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Technical Writing: What is it? (technical writing) Technical writing is one of the most difficult forms of writing. To be a technical writer you need to be able to convey a technical message in a concise and effective manner. Technical documents must be created using comprehensive and precise information in a brief and understandable style. You will need the ability to be able to correspond with technical experts and have the understanding of all technical terminology. You are the middleman between the designers, engineers, or scientists and the audience of the technical writings. You have to have the ability to under stand what they are saying and the turn it into something that can be understood by someone else. Simply put it is writing that designs, creates, and upkeeps any kind of technical data such as user manuals, how to guides, and online help just to name a few. To be able to achieve a career in technical writing you must be able to write complex data in a straightforward, easy to understand and articulate fashion. You must be able to word step by step instructions in a way that seems effortless to a consumer. While doing technical writing one of the most important aspects of your job will be creating for an intended audience. So not only must you understand and convey what you are writing, you must understand whom you are writing it for. In most cases, you are generally trying to explain complex technical information to the average person. But with the diversity in the world today and having such a vast potential audience you must understand the meaning of the words you use and what they could mean to someone else. Some technical writing projects may also include magazine and newspaper articles. These articles will probably be focused on new technologies and products. In some cases this may be in the form of an advertisement. Or it could just be an introduction to a new product saying hey this is what we have and this is what it a can do. Although a formal education is always a plus, if you have experience and successful past ventures in technical writing it isn’t always necessary. Knowledge into the multiple components needed for technical writing is required. They key components to what you must know is an in depth knowledge many software programs. These applications can include Visio, Quadralay Web Works Publisher, Microsoft Word, and HTML script writing. Proper formatting, style, and organization of writings are what make them easy to follow. Correct wording, clear sentences, and easy terminology make your technical writings easy the read and comprehend. If you are employed as a technical writer with a company, you will most likely be working with a team of other writers. You writings will be reviewed for content efficiency as well as any grammar and spelling errors. Depending on the structure of the team they may be working on the same project as you or they may be working on separate projects. Either way the team is assembled as a support group to help make your technical writing be as accurate, effective, and as simple as it can be. To succeed in technical writing these are the simple rules to follow. Keep it as simple as possible; no one wants to read four pages to find a simple one word answer. Understand the people you are talking to and what you are telling them. If you don’t understand, neither will they. Make sure you get your work proofread or read it aloud to make sure it makes sense. You know what you are trying to say, but your reader does not. You are the carrier for getting information from point A to Point B.

To Enter or Not to Enter Writing Contests (writing contests) If you are a freelance writer, it is because you love to write. Why not put those abilities to use and enter a writing contest? You have nothing to loose and a lot to gain. You can find writing contests by simply searching the Internet. Writing groups and message boards may also have listing for these contests. No matter what you writing genre maybe poetry, fiction, non fiction, there is a contest out there for you. Read about them and choose which ones are right for you. It is not necessarily about winning or loosing but about the experience and knowledge that you gain to get there. Whether you win or not there are still valuable things that can be learned or gained by entering into contests. Entering writing contests will help you hone the skills that you have. Try something new, you may choose to write in a niche that you normally wouldn’t. You get constructive criticism from someone new. Someone that doesn’t have to worry about hurting your feelings and that is unbiased can be a wonderful asset to your career. The feedback you receive can be invaluable to you. It will get your name out there and give you a place to showcase your work. Depending on how good your story, if you make it to the next round your writings could be in front of editors and agents. This feedback and criticism is even more important than the first. Do not your eggs all in one basket. Enter a couple contests to get multiple feedback sources. Not every editor or agent is going to agree. By entering multiple contests and find common points about your writing that need perfecting you will be able to concentrate on a general consensus about your abilities. There are some downsides to entering writing contests, too. Chances are that a simple contest is not going to launch your career into star status. Do your research just as if you were going to write an article about contests. For many contests you give up your rights to your entry whether it wins or not. You need to decide whether or not you are willing to give up all rights to your story. If you win it is not a big deal, but if you loose your giving your work away. Are you willing to do this? Research the contest. You can search the Internet for reports or opinions on contests run by the company. You can find valuable information on if the contest is legitimate, if entering has had any effect of previous entrant’s careers, and if it is really worth it in the long run. The bigger and well-established companies will give credibility to your work if you win. But the bigger and more well know the companies are will also bring in tougher competition with well know authors. Some companies offer contests as a disguise. Yes they will give away prizes and declare winners but their main goal with the contest is advertising. It can be in the form of offering you to buy obscure book featuring your contest submission. Sometimes it is an editing company that offers a discount for its services or a company that will offer you discounts on writing classes. A writing contest is just a possible stepping stone. Whether it helps you or not is the unknown, but it definitely won’t hurt you. It may help you reach the next level of your career. You and only you will be able to make the decision on whether or not writing contests are a good move for your career.

Send Free Cyber Greetings to Friends and Family with These Popular Sites Are you looking for a fast, fun and easy way to stay in touch with family? If so, consider sending free cyber greetings to your best friends and family members by taking advantage of the services offered by many fine e-greeting card services. Here are some reasons why you should consider sending ecards, and where you can find the very best in electronic greetings. Why Should You Consider Electronic Greeting Cards? The traditionalists among us will complain the World Wide Web is quickly eating away at the last traces of decorum and good manners. They will suggest that there is no replacement for the thoughtful and handwritten stationary note. While it is true that there is no equivalent to the handwritten note, it does not mean that you should exclude electronic greeting cards from your social life. Electronic greeting cards can actually be quite helpful in establishing friendships, keeping in touch and sending out a last-minute greeting. In truth, electronic greeting cards may be the saving grace of the modern electronic age. Sending an electronic greeting card is just casual enough to keep you touch, and just formal enough to send a meaningful greeting to someone that you really care about. When it comes to keeping in touch with the people you love, you may want to send out a paper greeting card. However, for those occasions where the important occasion has slipped your mind, an electronic greeting card is an easy way to tell someone that you have not forgotten about him or her. More Reasons Why You Should Send Electronic Greeting Cards Besides being a very quick and easy way to stay in touch, electronic greeting cards are also a great way to help the environment. As more of us move towards an environmentally sustainable future, you may want to send your environmentally conscious friend or family member an electronic greeting card. This is a fun and simple way to save paper and resources. Digital Greeting Cards are Fun and Easy Free virtual postcards are an easy way to keep in touch with friends and family. How do these virtual postcard services work? Usually, you simply select the card that you want from an assortment of electronic designs. Many websites even allow you to select various features of your card. You can often choose your own image, music, background music and other special design features. Then, all you have to do is simply type in your own personalized greeting. Then simply type in your recipient's email address, and wait to hear back from them. Your recipient will either receive an email message with an in-text card greeting, or a link to view their virtual postcard. Where Can You Find the Web's Best Electronic Greeting Cards Services? Fortunately, email has allowed us to become closer to own another, and electronic greeting cards are an easy and fun way to stay in touch. There are many fine websites that allow you to send and receive electronic greeting cards for free. Here is just a brief sampling of the web's best free virtual greeting card services. These include FreeWebCards.com, AllFreeGreetingCards.com, Greetings Island, E-Greetingz.com, Virtual Gravy Greetings, Electronic-Greetings.com, AAAPostCards.com, Radio Cards, E-Cards-Greetings.com, and CyberKisses. What to Look for in a Virtual Greeting Card Service First, although many greeting card services offer paid services, there are still plenty of free greeting card services to choose from. If personalization is important to you, choose a greeting card service that offers a large selection of cards and that allows you to choose from a selection of fonts, colors, music and other template and personalization choices.