Author: Bryan S. Adar

Ralph Waldo Emerson (19th century American essayist) said that a foolish consistency is the hobgoblin of little minds. He thought that what he called a great person doesn’t have to think consistently from one day to the next. Maybe so, but a great tech writer does need to think consistently – and write consistently, too.

Being consistent is very important in all types of writing from memos to technical manuals. The area we’re looking at today has to do with using numbers, abbreviations, and symbols. Each of these elements can be written in a variety of ways. For example: five feet, 5′, 5 ft., five ft. They all mean the same thing. Which one a writer uses is important, but using them in a consistent way is just as important. Five feet in one place should match five feet in another. This is poor usage: Five feet is enough space in front, but 5 ft. doesn’t allow enough space behind.

A style that is often suggested is that in documents where a word like foot shows up only once or twice, it’s written out. In documents where it appears multiple times, ft is better usage. That may be the writer’s call, or it may depend on the client’s style guide.

In the following sentences, it’s up to you. Use the style you prefer, but be consistent. Then, write a “rule” or “rules” that cover the situation. We’ve provided one preferred way of writing each sentence.

Example: We’ll arrive on 25 April and depart 06/05. We’ll arrive on April 25th and depart on June 5th. Rule: Be consistent in how you write dates. Rule: It’s safer to spell out month names.

1. The winning fish weighed 16 1/2 lb and was about 1.75m long.
2. These units are called MHz.
3. The base units come in boxes of ten @ a quarter each or $2 per box. measurement, or of specific importance.
4. 27 hourly employees will be involved in the transfer.
5. Check the % of items with values of less than .75.
6. The shipment will arrive between 11:00 am and 14:30.
7. Be sure the space is at least 6 1/2″ wide, 5.75 in. deep, and 11 inches long.
8. Use 300 pounds of type one, one thousand lbs of type 2, and 2 thousand kg of type three.
9. We need 50# of #5 widgets stet.

Exercise – Answer

1. The winning fish weighed 16 1/2 lb and was about 1.75m long. The winning fish weighed 16 1/2 lb and was about 5 3/4 ft long.
   Rule: Don’t mix metric and English measures.
2. These units are called MHz. These units are called megahertz (MHz).
   Rule: Write out the full word with the abbreviation in parenthesis the first time it’s used.
3. The base units come in boxes of ten @ a quarter each or $2 per box. The base units come in boxes of 10 at the cost of 25 cents each or $2 per box.
   Rule: Use numerals when the amount is a key value, an exact measurement, or of specific importance.
4. 27 hourly employees will be involved in the transfer. The transfer will involve 27 hourly employees.
   Rule: Don’t begin a sentence with a numeral.
5. Check the % of items with values of less than .75. Check the percent of items with values of less than .75.
   Rule: Use symbols only with specific values, not as a substitute for the word.
6. The shipment will arrive between 11:00 am and 14:30. The shipment will arrive between 11:00 am and 2:30 pm.
   Rule: Don’t mix 12-hour and 24-hour time designations.
7. Be sure the space is at least 6 1/2″ wide, 5.75 in. deep, and 11 inches long. Be sure the space is at least 6 1/2″ wide, 5 3/4″ deep, and 11″ long.
   Rule: Use abbreviations consistently. Rule: Don’t mix decimals and fractions.
8. Use 300 pounds of type one, one thousand lbs of type 2, and 2 thousand kg of type three. Use 300 lb of type 1, 1,000 lb of type 2, and 4,400 lb of type 3.
   Rule: Use numerals when the amount is a key value, an exact measurement, or of specific importance. Rule: Don’t mix metric and English measures.
9. We need 50# of #5 widgets stet. We need 50 lb. of no. 5 widgets immediately.
   Rule: Write out symbols that have more than one meaning.
   Rule: Avoid abbreviations that are not universally familiar.

If you can write a simple sentence in English and organize your thoughts then technical writing may be a rewarding field. You can easily make it a second income stream in your spare time.

According to the U.S. Department of Labor, the average salary for technical writers is $60,380. Freelance technical writers can make from $30 to $70 per hour.

The field of technical writing is like a golden city. It’s filled with wealth, rewards and opportunities. After learning technical writing you can branch out into business writing, marketing writing and communications writing. All of these can become additional income streams.

But to succeed you must learn how to market yourself to clients. You have to prove to them that you are an invaluable asset. That’s where ProTech – Your Fast Track to Becoming a Successful Technical Writer can help. It’s a technical writing course that does two equally important things:

1. It teaches you the skills to become a technical writer in the shortest time frame. You’ll learn to create manuals, procedures, tutorials, processes, proposals, spec sheets and other documents that businesses need.
2. It shows you how to market yourself to clients so you can start your income stream as soon as possible.

In fact, you’ll get a complete marketing toolkit which has templates and technical writing job sites to get started immediately!

You can download two sample lessons by clicking the link below.

This could be your chance to create a prosperous future.

Click the link below to download your two sample lessons.

https://www.techwritingcourse.com

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