Book Review

UnTechnical Writing – How to Write About Technical Subjects and Products So Anyone Can Understand by Michael Bremer – UnTechnical Press, Concord, CA 1999 ISBN 0-9669949-0-6

One of the first things I noticed about this book as I flipped through it before reading was the use of quotations. They caught my eye and made me stop more than once to read the rest of the section before going back to where I started. I had to force myself to stop reading the quotations and go back to the beginning. Bravo, Mr. Bremer, for making me anticipate each section and the great quotations I knew it would contain.

This isn’t your typical “how to write user documentation” book. If you’re looking for dry, technically-scientific terms and long winded sentences, don’t read this book.

Warning: This book isn’t for everyone who wants to be a technical writer or a better technical writer. If you are looking for a lesson in grammar, don’t read this book. If you are expecting to learn how to type or use a word processor, forget reading this book. However, if you are looking for a new, innovative way to write clear, concise instructions for the layman consumer audience, then make yourself comfortable and read away. This is your book.

Caution: This book may cause you to see technical documentation in a new light. You may become overly excited and expect your company to immediately adopt your new ideals and change their documentation or product lifecycle processes.

It’s very obvious, right from the beginning that Mr. Bremer knows what he’s talking about and can express himself very well. He has a firm grasp on who the reader is and how to sort through the garbage and find that reader the gems. He describes the different readers and how to best reach each one.

Best of all, he doesn’t cop a “holier-than-thou” attitude. Even though we can tell he’s “been there, done that, and bought the t-shirt,” he keeps his opinions low key. I, for one, am grateful. I refuse to take any technical author seriously who tells me that their way is the ONLY way. Mr. Bremer makes it very clear that what he’s writing about are ideals and suggestions that have worked for him in one form or another and may not work for everyone.

Mr. Bremer’s basic philosophy is to keep everything simple. “Simple in language. Simple in style. Simple in organization. Keep Occam’s Razor handy, and use it often.” For those who don’t know, Occam’s Razor is the