Hi guys & girls,

I am writing this post out of desperation.

Background: Journalism graduate, both bachelor's and master's. Did content writing in education for a year, then for another year wrote content for Amazon-listed products including their manuals & guides, troubleshooting, and FAQs etc. Got laid off.

Current: For the past 6 weeks, I have been learning Technical Writing in pieces. Till now, I've covered Scrum, Agile, API documentation, JSON, XML, Markdown, and REST APIs—with limited practical usage. I mean, I learnt it from a course, but practical use is only limited to the examples shown in them, which I followed step-by-step. I have no confidence that I can write a documentation when asked.

Along with this, I've been applying to different Technical Writing roles and have been rejected by almost 28 different organizations, including startups.

Now I am moving onto learning different tools and then portfolio making.

The problem is, even after learning so much, whatever documentation I see on Google API docs or Salesforce docs, I don't understand $hit. Along with that, getting no calls for jobs is slowly building up anxiety in me. I've been jobless since January. At this point, I don't know what to do. Should I keep going with what I planned, stop, or rethink my strategy? I am blank as I am typing this post. Come on guys, help me out.

I recently started at a well known company, and let me tell ya what, the amount of documentation they have vs the amount of usable and relevant documentation is shocking.

They have AI now, and you might be thinking: well there it is. No need for me.

One part of the conversation surrounding AI that seems overlooked and something I’ve clocked immediately is that the AI is only as good as its training material, and lemme tell ya what! 99% of the documentation that they’re training these things on are pretty fucking bad, and it leads to a lot of errors!

This has resulted in me convincing my management that we need a manual, human review of almost every process and procedure doc available.

I know it seems dire, but you will find writing jobs. It’s a position they think they can wish away, but they can’t.

I have recently decided on a career change after years in the technical support field. I have a bachelor's degree in information systems, and was wondering what kind of certifications I would need for a job in the technical writing field. Any help would be appreciated, thank you!

Laid off in April 2025 due to the government layoffs and haven’t been able to find anything since. I apply to 5-10 jobs a day mostly off Indeed or the company’s page. I have 5 years experience and a Secret clearance. Everytime I interview or find a lead the position closes or it’s just an automatic rejection. I’ve redone my resume countless times. Hired resume writers and recruiters. I’m really at a loss rn as what to do. I’m currently working at Walmart just to get by. I’d like to find something before my clearance expires. Please help me get any leads or something. The only thing I can think of is that I just bomb at the interviews or AI is really taking over or they just don’t have the budget for these positions after all. Why do they just decide to close the positions entirely? I spent about 5 hours working on a manual for one company editing it as part of an interview process and still they decided to cancel the position. I’m frustrated and at a loss of what to do.

Pretty good read with a quote from their tech writer regarding how lack of documentation made everyone's job harder:

>"We have nothing from that period," he confessed. "Or at least, not in our centralised knowledge base. Perhaps we have some documents here and there on some old forgotten servers, but if we would like to find it, we would have to allocate masses of resources to do so – time and money, which we don't want. So if the state of your documentation is this black hole, this means you have to reverse engineer everything, and basically reverse engineer your own legacy."

Hello! I apologize if this is long, but I would really appreciate some insight. I am a senior in college and am set to graduate in the fall. I am quickly realizing that I need to get myself and my stuff together for job searching at the end of this year and the beginning of next year. So here is some general information before I get into the main question.

I am a double major in English and History. I have knowledge in analysis, research synthesis, research, oral communication, written communication, and writing. I am debating an MA in both English and History, but I am not pursuing one right after I receive my bachelor's for sure. (personal and financial reasons).

I am looking into some different fields because I do not want to be a teacher, no hate behind that statement at all; I have so much respect for teachers. Anyway, I am looking into Grant Writing, Technical Writing, or a data or research analyst position. I am hoping for something remote, but I know in today's job economy, and with my experience, that is very unlikely. I am wanting to hear from anyone who has experience in any of these fields, a few things.

1. Given my education, are any of these fields plausible?

2. What courses, certifications, or anything along those lines should I be committing myself to in the next few months

3. Are there any other fields that you think would align with my degrees and my skill set as of now?

4. Finally, is there anything that you can think of that I should be doing that I would not possibly think of until I am asked for it?

I will edit if anyone has questions or if I need to clarify a few things. Thank you all!

I’m a 37-year-old senior technical writer from India with 12+ years of experience, currently working remotely for a UK-based company. My job may end soon, and honestly I’m starting to feel that traditional technical writing is slowly becoming obsolete due to AI.

I have an MCA degree (2013), but I was never a hardcore technical or coding person. I understand software products, documentation, workflows, SaaS environments, etc., but I’m not someone who can suddenly become a full-stack engineer.

I live in a tier-2 city and moving back to a metro/tier-1 city is not realistic right now because:

- I support a family of 6

- I have a 10-month-old baby

- I’m the sole earner

- Monthly expenses are around ₹80–90k

- I have a home loan outstanding (~₹20L)

Financially I have some cushion (~₹40L FD), so I’m not in immediate panic mode, but I know I cannot sit idle for years either.

The good part is:

- I adapt quickly

- I already use ChatGPT/Claude regularly

- I’m willing to learn

- I’m okay transitioning careers if needed

The bad part:

- I genuinely don’t know what realistic path exists for someone like me in the AI era.

I’m not looking for motivational replies. I’m looking for honest, practical advice from people who have either:

- transitioned from technical writing/documentation

- moved into adjacent AI-era roles

- survived mid-career shifts without hardcore coding backgrounds

Questions:

1. What realistic roles should someone like me target now?

2. Is AI documentation / knowledge management / product ops a real career path or just LinkedIn hype?

3. What skills would give the highest ROI over the next 1–2 years?

4. How do I reposition myself without pretending to be an engineer?

5. Are remote opportunities for this kind of profile still viable globally?

I’d really appreciate honest guidance, especially from people who have seen the market closely.

The contracting company uses FrameMaker because a previous Air Force project supplied the FrameMaker files. An entirely new project requires the contractor to deliver XML source files. Navy has supplied DTDs. FrameMaker supposedly can be used for XML. I am making some progress, but it seems like it is a real slog. Lots of validation errors, extra steps in creating EDD files, importing DTDs, creating Structure Applications. Seems like a lot of unnecessary complications. am concerned that even if I get Arbortext to work, the XML files will not be compatible upon delivery. Can anyone suggest an easier way or an altogether different application, like Arbortext?

Hi! We have recently started using an AI search bot/Agentforce-style experience that answers customer questions using help center documentation.

When the bot cannot find a strong answer, it creates two types of outputs:

1. Documentation gaps — These are later reviewed by Doc team and may become doc updates.
2. Bot-training snippets — Short answers or clarifications that help improve bot responses, but are not full help articles.

The challenge, the snippets are not documentation. So we do not want to publish thousands of small, unmonitored snippets in the official help center. Right now, support team stores them privately in Community, but they eventually want them public so the bot can show a source (like it does when it finds an answer from a help article).

Has anyone experienced this. How can these be handled considering the bot will keep creating content based on every customer conversation?

• Where do you store bot-training snippets or micro-content?
• Should they be treated as official docs, community content, support KB content, or internal bot-training content?
• If the bot cites a source, does it need to be customer-visible?

Hello TW! My team are looking for better solutions for writing and maintaining complex procedures with multiple branches and sub-procedures.

Our end users use a system which reveals the next section of information in a branch based on their selections. Only the information that is relevant to their circumstance.

My team are also required to provide copies on short notice showing all possible branches and the detailed content within each section.

We currently use an old version of Visio and MS suite. It's painful. Help!

Hi Everyone,

I am SAP basis and security admin with 5 years of experience. Currently I was interviewed for SAP basis role but have been moved to SAP technical writer role.

Now I have never heard about this role. On google very generic stuff is written about this role.

So I want to know from you guys whether is this a good role to move to? What can be the future scope of this role.

Any other advice or suggestions are also welcomed.

I've been writing technical content professionally for 7+ years, including docs, blogs, API references, and release notes, the works. So, I figured I'd share the same ideas here that might help others.

These aren't generic "write clearly" tips. These are the things I had to unlearn, relearn, or get burned by before they actually clicked.

1. Ask "what does this sentence do?" before you publish it.
Every sentence in a technical blog should earn its place. If it doesn't explain a concept, move the reader to the next step, or add context that prevents a mistake. Cut it.

2. Precision beats volume every time.
"In order to be able to initiate the process" → "To start the process." Your reader isn't here to admire your prose. They need to do something. Get out of their way.

3. The first draft proves you understood the topic. The edit proves you understood the reader.
I do two passes on everything. First pass: logic gaps, missing context, wrong assumptions. Second pass: sentence-level precision. Treating them as one pass is where most writers leave quality on the table.

4. Know what to cut and what NOT to cut.
This one took me years. A sentence that looks "extra" might be the one that prevents a production incident. Caveats, edge cases, "why this step matters," these aren't fat. A screenshot caption that just repeats what the screenshot shows? That's fat. Learn the difference.

5. If you can't write a clean heading for a section, you don't fully understand it yet.
Structure is a thinking tool. If a section resists being titled, that's a signal. It is most probably a comprehension problem. Go back to the source material.

6. Edit for your least technical reader, write for your most technical one.
The smartest person in the room still appreciates clarity. The less experienced person needs it. You don't dumb things down, but you make them precise enough that nobody misreads them.

I am curious to know which writing habit changed things most for you?

Something I’ve noticed over the last year:

A lot of people aren’t really learning “AI” itself. They’re learning how to design workflows around AI tools.

The valuable skill doesn’t seem to be prompting anymore. It’s figuring out:

• what should stay manual
• what should be automated
• where humans still need review
• how information moves between tools
• how to reduce repetitive work without creating chaos

Feels like every role now quietly includes some amount of system/process design even if that wasn’t originally part of the job.

Curious whether other people are noticing this shift too or if I’m overthinking it.

6 years as a tech writer. Salary (65k) has never gone up and probably never will unless I move to a new company.

I’ve been applying like crazy and all I can seem to land are interviews for contract positions (no benefits) with senior-level FT expectations.

Is anyone else on the market experiencing this?

writing for a tech company and clients are now running everything through AI detectors before approving

the problem is technical writing SOUNDS robotic by nature. you're explaining APIs, cloud architecture, compliance frameworks - it's not supposed to sound like a buzzfeed article

i've had pieces rejected because zerogpt flagged them as 85% AI even though i wrote every word. their reasoning? "too structured, uses technical terms repetitively"

yeah no shit it's technical documentation

anyone else dealing with this? how do you make enterprise software content sound "human" enough to pass these tools without dumbing it down so much it's useless?

starting to add random typos just to game the system at this point

Simple. I want out. I’m a senior writer with almost a decade of experience. A contractor like many others. I’m tired of being paid the lowest salary with no benefits. (I get offered healthcare but it’s expensive. What’s the point of paying monthly for it when I can barely put food on the table.)

Anyways, I have a BS in CS. I feel in love with documentation back in 2020. Decided to break into this dead end field. My current contract is almost over. I’m tired of looking for new contracts every few months. I’ve been doing contracting for years. Meanwhile, I’ve witnessed the laziest full time technical writers who just collect checks. Frankly, I don’t blame them. Management sucks!

I typically don’t have a technical writing manager. But, when I do, they’re a nightmare. Mixed messages. No clear directions. No training. Raising concern about process issues is seen as problematic. My current manager rolls their eyes whenever I ask them for their opinion on proposed workflow strategies. They just don’t want to work.

I’m forced to work at the office. Meanwhile, no one talks to each other, 0 collaboration, and everyone just looks “busy.” There is barely anything to write about. The manager expects me to find out the timelines for projects and to scope out the requirements without bothering SMEs. I was pulled once for asking “too many” questions and to get “straight to it.” Absolute lunatic work. Now, AI is slowly taking over. Many are finding a way to eliminate technical writers all together. Why not just have an agent write about it? Right.

So, I want to pivot to another career. I just don’t know what career is transferable. Please help!

(I've posted in this group before so you can search my posts in this group for the whole story.)

I know AI is a dirty word in technical writing these days, as we are all aware technical writing is one of fields extremely vulnerable to job loss. But can anyone suggest AI tools that are available to me now that are either documentation focused or can be tuned to be used that way? I have to speed things up and automate where I can. Before you cuss at me, read on.

I am a technical writer with a small but fast growing company that has had no semblance of document control, management or standards since at least 2021. To say everything is a mess is an understatement. I write in Word because that's what we have. SharePoint is used like a global network drive. Everything is dumped in a library folder, co-authoring is universal and nothing is named, revised or controlled in any way. This has become culturally embedded in the company. Nobody on my team even knows what document control is or why it's necessary. My manager considers any of my time on it a time-wasting hassle.

I'm new, the only writer, and I'm drowning. The lack of truth sources, a control system, templates, processes, etc. has meant I had to create basic ones on my own, which is taking time away from writing the documentation, which averages 100-200 pages each manual, guide or reference.

I've built up Chat GPT as a half-ass truth source with what I can find and what SMEs tell me. With the right prompting and rules it can generate some content quickly but I always have to edit it. I'm using Co-Pilot to automate some things within Word but it's slow and flakes out a lot.

Any ideas on how I can leverage current AIs or even custom LLMs to speed this up?

,

Edit: Thank you, everyone, for your advice and support. I truly appreciate the compassion and care you all have shown 💗

Hello, everyone. I hope the week is off to a great start for you all.

The TL;DR of this post is that I need to get out of technical writing, or at least my current job, due to scorched-earth levels of burnout, and I would appreciate suggestions as to what fields or jobs to look for that are actually hiring. I’m based in the western US.

I’ve been in my current position for more than five years. After a mental breakdown this weekend, I’ve come to the conclusion that I can no longer sustain the burnout I’ve been feeling for two years.

The problem I’m facing is that, despite a burning desire to switch fields entirely, I seem to lack the training and skills, or maybe just confidence, to qualify for other jobs.

When I think of my current job, I become lightheaded, and my body starts to tingle, go numb, and feel weak. I am mentally paralyzed at work. I feel great when I’m not working and have been evaluated for depression.

I want to leave on my terms and without being fired, but I am at a loss as to what type of job or career to look for. I need to get out of this field as soon as possible.

Please feel free to ask questions if more information is needed. Any insights are greatly appreciated. Thank you to everyone who takes the time to read and respond to this post.