Write As You Talk: The Key to Writing Technical Documentation That Works

You have probably read this countless times.

Technical writers break complex topics into easy-to-read and understandable documents.

But as a technical writer, how do you even do this?

One of the ways to achieve this is to adopt the write-as-you-talk technique, aka, conversational style.

The best technical writers are known for the simplicity of their documentation.

They write like they are sitting right beside their users and guiding them on how to solve a problem. But without the hmmm and haaa that happens during conversation. The focus is on the user, not on them.?

If you’re writing your documentation as if you want to show your readers your expertise, they will struggle to use it.?

How Do You Use a Conversational Style?

Imagine your friend coming to you to ask you about how to create a good LinkedIn profile. At that moment:

• Your friend knows what LinkedIn is.
• Your friend wants to be taught or shown how to achieve something (a good LinkedIn profile).

You will fail your friend if you start doing this:

• Boasting about your knowledge of LinkedIn or how prominent you are on the platform. This is a clear deviation from the topic
• Assuming the role of a university lecturer and start speaking vocabulary. You will create confusion, not clarity.

Instead, you will explain and show your friend the step-by-step process of creating a good LinkedIn profile in the most natural and easy-to-understand way. You will use the example of your profile or other great profiles on LinkedIn.

This short scenario is similar to how to write useful technical documentation using a conversational style.

You explain, show, and guide the user on how to solve a problem in the most natural way possible using everyday language.

?? With conversational style, instead of saying, "Utilize the configuration panel to initiate the setup process," say, "Open the settings panel to get started."

?? You'll use “you” instead of we, they, or us. Notice this is what I have done throughout this article. Did you feel the closeness?

?? You will use shorter sentences, bullet points, and step-by-step instructions.

Why Conversational Style?

Conversational style feels more natural and makes your writing easier to read and understand. It is user-friendly, with no fluffiness or unnecessary vocabulary. It helps users grasp complex topics faster, reduces information overload, keeps the users interested, and reduces frustration.

Technical writing is about helping users succeed. A conversational style makes learning easier, faster, and far less intimidating.

----------

My name is Victoria Lazarus, and I specialize in crafting clear, concise, and comprehensive documentation for developers and no-code users. I am open to jobs in technical writing.