrepancies, you should make sure that the errors are solved and never repeated again.

P.S. In the next few days, I will cover each of these stages as individual topics in detail.

A Writer’s Prerogative

The previous post explained the skills that a writer should have to prepare effective documentation. But what about the concepts? 

Conceptually, what should a technical writer have in mind while preparing user documentation? I was thinking whether what should be a writer’s thought process before writing about technology. Thus, this post happened.

Following are the areas which may help a technical writer conceptualize effective technical documentation process:

• Visualize your audience: Understand and if possible visualize your readers and their needs, attitudes, and most importantly, their awareness of the subject matter. Adapt your writing to these factors and their technical skills. Understand in advance what the audience would (or should) think when they have completed reading your document.

• Understand the Context: Know the context in which the readers might perceive or judge your writing. Some audience may view the information you have developed from a critics’ viewpoint. For example, if you generally use American English and the audience is British, they are extremely particular about the subtle differences between the English used in America and England. So, shape your writing according to it and always understand the scenarios.

• Formulate a sound writing plan: Good writing is a result of a sound process that includes gathering correct information, brainstorming and categorizing thoughts. The typical process would include analyzing information, creating drafts, editing them, and revising information if it does not fit into the flow of the document. Even great writers might not get a perfect write-up in a single try. You will have to spend time and keep revising your content until it is in sync with the requirements. Even if you are piled up with multiple tasks, try to invest time in composing content step by step: analyzing, drafting, editing and revising each assignment. It will reduce your efforts eventually.

On the whole, the above points provide you with a pre-writing analysis. If you comprehend these aspects well, you can clarify many of your initial doubts and save yourself some quality time on rework.  For details about basic technical writing skills, see 7 – Habits of a Highly Effective Technical Writer.

Building your Portfolio - Part 2

If you are planning to shape your career as a freelance writer or actively searching a full time position, you may want to employ a broader paradigm to your portfolio. More often than not, recruiters and interviewers look for web presence that helps them understand candidate’s writing skills. So, instead of highlighting your Facebook or Twitter page, you may demonstrate your skills by your blog or website.

 

There are many things you can add to your blog or website apart from your resume. For example,

1. You can put samples of your portfolio on your website. You have better chances of showing your versatility as a website does not limit you to submit limited samples (as most interview sessions do). For more about samples, see Building your Portfolio -1.
2. You can generate HTML help pages (using RoboHelp or Flare) for demonstrating your knowledge of tools.
3. Emphasize that you are aware of latest trends in the technical communication by building articles on the topics that you have studied or have come across on the forums and other blogs (Please create original content from the knowledge you have gathered. Plagiarism is simply unacceptable for writers.)
4. You can add samples of eLearning videos to your website as well. One of the innovative ways of creating eLearning videos can be the walk-through of your own website. You can create a small tutorial showing how someone can optimally find information on your website.
5. You can also create generic user documentation templates like user guide, online help, table of contents, index, glossary, etc.

 Other General Tips: 

• Try to keep your portfolio relevant and updated. 
• Study your portfolio thoroughly. You can be thrown any question based on it. 
• Never reveal proprietary information in your portfolio. If you insist on it, always seek prior permission from the content owners.
• Always try to keep your website organized and clutter free.
• Your blog should be categorized well so that the reader can find relevant information easily.

Please leave your comments so that I can keep improving this blog.

The Tipping Point – Global Audience

If you have been following this blog and are searching for global resources to make a great career in technical writing, this post would help you understand from where can you start.

It would be really good if you can find a renowned local institution for technical writing in or near your city (It would be difficult for me to jot to three best schools at every location :) ). But, the most prevalent method of learning is taking online courses. These courses are a good way to start off your knowledge exercise.

I would briefly provide a list of top three types of online courses I have heard of:

1. Utah State University
2. Webster Tech Writers
3. Technical Writers Block  

Apart from these institutes, Internet has a huge pool of informative blogs and websites by international authors. These writers have vast experience in technical communication and provide all the latest updates in the market.

Here are few of the free resources you can start with:  

• http://en.wikiversity.org/wiki/Technical_writing
• http://www.twin-india.org/TWIN_Book.chm
• http://www.twin-india.org/TWIN_Book2.chm
• http://www.prismnet.com/~hcexres/textbook/

Along with the learning, the best way to understand technical documentation is working on a freelancing project or getting employment. So, the next post would be how to get into the market with your acquired skills.

P.S. This post is dedicated to the global audience. The Indian enthusiasts, please refer to the previous post.

Am I eligible ?

Yes and No.

There has been enough debate about who can be a technical writer. But, my experience and study of this field has helped me deduce certain facts that might interest you.

• Technical Writing is an age old career stream. Technical Writing existed even before the advent of Information Technology. The documentation experts used to provide their services to various domains like manufacturing, oil and gas, and even aerospace. Those writers were industry experts in their respective technologies with sound writing and grammar skills.
• With Information Technology it became a different ball game altogether. Technical Writers began to generate information through various documentation mediums like Microsoft Word, Framemaker, RoboHelp, etc.
• And, with the invention of Internet, the information exploded online.

Throughout this journey of technical documentation, writers and their academic background also have been changing continuously.

Majority of the writers come from two educational streams:

• Technology – Engineering and Information Technology
• Writing – Arts and other communication fields

But, there are people who hail from different backgrounds and end up as technical writers. For example, one of my colleagues studied pharmacy in college. He started his career as a Medical Transcription writer and then stabilized his career in technical documentation.  

To succeed as a technical writer, you ought to be in love with technology. For example, it is of prime importance that you understand how gadgets work or how websites navigate. Another important aspect of technical documentation is how comfortable you are with English. For non-native English writers, it would be really necessary to take up a course in technical communication before plunging into this field. More about this in the next post.

At the end of the day, the choice still remains. If you think you enjoy the riddles of consistent, error-free and disciplined writing, technical documentation is the field for you.