Amanda Butler

"My personality type results (communicator, coordinator and trainer) fit me exactly. Technical writers are first and foremost communicators. We tell people how science and technology work. We're good with words and numbers because we use both to tell our stories. We're also coordinators because we must be organized in our work and how we present it, and we must stay on deadline. Finally, technical writers are trainers because we teach people. We take complex information and simplify it, so the audience can understand it. We come up with creative ways of sharing information, so people who learn differently all understand."

"I'm a technical writer, so I get to write about STEM and share it with the world. My role is the bridge between the scientists and engineers who make the scientific discoveries and technological advances and the people around the world who use them. I like to teach people, so my favorite part of my job is getting to teach people about the latest STEM news. The starting salary for my role varies, depending on industry. (You can have technical writers in all parts of STEM, including biotechnology, chemistry, civil engineering, finance, medicine, physics and software.) Technical writer salaries are often (but not always) competitive with those of the engineers in the field."

"I earned two degrees, one in journalism and one in physics. I have been a technical writer in several industries, including oncology, biotechnology and open-source software. My readers inspire me because I want to help them as much as I can by sharing my knowledge."

"In my spare time, I enjoy reading and eating chocolate. What most people don't know about me is I have a good memory, so I'm always inserting quotes into my conversations (usually from Jane Austen or Disney movies)."

"In my typical day at work, I write technical documentation. This means I sit with an engineer, who tells me about the new technology or feature she designed. I take notes and ask her a lot of questions about how it works and what the user needs to do to complete a task. Then, I write a document about the technology. I send it to the engineer for review to make sure I got everything right, and after she approves it, I publish the document online, so people can read it. I repeat this process for multiple features. (I usually work with several products at a time.) I also answer questions from readers about other documents I've written. "

"I have two bachelor degrees, one in journalism and one in physics. However, technical writers come from all backgrounds. Some have writing experience and learn about STEM for the job. Others have STEM experience and learn how to write for the job. The most successful technical writers are those who love to learn new things and share that knowledge."