Journal of Technical Writing and Communication Apr 1991

Emplotting the Reader: Motivation and Technical Documentation

David Goodwin University of Waterloo

Abstract

Technical documents implicitly require readers to play out textually constructed roles in order to create meanings. Good technical writers create texts that motivate their readers by emplotting them in an attractive fabula, and, especially, in a role that not only achieves the ostensible purposes of the documentation but also allows the reader to function as the hero in a narrative of progress and improvement. Drawing on reader-response criticism and narratology, this article shows how a particular instructional software manual, the VP-Expert™ guide, instructs and motivates readers by using devices which resemble the conventions of heroic narrative.

Journal
Journal of Technical Writing and Communication
Published
1991-04-01
DOI
10.2190/1tld-2jbl-dd7x-pxk3
Open Access
Closed
Topics
technical communication

Citation Context

Cited by in this index (11)

  1. Yusuf et al. (2022)
    A Technical Hair Piece: Metis, Social Justice and Technical Communication in Bl…
    Technical Communication Quarterly
  2. Randall (2022)
    Taking the Tactical Out of Technical: A Reassessment of Tactical Technical Comm…
    Journal of Technical Writing and Communication
  3. Peter (2017)
    “Make a Bomb in the Kitchen of Your Mom”: Jihadist Tactical Technical Communica…
    Technical Communication Quarterly
  4. Ittersum (2014)
    Craft and Narrative in DIY Instructions
    Technical Communication Quarterly
  5. Loorbach et al. (2006)
    The Effects of Motivational Elements in User Instructions
    Journal of Business and Technical Communication
Show all 11 →
  1. Todd (1998)
    A Longinian concept and methodology for technical communication
    Technical Communication Quarterly
  2. HENRY et al. (1995)
    Workplace Ghostwriting
    Journal of Business and Technical Communication
  3. Henry (1994)
    Toward Technical Authorship
    Journal of Technical Writing and Communication
  4. Goodwin (1994)
    Designing a Quick Reference Guide: A Teaching Case
    Journal of Technical Writing and Communication
  5. Connor (1994)
    Research on Technical and Scientific Communication in Canada: A Bibliographical…
    Journal of Technical Writing and Communication
  6. Bosley (1994)
    Feminist theory, audience analysis, and verbal and visual representation in a t…
    Technical Communication Quarterly

Cites in this index (2)

  1. Killingsworth et al. (1989)
    Amplification in Technical Manuals: Theory and Practice
    Journal of Technical Writing and Communication
  2. Gibson (1950)
    Authors, Speakers, Readers, and Mock Readers
    College English
Also cites 4 works outside this index ↓
  1. 10.2307/461344
     ↗
  2. Rabinowitz P. J., Truth in Fiction: A Reexamination of Audiences, Critical Inquiry, Autumn, p. 126, 1977.
     ↗
  3. 10.1525/9780520340664
     ↗
  4. 10.1515/9783110824728
     ↗
CrossRef global citation count: 23 View in citation network →

Related Articles

  1. Journal of Technical Writing and Communication Apr 2026
    Developing Intercultural Socioemotional Communication Skills: A Hybrid Student Exchange Project Between Kenya, Ireland, and Germany ↗
    Belinda Oechsler; Yvonne Cleary; Sissi Closs
    multimodality technical communication
  2. Journal of Technical Writing and Communication Apr 2026
    What Video Games Can Tell Us About Interactive Technical Communication ↗
    Emily Kuzneski Johnson
    multimodality technical communication multilingual writers
  3. Journal of Technical Writing and Communication Apr 2026
    “Is This Ethical?” New Data on the Ethical Principles and Practices of Document Design ↗
    Leslie Seawright; Amy Hodges; Timothy Ponce
    multimodality technical communication disability studies multilingual writers
  4. Journal of Technical Writing and Communication Apr 2026
    How to Write With GenAI: A Framework for Using Generative AI to Automate Writing Tasks in Technical Communication ↗
    Guiseppe Getto; Susan Kelley; Bremen Vance
    artificial intelligence technical communication multilingual writers
  5. Journal of Technical Writing and Communication Mar 2026
    “It's Hard to Show ROI When You’re Preventing Things from Happening”: How Impact Storytelling Frames Community Health Initiatives for Executive Audiences ↗
    Margaret Hsiao
    qualitative research multimodality technical communication professional writing multilingual writers