Contracting with Technical Writers and Editors: Why, When, and How
Publication: Leadership and Management in Engineering
Volume 11, Issue 4
Abstract
By the very nature of their jobs, engineers have a fundamental and ongoing responsibility to report their work and capabilities to a variety of audiences: peer technical audiences, less technically informed but otherwise sophisticated management audiences, and often the general public. Yet many do not have the editorial skills to effectively convey their messages to these audiences to achieve their communications goal. One way to address this problem is to contract for writing and editing services. This article discusses when contracting makes the most sense, types of technical writers and editors, considerations in assessing technical writers and editors, ways to prepare for work with technical writers and editors, and typical steps in publication planning, writing, and production.
Mark Twain once said that the difference between the right word and the almost right word is the difference between lightning and the lightning bug. This distinction, which highlights the importance of ensuring that what you say and write is clear and accurate, is nowhere more important than in technical communications. Indeed, if no one knows about your work or your capabilities or can understand what you’ve written, you’re essentially irrelevant.
By the very nature of their jobs, engineers have a fundamental and ongoing responsibility to report their work and capabilities to a variety of audiences: peer technical audiences, less technically informed but otherwise sophisticated management audiences, and often the general public. Yet many do not have the editorial skills to effectively convey their messages to these audiences to achieve their communications goal. One way to address this problem is to contract for writing and editing services. Contracting may go against the grain of those who, in the mold of the classical engineer, believe that responsibility for preparing their communications should fall to them alone. Be this as it may, contracting with technical writers and editors offers a number of potential benefits to technical staff, technical managers, and their departments and organizations. Among these, contracting can and likely will
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Reduce the time technical staff spend on communications (writing, editing, management, and coordination), thereby expanding overall department and staff productivity by freeing staff to focus in areas where they are specifically trained and primarily interested;
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Improve the quality of communications output, expanding both individual and organizational reach and influence;
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Speed production of communications material from concept to completion, improving the overall volume of communications output;
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Ensure consistency in the quality, look, and feel of communications products;
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Reduce the amount of time technical managers spend specifying revisions to material sent to them for review by subordinates; and
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Offset most or all of its costs by improvements in overall department and company productivity resulting from the contractor’s work.
The Challenge/Opportunity
Most technical managers, like other professionals, have basic writing and communications skills. However, most are not polished communicators and typically do not have the time or interest to focus on building their skills. Most appreciate the value of effective communications and view communications as a fundamental aspect of their jobs. But they often see communications more as an obligation than an opportunity, a low priority compared to their other responsibilities. Consequently, many come to the task reactively and recalcitrantly rather than proactively and eagerly.
There are a number of reasons for this lack of initiative and enthusiasm. First and foremost, technical communications is hard work and time consuming, and most technical people would rather be doing other tasks—tasks for which they were trained and at which they have demonstrated skill. When they do write, their information is often not well organized, in their minds and on paper, and they have little patience for detailed publication planning, viewing it as a time sink or the sign of a weak mind. Moreover, in many cases they have a tendency to load on qualifiers and go into excruciating levels of detail, all of which obscures their key messages and slows the flow of their discussion. Finally, more often than not they woefully underestimate the amount of time required to produce well-written material and, finding themselves time constrained, cut corners.
Even acknowledging these shortcomings, many technical people are loath to contract for writing and editing help because they don’t know where to look, don’t feel they can spare the time and effort required to bring writers and editors up the learning curve, don’t want or can’t afford the expense, and often feel—generally incorrectly—that they could do the job better if only they had the time. As a result, they frequently undertake the job themselves, only to later begrudge the effort because it took more time than they anticipated (or would or could make available); their output was not as comprehensive, precise, effective, or well received as they hoped; and the whole effort was harrowing and unrewarding. Subsequently, and not surprisingly, their material often fails to gain the exposure it might otherwise merit.
When Contracting Makes the Most Sense
Contracting for writing and editing services is most cost-effective and prudent when one or more of the following conditions exist:
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Communications products will be highly visible with key audiences or are critically important to the individual and organization;
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Multiple authors or layers of review, approval, and revisions are involved;
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The audience is nontechnical and the information to be communicated is complex and detailed;
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The organization places a premium on quality;
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Managers are dedicating more time than they wish to reviewing and editing materials their staff produces; or
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Staff have limited writing skills and training and limited time to devote to the process; as a result, the responsibility is burdensome, and opportunities are lost to market and promote products and services, inform key audiences, and influence policy and opinion.
Even when in-house technical communications capability exists, retaining outside contractors may make sense, especially when a large discrete project is involved, the outside contractor has specific expertise or experience, or in-house staff do not have the flexibility to respond in a timely manner.
Types of Technical Writers and Editors
In contracting with writers and editors, it’s important to appreciate that writing and editing are distinct—although often complementary—disciplines. Writers typically create documents from scratch independently or in concert with technical staff. They conduct interviews and literature searches and carry out independent research to develop the information to be included in documents, and they draft and redraft versions of the document to incorporate review changes and get the material to the production stage. As a consequence, they often receive acknowledgment recognition or are listed as coauthors.
Editors, on the other hand, work on documents that have already been researched and written—typically documents that have been tortured by their authors to the point of exasperation. There are two types of editors: developmental and copyediting. Developmental editors typicallyDepending on the depth and breadth of their efforts, developmental editors may also receive acknowledgment recognition.
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Assess documents’ clarity, conciseness, consistency, and comprehensiveness, focusing specifically on the contextual and organizational structure of the text and the effectiveness and usefulness of graphics material;
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Correct perceived deficiencies or prepare a detailed analysis memo describing perceived problems and suggested remedies;
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Develop front and back matter as necessary—for example, executive summary, preface, acknowledgments, table of contents, lists of tables and figures, glossary, and index; and
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Assist in incorporating review changes and get the material to the production stage.
Copyeditors typically do the following:
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Correct errors in grammar and syntax;
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Ensure consistency of spelling, capitalization, and abbreviations;
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Ensure adherence to conventions of the company’s style guide or a commonly used style guide such as the Chicago Manual of Style or AP Style Bookor the American Psychological Association or Modern Language Association guide;
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Ensure uniformity of formats for tables, figure captions, footnotes, and bibliographic references;
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Identify and query unclear or missing information;
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Verify cross-references to sections, subsections, chapters, tables, figures, and so forth;
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Check consistency, parallelism, and hierarchy of titles and subtitles; and
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Check formatting, spacing, and type size of titles, subtitles, lists, and other features of the document against specifications.
Considerations in Assessing Technical Writers and Editors
Writing and editing contractors may be grouped in five general categories: (1) independent technical writers and editors; (2) independent consulting engineers; (3) engineering organizations with in-house writing, editing, and production management resources; (4) technical communications companies with in-house writing, editing, and production management resources; and (5) public relations or advertising firms. There is no single, key consideration in assessing these options. At the head of the list are standards of quality, experience handling comparable projects, and track record of reliability, often reflected in a stable business history and ability to forge and maintain long-term client relationships. Beyond these, the contractor must be able to
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Understand the subject matter at hand and move quickly up the learning curve, thereby cutting overall project time and the manager’s time commitment;
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Write clearly and concisely for the intended audience; and
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Research and develop documents from scratch, independently or in concert with the project manager.
The contractor’s organizational structure also can be important. Organizational structure influences overhead costs and the breadth of available support staffing; the latter influences the contractor’s ability to handle multiple projects and provide backup in the event the principal writer or editor becomes unavailable or project needs expand.
When communications needs are large and continuing, involving ongoing management and coordination of multiple products over an extended period, capabilities in areas other than writing and editing can be important. Primary among these are production management capabilities (graphics, design and layout, printing, distribution, website administration) and communications planning and management capabilities (program design, budgeting, scheduling, and day-to-day program oversight and monitoring).
Cost, of course, is also a consideration. The largest portion of cost is labor—time on the project multiplied by the contractor’s hourly rate, which includes overhead. The efficiency of the individual doing the work—time to complete tasks—has an important influence on cost. Also reflected in cost are support services, materials, supplies and equipment, graphics, and printing and distribution required for the project, as well as any travel, a function of proximity to the client’s place of business and the geographic dispersion of reviewers and information resources. It is the contractor’s responsibility to define and identify these costs prior to project initiation. Discrete cost elements and in some instances overhead rates may be negotiable. Overall budget approval is logically the exclusive purview of the contracting manager and his or her company.
Preparing for and Working with Technical Writers and Editors
Thoughtful preparation can streamline the process of working with contract writers and editors. Advance groundwork will help orient the writer or editor, speed his or her progress up the learning curve, and trim both project timelines and costs. The critical element is to be as clear as possible about the project’s goal, audiences, key messages, and ultimate vehicle (e.g., technical report, guidebook, journal article). Beyond this, it will be helpful to
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Assemble the required reference materials necessary to produce the document and give the writer or editor your thoughts about the relative pertinence of these materials;
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Have a clear idea about your budget and project schedule;
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Explain your personal standard of editorial quality;
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Explain any sensitivity in handling certain topics or reference materials; and
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Discuss production issues and resources such as graphics, production, and distribution needs and plans.
If the document is to be prepared from scratch—versus editing existing material—and it is a longer, more detailed document (technical report or speech vs. a newsletter article), most or all of the steps listed in Table 1 will be necessary to get from start to finish. Developmental editors follow a roughly similar path, with the exception that they typically are not asked to research and assemble new materials via interviews, literature searches, and so forth. Copyediting is most practical just before a final draft is sent into production.Table 1. Typical Steps in Publication Planning, Writing, and Production
| Step | Project manager | Writer | Others |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. Hold an initial orientation meeting. | ✓ | ✓ | |
| 2. Review available reference materials or research and assemble new materials via interviews, literature searches, and so forth. | ✓ | ||
| 3. Organize the material into discrete topical areas to identify holes and questions (research notes). | ✓ | ||
| 4. Discuss research notes to plug any holes and identify resources to answer outstanding questions. | ✓ | ✓ | |
| 5. Conduct any additional research and develop a working outline. | ✓ | ||
| 6. Discuss the working outline and agree on an approach. | ✓ | ✓ | |
| 7. Prepare writing notes. | ✓ | ||
| 8. Resolve any last-minute issues (holes and questions). | ✓ | ✓ | |
| 9. Prepare a first draft that includes a list of graphics. | ✓ | ||
| 10. Revise the first and subsequent drafts and manage them through any in-house or external review and approval process. | ✓ | ✓ | ✓a |
| 11. Finalize graphics and, with formal publications, design and lay out the document. | ✓ | ✓ | ✓b |
| 12. Manage production and distribution of the end product. | ✓ | ✓ | ✓c |
a
In-house or external reviewers.
b
Artists, photographers, and graphic designers.
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Printers and distributors.
Finally, there are two basic types of consulting editorial contracts or agreements: fixed rate and time and material. With fixed-rate contracts, the total cost of the contractor’s work is estimated and fixed at the onset of the project based on his or her hourly rate and estimate of materials, equipment, travel, and other expenses required to perform the work. If the contractor completes the work in less time than anticipated, he or she is still entitled to the full amount of the contract; if the contractor needs more time than estimated to complete the work or incurs unexpected costs, the contractor absorbs these costs unless the contract has provisions that address overruns.
With time-and-material contracts, the contractor typically works at an agreed-on hourly rate until the work is completed. In addition, he or she is paid for the cost of materials, equipment, travel, and so forth required to complete the project, plus an overhead or profit margin. This type of contract is typically used when it isn’t possible to precisely assess the extent or duration of the work to be performed. Unlike fixed-rate contracts, time-and-materials contracts do not provide a positive profit incentive for the contractor to perform more efficiently than anticipated at startup.
Conclusion
Professional writers and editors represent a valuable resource for technical staff and managers in accomplishing their communications goals. To be most effective, you must be prepared. You must know your subject matter thoroughly and know that it is credible and pertinent. Moreover, you must be responsive in the working relationship, available when needed, and supportive as your writer or editor scales the learning curve. When these conditions exist, the probability is high that your communications will clearly, concisely, and effectively convey your messages to your intended audiences, within budget and on time.
Biographies
William F. Nesbit is a writer, communications manager, and trainer with four decades of experience working with engineering organizations and corporate clients. He can be contacted at [email protected].
Information & Authors
Information
Published In
Leadership and Management in Engineering
Volume 11 • Issue 4 • October 2011
Pages: 292 - 296
Copyright
© 2011 American Society of Civil Engineers.
History
Received: Oct 1, 2010
Accepted: Jun 28, 2011
Published online: Sep 15, 2011
Published in print: Oct 1, 2011
ASCE Technical Topics:
Authors
Metrics & Citations
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