Top 12 Technical Writer Skills to Put on Your Resume
The job market doesn’t blink. A sharp resume helps technical writers cut through the noise—showing a mix of technical fluency, crisp writing, and collaborative soft skills that proves you’re ready to ship clear, dependable content.
Technical Writer Skills
- Markdown
- DITA
- XML
- MadCap Flare
- Adobe FrameMaker
- GitHub
- Jira
- Confluence
- API Documentation
- Microsoft Visio
- Snagit
- RoboHelp
1. Markdown
Markdown is a lightweight markup language for plain text that lets technical writers create readable, structured docs—headings, lists, code, tables—then export to HTML or other formats.
Why It's Important
It’s fast, portable, and friendly to version control. Teams can review diffs, automate checks, and publish to multiple channels without wrestling heavy formatting.
How to Improve Markdown Skills
Nail the basics: headings, emphasis, lists, images, links, code, tables. Muscle memory saves time.
Write for scanning: short paragraphs, meaningful subheads, task-first lists, and code fenced where it matters.
Adopt a style guide: define heading levels, table patterns, and code fence languages; keep it consistent across repos.
Use linters and formatters: run a Markdown linter and a formatter pre-commit to keep the noise down in reviews.
Leverage variants wisely: know what GitHub Flavored Markdown supports (tables, task lists) and avoid features your pipeline can’t render.
Compose modular content: split long docs into smaller files; link with relative paths to make maintenance less brittle.
Preview like a reader: check how your Markdown renders in the final destination (site, wiki, PDF). Tweak layout before shipping.
Inline link syntax example: [Link text](docs/section "Optional title")
How to Display Markdown Skills on Your Resume
2. DITA
DITA (Darwin Information Typing Architecture) is an XML-based standard for modular, topic-based authoring, reuse, and multichannel publishing.
Why It's Important
It brings structure and reuse to complex doc sets, keeps terminology consistent, and enables single-sourcing for audiences, platforms, and locales.
How to Improve DITA Skills
Think topic-first: concept, task, reference—write to type, not to a page. Tight topics reuse better.
Map with intent: build DITA maps that mirror user journeys and product areas; avoid orphan topics.
Reuse deliberately: apply conref and keyref for shared chunks and variables; track reuse to prevent circular dependencies.
Use metadata: audience, platform, and product metadata supercharge filtering and findability.
Apply conditional processing: craft clean conditions for editions, roles, and platforms without creating a rules jungle.
Specialize when needed: create specializations only to solve real modeling gaps—and document the intent.
Automate quality: validate against schemas, run link and key checks, and lint titles and shortdescs.
Choose solid tools: use an XML editor with DITA-aware authoring, publishing pipelines, and version control integration.
How to Display DITA Skills on Your Resume
3. XML
XML (eXtensible Markup Language) structures data in a human-readable, machine-parseable way, ideal for schemas, transformations, and content interchange.
Why It's Important
It enforces consistency, enables automation (transforms, validations), and underpins standards like DITA and DocBook.
How to Improve XML Skills
Model first: sketch element structure and attributes; then define an XSD or RELAX NG schema to lock it in.
Name clearly: semantic, predictable element and attribute names pay off during maintenance.
Validate always: wire validation into your editor and CI to catch errors early.
Use namespaces sanely: avoid collisions across vocabularies; keep prefixes short and meaningful.
Format for people: indentation, line breaks, and comments where complexity lurks—readability matters.
Transform with purpose: learn XSLT/XPath fundamentals to publish to HTML, PDF, and beyond.
Mind encoding: standardize on UTF-8 and declare it; test special characters in your pipeline.
Profile performance: for large files, streamline structure and choose efficient parsers.
How to Display XML Skills on Your Resume
4. MadCap Flare
MadCap Flare is an authoring and publishing system built for single-sourcing, content reuse, and multi-channel outputs like HTML5 help, PDFs, and knowledge bases.
Why It's Important
It unifies large doc sets, lets teams tailor content per audience from a shared source, and streamlines localization and updates.
How to Improve MadCap Flare Skills
Standardize with templates: master master pages, page layouts, and CSS; enforce styles with snippets and variables.
Condition with intent: keep condition sets small and well named; document when to apply each.
Break content into chunks: topics should be short, reusable, and purpose-built; avoid monoliths.
Wire version control: connect Flare projects to Git or similar; branch for releases and hotfixes.
Tune search: craft microcopy in titles and summaries; add metadata and synonyms to boost findability.
Measure usage: integrate analytics to see what readers hit, then prune or strengthen content.
Polish outputs: create dedicated targets with output-specific CSS, skins, and sitemaps.
Keep a build pipeline: automate builds, link checks, and regressions for every release.
How to Display MadCap Flare Skills on Your Resume
5. Adobe FrameMaker
Adobe FrameMaker is a powerhouse for long-form, structured or unstructured documents—manuals, specs, policy sets—with robust layout control and XML support.
Why It's Important
It handles scale: complex books, heavy cross-referencing, indexes, and precise print/PDF output without buckling.
How to Improve Adobe FrameMaker Skills
Template everything: paragraph, character, table, and object styles—lock them down and reuse.
Conditional content: build variants for roles, regions, or versions from a unified source.
Cross-links that work: consistent markers and cross-refs keep navigation tight across chapters.
Automate the grind: learn ExtendScript or FrameScript to batch-renumber, relink, and format in one sweep.
Structured authoring: map to DITA/XML where appropriate to scale reuse and downstream transforms.
Integrate a CMS: connect to your content management system for versioning and parallel work.
Preflight before publish: run book-wide checks for broken links, overset text, and style drift.
How to Display Adobe FrameMaker Skills on Your Resume
6. GitHub
GitHub hosts Git repositories and wraps them with collaboration features—pull requests, issues, actions—so writers can build docs alongside code.
Why It's Important
Docs live where the product lives. You get versioning, review workflows, CI checks, and visibility into engineering changes that affect content.
How to Improve GitHub Skills
Repository hygiene: clear READMEs, CONTRIBUTING guidelines, labels, and issue templates keep work flowing.
Branch with purpose: short-lived feature branches; use draft PRs early for feedback.
Automate checks: run Actions for link checking, linting, spellcheck, and previews on every commit.
Keep discussions public: issues and PR threads document decisions; summarize outcomes in docs.
Use CODEOWNERS: auto-request reviews from the right folks; protect main branches.
Adopt GFM patterns: tables, task lists, and code fences sharpen readability in repo docs.
Accessibility first: headings in order, alt text, and semantic Markdown for screen reader friendliness.
How to Display GitHub Skills on Your Resume
7. Jira
Jira is a work management and issue tracking platform used to plan, track, and deliver tasks across engineering, product, and documentation.
Why It's Important
It syncs documentation work with product milestones. You see dependencies, blockers, and release timing at a glance.
How to Improve Jira Skills
Tailor workflows: add states like Draft, Review, Tech Review, Ready to Publish; automate transitions on events.
Use components and labels: tag by product area, audience, and type (guide, API, how-to) for painless filtering.
Issue templates: standard fields and checklists for common doc tasks keep quality consistent.
Integrate with Confluence: link specs and drafts to issues; show issue status on pages.
Automations: set due dates, notify reviewers, and auto-assign based on component or label.
JQL mastery: build saved filters for release readiness, review queues, and stale work.
Right-size permissions: ensure sensitive drafts are scoped; open up read access where safe.
How to Display Jira Skills on Your Resume
8. Confluence
Confluence is a collaborative workspace for specs, design notes, runbooks, and user-facing docs—searchable, structured, and integrated with Jira.
Why It's Important
It centralizes knowledge, supports page history and inline comments, and makes cross-team documentation discoverable.
How to Improve Confluence Skills
Design your spaces: homepages with navigation, consistent page trees, and naming conventions that scale.
Use templates: page templates for RFCs, release notes, and procedures reduce rework.
Macros that matter: Table of Contents, Expand, Status, Page Properties—raise scannability without clutter.
Link correctly: use the editor’s link tool for internal pages and anchors; avoid pasting long raw URLs.
Review cadences: add “review-by” metadata and rotate page owners; archive stale content.
Permissions with intent: open for reading by default, restrict editing to owners, and track watchers.
Visuals that explain: diagrams, screenshots, and short clips where text alone struggles.
How to Display Confluence Skills on Your Resume
9. API Documentation
API documentation explains how to request, authenticate, and interpret responses from an API—endpoints, parameters, schemas, examples, and errors—so developers can integrate without guesswork.
Why It's Important
Good docs shrink onboarding time, reduce support load, and drive adoption. Great docs become part of the product’s value.
How to Improve API Documentation Skills
Lead with orientation: a clear overview, use cases, and quickstart with working sample calls.
Document consistently: standard sections for every endpoint—method, path, auth, params, request/response examples, and status codes.
Show realistic examples: language-specific snippets and curl; keep them tested and copy-pasteable.
Explain authentication: flows, token lifetimes, scopes, and renewal—plus failure modes.
Define errors: error objects, HTTP codes, common scenarios, and troubleshooting steps.
Provide schemas: typed fields, enums, defaults, and constraints; include change logs.
Make it interactive: where possible, offer a sandbox or explorer to try calls safely.
Version visibly: communicate deprecations and breaking changes early; provide migration guides.
Automate from source: generate references from OpenAPI/Swagger where appropriate and handcraft the guides.
How to Display API Documentation Skills on Your Resume
10. Microsoft Visio
Microsoft Visio creates diagrams—flows, org charts, network maps, swimlanes—that turn complex systems into visuals people can act on.
Why It's Important
Clear diagrams compress complexity. They speed decisions, reduce ambiguity, and anchor step-by-step procedures.
How to Improve Microsoft Visio Skills
Start with the right stencil: pick templates and shapes designed for your domain; customize and save favorites.
Use themes and styles: apply consistent colors, connectors, and text styles for instant professionalism.
Make connections smart: use dynamic connectors, snap/glue settings, and alignment guides to keep layouts tidy.
Layer and group: separate concerns (flows, annotations, callouts) into layers; lock what shouldn’t move.
Data-link shapes: bind shapes to data sources to auto-populate fields and visuals.
Keyboard fluency: practice shortcuts for shapes, connectors, and formatting—speed compounds.
Collaborate: co-author, comment, and export lightweight formats for quick stakeholder review.
How to Display Microsoft Visio Skills on Your Resume
11. Snagit
Snagit captures screenshots and short videos, then lets you annotate, highlight, and assemble visuals that clarify steps and interfaces.
Why It's Important
Visuals cut through confusion. Annotated images and quick clips make procedures memorable and lower support friction.
How to Improve Snagit Skills
Build capture presets: fixed regions, scrolling windows, panoramic capture—save presets for repeatable shots.
Master annotations: callouts, step numbers, arrows, and highlights with consistent styles and colors.
Use Quick Styles and themes: create brand-ready palettes and typography once; apply everywhere.
Clean backgrounds: crop, simplify, and blur sensitive data; focus attention on the action area.
Replace text and move objects: adjust UI text or reposition elements to avoid retakes when minor changes land.
Combine and template: assemble multi-step guides with templates; keep spacing and hierarchy uniform.
Short video, sharp audio: record tight clips with cursor emphasis and captions; trim aggressively.
Organize the library: tag, name, and archive assets by product and version for quick reuse.
How to Display Snagit Skills on Your Resume
12. RoboHelp
RoboHelp helps teams create, manage, and publish help systems and knowledge bases to web, mobile, and print outputs.
Why It's Important
It accelerates topic-based authoring, keeps navigation and search cohesive, and supports multi-channel delivery without duplicate effort.
How to Improve RoboHelp Skills
Start from solid templates: set up consistent layouts, skins, and CSS before writing a word.
Topic granularity: write small, task-focused topics; wire them with meaningful TOCs and breadcrumbs.
Use conditional content: filter by audience, platform, and version to single-source variants.
Embed multimedia thoughtfully: short videos, GIFs, and images where they genuinely clarify.
HTML5 output tuning: customize search, microcopy, and navigation elements for quick wayfinding.
Integrate source control: branch per release; review diffs; tag publishes for rollback safety.
Maintain SEO hygiene: descriptive titles, summaries, and alt text; logical URL structures.
Audit regularly: link checks, orphan topic scans, and analytics-led pruning improve the whole set.
How to Display RoboHelp Skills on Your Resume
