The Portfolio Problem: When You Can’t Show Your Own Work (And AI Writers Can)
Without portfolios, experienced technical writers are overlooked while AI and novices showcase surface-level work—proving how we think is now more critical than ever.
I’ve been a technical writer for over 15 years. I’ve written manuals, structured documentation, and worked on high-security projects. But ask me to show my work? I can’t.
Let me know if you want a free 30 minute stragey session or Q&A session
Everything I’ve written is locked behind proprietary agreements, export controls, and confidentiality clauses. I can’t add it to my portfolio. I can’t even reference it in detail. And when I sit down to create something new as an example, I freeze.
Meanwhile, AI tools are churning out passable documentation, and people with little to no real experience are sliding into the industry—because unlike me, they can show something. Even if it’s auto-generated fluff, it’s there.
Turns out, I’m not the only one dealing with this.
The Struggle of Technical Writers Without a Portfolio
A lot of technical writers run into this problem. We build entire systems of documentation, but we can’t take any of it with us.
Some writers try to work around this by redacting or modifying documents, but that’s not always an option. Others attempt to recreate their work from memory, only to realize that writing documentation in isolation—without a real product or system to describe—feels unnatural.
Even if you’ve spent years structuring complex manuals, troubleshooting documentation issues, and making sure real users get the right information, without samples, proving your expertise to new clients or employers is harder than it should be.
And now, AI writing tools are making it even worse.
AI Can Fake It, But It Can’t Replace Us—Yet
AI-generated documentation isn’t great, but it’s good enough to trick people who don’t know what real technical writing looks like. Companies that don’t understand the depth of structured writing, user needs, and industry standards are increasingly relying on AI to churn out documentation.
And since we can’t share our work, we have nothing to set ourselves apart.
A hiring manager might see two candidates:
One has a solid portfolio of AI-assisted work that looks professional.
One has 15+ years of experience but nothing to showcase.
Who gets hired?
Without proof of what we bring to the table—our ability to think, structure, and refine complex information—AI-generated writing starts looking like a viable alternative to the real thing.
Finding a Way to Show What We Know
Since I couldn’t use my actual work, I had to find another way to prove I knew what I was doing.
Personal Projects: Some writers create their own documentation for open-source projects or everyday tasks. It’s not the same as working on a high-stakes project, but it does show technical skill.
Describing the Work Instead of Showing It: If I couldn’t share a document, I could at least describe how I structured it, the challenges I solved, and the impact it had.
Redacted or Hypothetical Samples: Some writers take past work, strip out all identifying details, and turn it into a generic example of their writing style and approach.
Contributing to Open Source Documentation: Projects like Mozilla, Linux, and GitHub repositories often need technical writers. It’s a way to build a public-facing portfolio without breaking confidentiality agreements.
What This Taught Me About Writing
For technical writers, the value of our work isn’t just in the documents themselves—it’s in how we think, how we structure information, and how we make complex topics clear and usable.
AI can generate writing, but it doesn’t understand it. It doesn’t problem-solve, validate processes, or adapt to real-world users.
But without something to prove our value, those of us with actual expertise risk being overlooked.
Writing for a portfolio is different from writing for a real project, but both require the same skills: precision, clarity, and the ability to organize information in a way that works.
I still can’t show most of what I’ve written. But I can talk about how I think, how I work, and why structured writing matters.
Now, the challenge isn’t just competing with other technical writers. It’s proving that what we do can’t be replaced.
This hit way too close to home.
As someone who’s ghostwritten for high-profile brands under airtight NDAs, I’ve always struggled with the paradox: the better and more sensitive the work, the less I can show. Meanwhile, people posting AI-generated samples or quick blog-style docs gain traction simply because they have something visible.
Loved your line: “Writing for a portfolio is different from writing for a real project.” That nuance is lost on so many people hiring writers right now. They don’t realize what it means to think structurally, to build for users, to juggle constraints like compliance and cross-functional feedback—all without a single word of credit.
Also, your point about email over social platforms? 👏 Algorithms bury value. But email builds trust. The same is true with writing—real work doesn’t always go viral, but it lasts.