What To Look For In An Engineering Technical Writer And Editor

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By Jocelyn Davidson


If you want a book about a specialist subject, you need to choose a writing and editorial team that can offer more than just a way with words. Someone who normally writes fiction may not have the knowledge or indeed the specific skills to get a technical message across. This is why knowing what to look for in an engineering technical writer and editor is essential if you want to produce books in this subject area.

Obviously the best person for the job would be someone who knew something about the subject. However, engineers aren't necessarily your best choice because they don't always have the writing skills to produce great texts. It's much better to choose someone who can write well or who can edit a text to improve it, even if they don't know much about engineering.

Your chosen author's main skill should be the ability to explain difficult concepts so that anyone could understand these. This is one of the reasons why actual engineers aren't always the best choice. They might rely on jargon and might assume that the reader knows what they're talking about. Someone whose specialty is words, however, will be able to place themselves in the shoes of the reader who knows nothing about the subject and will find the simplest ways to get the message across.

It's very important that the members of your team will know how to do research. Moreover, they should be prepared to do so and be willing to learn something new. They shouldn't just accept what one source says as fact but should cross-check different sources. If they can find ways to understand the different concepts, they'll be better able to explain these concepts in a way that will make it easier for their readers to grasp too.

Editors naturally need to be excellent at going through texts and correcting grammar and spelling. They should also be able to restructure sentences or even entire paragraphs to make the text as readable as possible. However, you can shave weeks off the production process by choosing an author who pays attention to spelling, grammar and structure too, since the editor will be able to get through the text more quickly. In addition, light edits cost much less than rewrites of texts.

With a highly specialized text such as one aimed at engineers, quality control is essential. Someone needs to check not only that the right materials are mentioned but also the right measurements and calculations. After all, if someone were to try and construct something while using text full of mistakes, the construction would collapse. Therefore, once the text has been edited, it's a good idea to send it to a group of engineers to review.

If you don't already have access to a database of language practitioners who can be members of your team, one good route to go is to advertise the job on a freelancing website. Then, check the backgrounds of the different applicants to see whether they have the experience and expertise you need. Also go through the feedback each candidate has received from previous employers. You may also ask for a short writing or editing sample before making your final choice.

In order to attract the best candidates, you need to offer decent rates. People who are willing to work for free or for rates much lower than the market standard tend to be amateurs or people with hardly any experience. Truly professional writers and editors value their work and want to be paid their worth, so they won't apply for jobs that pay too little or that has unrealistic deadlines.




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